“Learn to ask of all action, ‘Why are they doing that?’ Starting with your own.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 10.37 We tend to judge others and their actions before trying to understand them. Often, we don’t have a clue what we are doing ourselves. We fail to examine our own Read more
“So, tell me, will someone call a man sane who, as if caught up in a tempest, does not walk but is driven along, and takes as his master a furious demon…?” Seneca, Dialogues and Essays, On Anger, Book 3 We’ve all felt it, that flash of heat rising in Read more
“Practice, then, from the start to say to every harsh impression, ‘You are an impression, and not at all the thing you appear to be.’ Then examine it and test it by these rules which you have, and firstly, and chiefly, by this: Whether the impression has to do with Read more
What are the core Stoic beliefs, how do we apply them, and where did it all start? Enda Harte, our guest author, will take you on a journey through the history, teachings, and practical side of Stoicism. The beginnings of Stoicism Stoicism began in Athens around 300 BCE with Zeno Read more
“And why is it so hard when things go against you? If it’s imposed by nature, accept it gladly and stop fighting it. And if not, work out what your own nature requires, and aim at that, even if it brings you no glory. None of us is forbidden to Read more
“Indifferent to great endeavors.” Reference to Aristotle by Seneca, Dialogues and Essays, On Anger, 3 Ambition is everywhere. We’re told to hustle, to dream bigger, to never settle. If we don’t, then we are meaningless and have insignificant lives. That’s what society tells us. But Seneca, drawing on Stoic and Read more
What is Pathos? Pathos (plural: pathē), in Stoicism, is the negative emotion we experience when we allow ourselves to follow false judgments and irrational thinking. Most people associate “pathos” with emotion or sympathy. In rhetoric, it means an appeal to emotion. But in Stoicism, pathos (Greek: πάθος) has a very Read more
“When you are about to undertake some action, remind yourself what sort of action it is.” Epictetus, Handbook, 4 How often do we rush into things without asking why and what we are doing? Epictetus believed that almost every mistake in life comes from forgetting what we are doing and Read more
What is Sympatheia? Sympatheia (συμπάθεια) in Stoicism reminds us of the deep interconnectedness of all things in the universe. It is the understanding that every person, being, event, and action is part of a larger, rational whole (Logos), and that we each have a role to play within it. More Read more
“But since the first essential is not to become angry, the second to cease being angry, and the third to cure also anger in others.” Seneca, Dialogues and Essays, On Anger, 5 Seneca lays out the Stoic cure for anger: first, we mustn’t get angry. If we fail at doing Read more