How to Be Happy ? According to Al-farabi
Money, love, or even health are often cited as paths to happiness. After all, if I’m rich, I can obtain any goods or services I desire—though “any” is a bit exaggerated, because can one purchase someone’s love ? Love, at first glance, seems priceless. Love for another person can cause emotional distress, which can harm our health. Yet health can be “unequal”: not everyone is healthy, and some may never be, due to a disability that disrupts their life. So how do we navigate these apparent contradictions? Should we draw on the advantages of these three concepts to achieve happiness? Does benefiting from what’s good in each context not rule out their possible drawbacks? For the famous Persian philosopher Al‑Farabi, neither of the above—rather, the key to happiness lies in the pursuit of knowledge. Here’s why: A. The pursuit of knowledge brings happiness According to Al‑Farabi, seeking knowledge leads to virtue (a balance between extremes and negligence in life¹), which leads to...