Book 6 / Chapter 12
Paragraph 2 - The Production of Happiness by Philosophic Wisdom
Explanation - Part By Part
"Secondly, they do produce something, not as the art of medicine produces health, however, but as health produces health; so does philosophic wisdom produce happiness; for, being a part of virtue entire, by being possessed and by actualizing itself it makes a man happy."
Aristotle is addressing the concern about whether certain intellectual virtues, like philosophic wisdom (sophia), actually produce anything useful, especially in terms of human happiness. He argues that these virtues do indeed produce something, but not in a direct or external way, like how the art of medicine produces health by crafting or creating a specific outcome through external effort. Instead, the value of philosophic wisdom is more intrinsic and self-sustaining.
He compares it to how health naturally sustains and reinforces itself. In the same way, philosophic wisdom contributes to happiness not by producing it as a separate result, but by being an essential part of what happiness is. When someone possesses this kind of wisdom and actively engages with it (or "actualizes" it), happiness emerges because philosophic wisdom is a key component of a complete, virtuous life.
The big takeaway here: Aristotle sees happiness as tied to living virtuously and engaging in a harmonious life of intellectual and moral excellence. Philosophic wisdom isn't just a tool; it's part of the foundation of what it means to flourish as a human being.