the world, i believe, is far too serious, and being far too serious,it has need a wise and merry philosophy.  the philosophy of the art of living can certainly be called “gay science,” if anything can be called by that phrase used by nietzsche.  after all, only a merry philosophy is profound philosophy; the serious philosophies havent even begun to understand what life is.  to me personally, the only function of philosophy is reach us to take life more lightly and gaily than the average businessman does, for no business  who does not retire at fifty, if he can, is in my eyes a philosopher.  this is not merely a casual thought, but a fundamental point of view with me.  the world can be made a more peaceful and more reasonable place to live in when men have imbued themselves in the light geity of this spirit.  the modern man takes life far too seriously, and because he is too serious, the world is full of troubles.  we ought, therefore, to take time to examine the origin of that attitude which will make possible a whole-hearted enjoyment of this life and a more reasonable, more peaceful and less hot-headed temperament.

i am perhaps entitled to call this the philosophy of the people rather than of any one school.  it is a philosophy that is greater than confucious and greater than laotse, for it transcends those and other thought and harmonizes them into a whole, and from the abstract outines of their wisdom it has created an art of living in the flesh, visible, palpable and understandable by the common man.