Tag Archives: Stoicism

The Lives of the Stoics

Posted on June 7, 2024 by smellincoffee

Some seventeen years ago I discovered The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius and the Discourses and Handbook of Epictetus. Neither men meant to publish these: the first was a private diary that was publically shared after the Emperor’s death, the second … Continue reading →

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Between stimulus and response, there is a space

Posted on May 1, 2024 by smellincoffee

Nearly twenty years ago I stumbled upon Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and the writings of the Stoics. I can’t tell you the exact story because too much time has passed: at the time I was not religious but had an inexplicable … Continue reading →

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Meditating while the world burns

Posted on May 26, 2023 by smellincoffee

I recently asked BingAI to review the works of Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, Seneca, and Musonius Rufus for me, and then roleplay as a Stoic sage. We then had an interesting conversation on Stoicism, Epicureanism, Buddhism, Taoism, and human flourishing. Then, … Continue reading →

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Of Cicero and base-ball

Posted on May 5, 2023 by smellincoffee

This week I’ve been finishing up a couple of audiobooks. The first is How to Grow Old, a short one by Cicero written during the early part of his retirement from Rome, before the odious Mark Anthony sent men to … Continue reading →

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I have found the Most Interesting Thing On YouTube

Posted on August 16, 2021 by smellincoffee

Imagine listening to a book which has strengthened minds for centuries — Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations — not as a dry narrative, but as a performance, a motivational mixtape with impassioned delivery, with a beat. I encountered “Self Control”, taken from … Continue reading →

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Wisdom Wednesday: Memento mori

Posted on July 7, 2021 by smellincoffee
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Wisdom Wednesday: On Living and Working Amid Madness

Posted on February 3, 2021 by smellincoffee

“When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: the people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous and surly. They are like this because they can’t tell good from evil. But I have seen the … Continue reading →

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Wisdom Wednesday: Through adversity, excellence

Posted on September 16, 2020 by smellincoffee

Today’s reminder is from Seneca’s essay, “On Providence”, included in the volume Dialogues and Essays. Seneca was a practicing Stoic in the Roman court, a one-time tutor to Emperor Nero (not a very good student, Nero), one whose counsel and … Continue reading →

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An Antidote to Chaos

Posted on August 25, 2020 by smellincoffee

12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos © 2018 Jordan Peterson 402 pages Life is pain. We can surrender to it — or we can make it meaningful. Clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson here offers a prescription to those facing … Continue reading →

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Wisdom Wednesday: Rise and Shine

Posted on July 22, 2020 by smellincoffee

Today’s reading comes from Marcus Aurelius,  who has shamed me out of slumber many a winter’s morn. Aurelius was the last of Rome’s “five good emperors”, and produced a work called The Meditations which has been lauded through the centuries; … Continue reading →

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