What is the best thing to befall man (bless, philosophy)

[Solon]

In a fragment of his lost dialogue Eudemus , the young Aristotle tell an anonymous story in order to support his claim that " the dead are blessed and happy...since they have now become better and greater". The story goes like this:

' They say that when Midas had caught Silenus ( the last Satyr) he interogated him after the hunt and asked him what was the best thing for men and what was the most desirable of all. Silenus at first would not say anything but maintained an unbroken silence, but when, after using every device, Midas, with difficulty induced him to address him,
He said under duress: " Shortlived seed of a toiling spirit and a harsh fortune, why do you force me to say what is better for you not to know? For a life lived in ignornace of its own ills is most painless. It is quite impossible for the best thing of all to befall men, nor can they share in the nature of what is better. For it is best, for all men and women not to be born; and second after that - the first thing open to men- is, once born, to die as quickly as possible".'

From this clearly ironic standpoint, one has to be alive to appreciate the beauty of not been born, Aristotle concludes thus: " It is clear that he ( Silenus) meant that the time spent dead is better than that spent alive". Of course, since nooby has been able to speak about being dead, one is unable to either accept this argument, nor to refute it. I love Philosophy.


Solon