Recommended Books
I have two books to recommend today, both on the same subject namely that of stoicism. I know the word stoic is largely heard in descriptions by Allan Dean Foster of various characters in Star Wars novels but it actually has a meaning philosophically.
Stoicism was a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early 3rd century BC. The stoics considered destructive emotions to be the result of errors in judgment, and that a sage, or person of “moral and intellectual perfection,” would control such emotions.[1] Stoics were concerned with the active relationship between cosmic determinism and human freedom, and the belief that it is virtuous to maintain a will (called prohairesis) that is in accord with nature. Because of this, the Stoics presented their philosophy as a way of life, and they thought that the best indication of an individual’s philosophy was not what a person said but how he or she behaved.[2] Later Roman Stoics, such as Seneca and Epictetus, emphasized that because “virtue is sufficient for happiness,” a sage was immune to misfortune. This belief is similar to the meaning of the phrase ‘stoic calm’, though the phrase does not include the “radical ethical” Stoic views that only a sage can be considered truly free, and that all moral corruptions are equally vicious.[3]
Okay, go read the rest if you want.
Here’s the two books for you.
Discourses and Selected Writings, Epictetus
This of course is the intermediate yet seminal and foundational book of stoicism that would later in intellectual descent lead to my next selection. It’s a fairly nice book whose source material I’ve read online over time but I like paper in my hands and can’t afford a Kindle DX when a full laptop costs less.
Despite what is said of Epictetus believing in fate which is a more than simplistic dumbing down, he treats fate or more properly things outside one’s control the way I do. Which is to say as the aggregate results of the actions of one and others which are too far out of statistical likelihood of intervention much less control and must simply be accepted and faced. However, through mastering ourselves, then right action is more likely to follow and thus reduce the things outside our control that we would like to control or feel perturbed by.
In those things which can be controlled or influenced he also has much to say as well.
The Meditations, Marcus Aurelius, translator George Long
I use the MIT site because you can find many editions of George Long’s translation online or at your favorite book store easily. Mine is an unassuming paperback with a purple cover.
The Meditations are basically Emperor Marcus Aurelius’ notes to himself based in the stoic philosophy.
Stoicism is a bit more varied by its practitioners than generally portrayed as you can find very much spiritual practitioners as well as very non spiritual users.
It’s managed to work into Rational Emotive therapy, credited so by Albert Ellis, and if you want to know about the present work in that area, this website will give you some help there.
I highly recommend checking out these two very important works in the stoic philosophy.
Actually come to think of it, there’s an odd similarity between it and the thinking of the samurai as expressed in Hagakure, another book I strongly recommend.
Enjoy.
