ARISTOTLE AND SPINOSA: TWO PATHS TO HAPPINESS – FROM ACTION TO UNDERSTANDING

Abstract

The article presents a comparative analysis of the philosophical conceptions of happiness in the works of Aristotle and Benedict Spinoza. Two fundamental models of interpreting happiness are examined: happiness as the realization of human nature through activity, and happiness as a state arising from the adequate understanding of necessity. It is shown that Aristotle’s concept of eudaimonia reveals the practical dimension of human existence associated with virtuous activity and social participation, while Spinoza’s approach highlights the cognitive and ontological dimension related to knowledge and inner freedom. The paper argues that each of these models remains partial when considered in isolation and proposes an integrative approach in which happiness is interpreted as the unity of meaningful action and adequate understanding. It is concluded that the synthesis of Aristotelian and Spinozist traditions provides a more comprehensive philosophical understanding of happiness, corresponding to the complexity of human existence in the context of contemporary rationality.