MEANS, ENDS AND THE UTMOST GOOD (SUMMUM BONUM). By KEMKA S. IBEJI

In my little study of philosophy, I came across these two concepts and they meant so much to me. I however, realized the importance of the duo as well. But going through experiences in life, it got me wondering how many people live their lives. It simply became obvious to me that many still do not understand those concepts. It made me appreciate once again the facts of knowledge.

Like roads, means are routes that lead to your destination while, in this analogy, the end is the destination. In my argument here, let me put it clear that life has a goal. To get to this goal which an end, but to get to this goal we pass through means.

We have also gone through the questions of what the goal of life is. Many schools of thought adduced many meanings to it. However, in the end they seem to be saying the same thing. Maybe our slight adumbration will help us a little here.

On the question of the goal of life, it's answers were, in fact, to give meaning to life itself. Why do we live? What is the end or purpose of our existence? Why do we wake up, hurry out and hurry home each day? Why are we born and why do we die at last? What do we need the little time of existence for? Of what need is our being in the world? What do we make of this earthly sojourn? And many more questions as such. But to cap it or summarize it; what is the goal of life?

While the transcendental and extraterrestrial religions are of the opinion that the goal life is salvation and eternal life, their answer seemed even more opaque than the question may want. Pruning down further, it was clear that the salvation, kingdom, heaven and everlasting life theories of these faiths and sects were just nothing but, maybe if we can use the word, advanced means.

The earthly or what the religionists will refer to as world religions had rather pontificated that we live for some reason. But in their submissions, they have towed the same path of religion. While some have a view that the goal of life is social justice, some have differing positions as well.

In academic philosophy, you will locate this discourse in Ethics. The question is that of what is the utmost good - the summum bonum - for human beings? Traditional of philosophy, we were inundated with array of declarations. Most schools have asserted various standpoints to the same question.

For hedonism, the hedonist believe that the goal of life is pleasure. This was in fact championed by Epicurus to the point that the school can be referred to as Epicureanism. However, Epicureanism became just one aspect of hedonism. Hedonism which derived from a Greek word meaning pleasure had its early consideration from many thinkers among who is a socratic student known as Aristippus. For the hedonists, the utmost good is pleasure. And as Aristippus would say; good is pleasure and the only good life is that of continuous pleasure. At some point, hedonists almost equated humans with animals considering the fact that pleasure here was not unique to humans. Their brand of pleasure could accommodate the loud sex and suchlike. Of course, even animals can take the lead here. Their position got through intellectual scale and was found seriously wanting to the extent that they began to review it. Now they said that the goal of life is that pleasure without pain.

Then came Utilitarianism. Utilitarians have their motto arguably as "the greatest good for the greatest number". This principle enunciated by Jeremy Bentham was to be known as "Benthamic Calculus" while some referred to it as the "Hedonistic Calculus". It was arguably the motto of Utilitarians because not all of them agreed to it. The like of John Stuart Mill discountenanced the principle and trashed it for being just quantitative and not qualitative. However, the thrust of utilitarianism was that the goal of life is such that grants the greatest benefit to the greatest number. So if you live a live that benefits more people than it hurt, it was indeed a good life.

Other schools came up to proffer solutions to the question of the goal and purpose of life - the utmost good or the summum bonum. The was Altruism, Egoism, Intuitionism, Emotivism and much more. While some said it was success, some said it was salvation, some said it was pleasure, some said it was asceticism, said it was the greatest good of the greatest number, some said it was living for others and so on.

All the schools were however begging the question and declaring means as goals. This is because all they dropped as goals were also aimed at something else. If you say that the goal of life is pleasure, you will also realize that pleasure is needed for something else. If you say it is salvation and paradise, you will suddenly realize that going to heaven is for a purpose and so cannot be an end in itself. This goes round the postulation of the various schools.

Nevertheless, a certain school of thought in philosophy - Eudemonism - gave a grand deposition. Eminent among them was Aristotle. For the eudemonists, the utmost good and summum bonum is HAPPINESS. This is the highest and end in itself. You really do not need happiness for anything else. You just desire happiness to be happy. You were born, you go to school, gain certificate, hunt for job and change jobs, learn skill and start a business, get rich, buy houses, own cars and in their luxury, marry many wives, go to clubs, cinemas, watch football, play games, and all sorts of things we do in life just to be happy at last. Happiness is however endemic. It is endless and inexhaustible.

It is very important to highlight here that none of the above indicated human endeavors is inherent with and in happiness and none has happiness inherent in it. This simply implies that none of your riches, your best dress, your luxury apartments and cars, your priceless ornaments and jewelry, none of your precious stones, and your education can be exchanged for happiness. They are not a guarantee for happiness. If they were so, the poor will never laugh.

Happiness is an intrinsic stream gushing from a pure heart that has left worries, desires and struggles. Happiness is the air of peace and the Joint share of the extrabeingness. Happiness is the fulfillment of the heart and mind when removed from the sham of the fleeting existence. While it refreshes life, it nourishes mankind for the pursuits of the end. Happiness is both means and an end. Happiness is an end in itself. Happiness is sought for itself and for others that lead to itself.

But within happiness, there seems to be forms. Some forms of happiness last for a while. In fact, one can say that all forms of happiness last that have so far been experienced by mankind are for just a while and varnishes, at least at death. Could it be right to say that it as such as humans are being of time? Is it why certain ideas wish to procure everlasting life which is timeless so as to enjoy the infinite span of happiness?

It is therefore instructive to note that the further search by religions and sundry philosophical schools is to locate such happiness that is timeless, boundless, infinite, everlasting and lasts ad infinitum may have emanated from the foregoing.

To this, I must say, we may search forever.


KEMKA S. IBEJI