Why pain?
The world is filled with pain and suffering, but why? Many religions and philosophies have tried to eliminate it. Why? Pain is the opposite of happiness. If we have pain, we are unhappy.
The Greek tried to understand pain and looked for ways for it not to consume us and end our live’s actions, habits, social relations and work. There are many ways to see pain according to different schools of thoughts:
1. The hedonist tried to live a happy life without pain and live only looking for pleasures like food, wine, sleep, talk, etc.
2. The epicurean tried to live without pain but measuring pleasures; some are worth more than others, like knowing is better than eating.
3. The stoic accepted pain and denied any type of pleasure, so they could focus on what is important: happiness and how we can achieve it without any obstacle like desires and pleasures. If there is only pain in life, we better accept our fate instead of going against it.
Yes, pain is terrible and unavoidable but it must not be the end of everything nor should it make us see nothing else. Medics have different types of measurement for pain. They use scales to know the kind of damage they are dealing with.
If there were no pain, there would be no purpose for it: to realize what is wrong, to warn us of something bad, or to help us endure whatever life has to offer. Let’s think of a life without pain, would we be the same as who we are now? Would we be able to enjoy life? Would it be possible to be happy?
Madeleine Aupart Moreno
Pain is not the opposite of happiness. Some of the greatest joys in life come along with great suffering, for example, one of the happiest moments of a woman’s life is when she finally gets to hold her baby in her arms. But also, one
of the greatest pains a human being can experience is the pain of giving birth. This is just one example that pain is not against happiness and that they can get along. We can also see this relationship in our daily lives when we have to choose between two different options. We may follow our concupiscible or irascible appetites. It is true that concupiscible passions are easier to get, in the sense that they require less effort. On the other hand, irascible passions or appetites are harder to achieve because they require more effort or suffering. But, at the end of the day, it is the irascible appetites that will make us be more perfect or complete. In other words, suffering does help us achieve happiness.