Such a philosophy wasn’t purely abstract and theoretical but also practical and hands-on. They too had academic interests in philosophy-such as logic, rhetoric, and physics-but they pursued those interests in the service of something else: a philosophy of life.įor them, developing a philosophy of life-a guide to living the good life-was the entire reason for studying philosophy. They might teach certain ethics and principles in their lectures, but it’s not obvious that they would actually live by them.īut the ancient Greek and Roman philosophers approached philosophy differently. University philosophers specialize in metaphysics, politics, logic, etc, and usually study those topics in a theoretical way. In modern times, the word philosophy usually induces the image of a university department. Stoicism as a philosophy of self-improvement also fits in well with Exploring Kodawari’s approach to life.īut before giving the definition of Stoicism, let’s first highlight the importance of having any kind of philosophy of life to guide you. The Roman Stoics had specific techniques for avoiding negative emotions and improving one’s life.
This article will answer that less from the academic and historical perspective and more from the personal and practical wisdom of Roman Stoicism. The most notable Roman Stoics were Seneca, Epictetus, and Marcus Aurelius. Stoicism particularly resonated with the Roman aristocracy and according to Gregory Hays became “the real religion of upper-class Romans”. Luckily, Stoicism spread to other areas after Chrysippus’s death, most notably to Rome. They and other Greek philosophers provided the more academic underpinnings of Stoicism, but only fragments survive from their writings. Following Zeno’s death, Stoicism would continue to develop first under Zeno’s pupil Cleanthes and later under Cleanthes’s pupil Chrysippus. The name comes from the “stoa” or porch in Athens where Zeno gave his lectures. And since the end of the 20th century, it has been undergoing an impressive revival. Stoicism, founded in the 3rd century BC by Zeno of Citium, is one of the most influential philosophies from the Hellenistic period of ancient Greece. ** Click here to listen to the podcast episode that corresponds to this article**
And in Stoicism, this harmony with reality is the source of wisdom and tranquility in life, something much more valuable than even happiness. Marcus Aurelius, in his Meditations, says “nothing can happen to me that isn’t natural” and later that “nothing natural is evil”.
Stoicism is a philosophy of life that brings you into harmony with nature, with what is. Rather, stoic beliefs guide us to down-regulate negative emotions and promote well-being. The definition of Stoicism as a philosophy is not the same as being lowercase s stoical-it is not being immune to feelings and emotions.
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