Epiphany: The Duty to Be Happy
To mark the feast of the Epiphany, Mark Tully considers the Magi who carried the good news of a Saviourβs birth to the wider world, and asks if there is a duty to spread happiness.
It is a matter of contention whether happiness should be the proper aim of life. The right to pursue it is enshrined in the American Declaration of Independence and the Dalai Lama has called it βthe purpose of our lifeβ. Nietzsche, however, remarked that βonly the Englishmanβ strove for happiness. Denominations of many faiths often seem to place more emphasis on atoning for sins than striving to be happy.
To mark the feast day of the Three Wise Men taking βgood newsβ out into the world, Mark Tully asks whether being happy and trying to spread happiness is a duty we all share. There are readings from the work of James Joyce and poet and performer Agnes TΓΆrΓΆk and music from Scott Joplin and Jules Massenet.
The readers are David Westhead, Polly Frame and Francis Cadder.
Presenter: Mark Tully
Producer: Frank Stirling
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Music Played
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William Byrd
Gradualia Book 2 (1607) - Communion. Vidimus stellam ejus in Oriente
Performer: The Cardinallβs Musick.- Propers for Epiphany.
- Decca.
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Lama Gyurme & Jean-Philippe Rykiel
The Six Syllable Mantra of the White Lotus Lord
- Rain of Blessings.
- Real World Recordsw.
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Scott Joplin
Felicity Rag
- Scott Joplin Ragtime, Vol. 2.
- CoolNote.
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Jules Massenet
Werther: Du gai soleil plein de flamme
Performer: Isobel Buchanan.- Massenet: Werther.
- Decca.
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Felix Mendelssohn
Christus: ΒSay, where is He born Β Β
Performer: Choir of Clare College, Cambridge.- Veni Emmanuel: Music for Advent.
- Harmonia Mundi.
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Ella Fitzgerald
Get Happy
- Forever Ella.
- Universal Classics and Jazz.
Readings
Title: The Art of HappinessΒ Author: The Dalai LamaEdited by Howard C CutlerPublished by Hachette
Title: The Gospel of Happiness: Re-discover Your Faith Through Spiritual Practice and Positive PsychologyAuthor: Christopher KaczorPublished by Crown Publishing
Title: Happiness Is PoliticalFound in Happiness is an Art FormAuthor: Agnes TorokPublished by Burning Eye Books
Title: Twilight of the IdolsAuthor: Friedrich Nietzsche Translated by Walter Kaufmann and R. J. Hollingdale
Title: Epiphanies 7Found in Poems and Shorter WritingsAuthor: James JoycePublished by Faber and Faber
Title: EpiphanyAuthor: Malcolm Guite
Broadcasts
- Sun 6 Jan 2019 06:05ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
- Sun 6 Jan 2019 23:30ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
- Sun 7 Jan 2024 06:05ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4