Hello there, This week I will seek inspiration from Marcus Aurelius. Let’s go back to some basics and remembering what is truly good or bad, so as to refocus our efforts and energies. This is from his Meditations VI 41: “But if we judge only those things that are in our power to be good or bad, there remains no […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, I will seek inspiration from one of the earliest Stoics Chrysippus, who was one of the most paradoxical Stoic thinkers. His syllogisms were often bizarre, but full of insight. This is one of his more famous paradoxical syllogisms, as reported by Diogenes Laertius: “There is a certain head, and that head you have not. […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, I will once again look outside our Stoic guides and teachers, as we do from time to time. This is from an old classic that some of you may have read called To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee in 1960. I reread this old classic last week, given the current state of […]
Hello there, Our ancient guides tell us to look for guidance and wisdom everywhere…not just from Stoic teachers. Why? We often speak about the pursuit of wisdom and the truth. However, we are not born with wisdom. It is something that must be pursued. And even though truth is everyone’s domain, and therefore …logically….we should be able to find sprinkles […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, I will look for inspiration from some simple and direct words from Epictetus’ Discourses I 9.29: “Friends, wait for God; when He shall give the signal and release you from his service, then go to Him; but for the present endure to dwell in this place where He has put you: short indeed is […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, I would like to draw from my second most favourite character from the movie Gladiator, and my #1 favourite Roman Emperor who was also a Stoic, Marcus Aurelius. This is from his Meditations IX 42 : “Where is the harm or the strangeness in the boor acting like a boor? See whether you are […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, I will look for inspiration from some simple and direct words from Epictetus’ Discourses II 2.12: “For when you subject what is your own to externals, then from henceforth be a slave.” This is a fairly popular quote I have seen float around the internet under a….cosmetically uplifted variance: There is only one way […]
Hello there, For this week’s exercise, let us find some inspiration in the words of Epictetus from his Discourses IV 12.1: “Is it possible to be free from error? Not by any means, but it is possible to be a person always stretching to avoid error. For we must be content to at least escape a few mistakes by never […]
Hello there, Let’s stick with the short and prompt approach to these weekly exercise posts, and who better than the most direct of our ancient guides to help us once again. This is from Epictetus’ Discourses IV 4.23: “In short, you must remember this – that if you hold anything dear outside of your own reasoned choice, you will have […]
Hello there, For this exercise, let us seek some inspiration from Epictetus’ Discourses III 24 84: “Whenever you experience the pangs of losing something, don’t treat it like a part of yourself but as a breakable glass, so when it falls you will remember that and won’t be troubled. So too, whenever you kiss your child, sibling, or friend, don’t […]