Stoicism for a Better Life – Weekly exercise (December 15, 2019)
Hello there,
This week on Stoicism for a Better Life, let us rationally question our previous rational decisions with some guidance from Epictetus Discourses’ IV 4 13:
“It is a general rule that externals of any kind, if we attach importance to them, make us subject to somebody. It makes no difference whether we wish to be a senator, or wish not to be one; whether we desire to have office, or to avoid it, whether we say, ‘I can’t do anything, unfortunately, I’m tied to my books like a stiff,’ or, ‘Sadly, I have no leisure for study.’ A book is an external, just like office or public honours.”
Just last week we were talking about how books and reading are important to us and necessary in our journey towards a meaningful and tranquil life. So, is Epictetus contradiction our previous rational conclusions? Not at all. He is simply reminding us to do what we should always be doing: Remain vigilant against putting too much credence into anything external.
We all agree that the true good and evil reside only within us (in our judgments and decisions for actions). Anything beyond that is an external and depends more on the universe and its variables than it does on our mere efforts. So, even though it may be a nice to have that we want, an external (or its pursuit) can never be good or bad. Think about it, if it depends on the cosmos lottery of how other variables turn out, how can something be good/bad to us or our lives?
That being said, however, we cannot go through life aimlessly without external goals either. Often, our own self-improvement depends on externals. For example, reading books, which we identified as being a value-added exercise in pursuing a meaningful life, is in fact an external (or an indifferent). Yes, it would be good to read the book we want to read, but we must remember that reading the book is not the ultimate good or objective. If for whatever reason we fail to read what we want when we want it, say because we were interrupted, is that bad? Should we be upset over it?
It is easy to identify and accept that we are wrong when we act like the primitive animal inside us wants to (think of road rage). It is more difficult to identify wrongful behaviour if it is ultimately driven by a quest for virtue. So, this week pay attention to the decisions you make in order to pursue what you deemed to be meaningful to you. Note that we are not questioning what is meaningful to you. Instead we should question what and how much you are sacrificing in the pursuit of it. Are you positive you are making all the right decisions? If so, great! If not, perhaps you need to remind yourself that as human beings we all too easily make bad decisions under the guise of feeling like it’s worth it for our own virtuous greater good.
Virtue is not perfection. It is merely trying your best.
As always, I wish you a wise, tranquil and productive week. If you can, share how you are progressing with your exercise. Your journey may very well inspire others.
Anderson Silver
(Author of “Your User’s Manual” and “Vol 2: Your Duality Within”)