After hearing author Ryan Holiday on a podcast, I was intrigued with his knowledge of Stoicism and just how the philosophy aligned with my core values. After purchasing The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living and Lives of the Stoics: The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius I decided to document my journey. Here I will share my anecdote while learning and reflecting on Stoicism and how I plan to apply it to my life.
“Success comes to the lowly and to the poorly talented, but the special characteristic of a great person is to triumph over the disasters and panics of human life.”
- Seneca, On Providence, 4.1
“First practice not letting people know who you are — keep your philosophy to yourself for a bit. In just the manner that fruit is produced — the seed buried for a season, hidden, growing gradually so it may come to full maturity. But if the grain sprouts before the stalk is fully developed, it will never ripen … That is the kind of plant you are, displaying fruit too soon, and the winter will kill you.”
- Epictetus, Discourses, 4.8.35b–37
“Try praying differently, and see what happens: Instead of asking for 'a way to sleep with her,’ try asking for 'a way to stop desiring to sleep with her.’ Instead of 'a way to get rid of him,’ try asking for 'a way to not crave his demise.’ Instead of 'a way to not lose my child,’ try asking for 'a way to lose my fear of it.”
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 9.40.(6)
“No, it is events that give rise to fear — when another has power over them or can prevent them, that person becomes able to inspire fear. How is the fortress destroyed? Not by iron or fire, but by judgments … here is where we must begin, and it is from this front that we must seize the fortress and throw out the tyrants.”
- Epictetus, Discourses, 4.1.85-86;87a
“Zeno always said that nothing was more unbecoming than putting on airs, especially with the young.”
- Diogenes Laertius, Lives Of The Eminent Philosophers, 7.1.22
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- Seneca, On Tranquility Of Mind, 9.3b