Zeno of Citium, the founding father of Stoicism
by , Arizona State College
(initially appeared in “The Conversation” Nov. 29, 2023)
Stoicism could also be having a renaissance. For hundreds of years, the traditional philosophy that originated in Greece and unfold throughout the Roman Empire was roughly handled as extinct – with the phrase “stoic” hanging on as shorthand for somebody unemotional. However as we speak, with the assistance of the web, it’s gaining floor: one of many largest on-line communities, The Daily Stoic, claims to have an electronic mail following of over 750,000 subscribers.
Maybe it’s not so stunning. The USA’ present political local weather has parallels to the previous few centuries B.C. in historic Rome, house of notable Stoics just like the the philosopher Epictetus, a former slave, and the emperor Marcus Aurelius. Throughout this era of instability, together with the autumn of the Roman Republic, Stoicism helped its practitioners find community, which means and tranquility.
Immediately, too, society faces widespread emotions of isolation, depression and anxiety. In the meantime, an increasing number of individuals are on the lookout for solutions exterior of mainstream faith. Based on a 2022 Gallup Ballot, 21% of Americans now say they have no religious affiliation.
Driving this resurgence of curiosity in Stoicism, I designed a college philosophy class that covers each idea and follow. Once I ask college students why they enrolled, I hear not solely a real curiosity within the topic but in addition a want to seek out which means, function and private improvement.
Historic Stoicism aimed to be a whole philosophy encompassing ethics, physics and logic. But most trendy Stoics focus totally on ethics, they usually sometimes undertake 4 Stoic rules.
The primary is that advantage is the one or highest good, together with the cardinal virtues of knowledge, temperance, braveness and justice. Every thing aside from advantage – together with wealth, well being and repute – could be good to have, however they don’t straight contribute to human flourishing.
Second, folks should reside in accordance with nature or purpose. This precept displays the Stoic perception that the universe reveals a rational order, so we should align our beliefs and actions with everlasting rules. Residing in accordance with nature additionally reveals the interconnectedness of all things, displaying how people are half of a bigger complete.
Third, an individual can management solely their very own actions – not exterior occasions. Epictetus laid out this dichotomy within the opening sentence of The Enchiridion, a set of his core teachings compiled by his scholar Arrian: “Issues in our management are opinion, pursuit, want, aversion, and, in a phrase, no matter are our personal actions. Issues not in our management are physique, property, repute, command, and, in a single phrase, no matter aren’t our personal actions.”
The fourth precept is that ideas about exterior occasions are sometimes the supply of discontentment or misery – a view that has influenced modern cognitive behavioral therapy. Once more, this concept comes directly from Epictetus: “Males are disturbed, not by issues, however by the rules and notions which they type regarding issues.”
Taken collectively, these rules type the bedrock of recent Stoicism, which goals to supply a coherent philosophy of life. Its hope is that when the practitioner accepts they don’t seem to be fully in management, they begin constructing resilience and decreasing anxiousness. Not solely is every particular person the architect of their emotional life, however folks can form their very own judgments in methods which can be conducive to larger interior peace.
Stoicism in follow
In Discourses, Epictetus unequivocally states that study is not enough – to be able to develop into virtuous, an individual should couple research with follow. “In idea, there may be nothing to restrain us from drawing the implications of what we now have been taught,” he famous, “whereas in life there are numerous issues that pull us astray.”
In different phrases, philosophy isn’t solely an mental endeavor however a sensible and religious one: a lifestyle designed to maneuver practitioners towards the Stoic conception of the great. Studying to domesticate core Stoic rules includes sure spiritual exercises.
My class incorporates a wide range of these workouts so college students can get a style of Stoicism in follow. One is the “view from above,” which inspires the practitioner to think about their life and sure conditions from a chook’s-eye view, placing the insignificance of their present troubles in perspective.
One other is “detrimental visualization”: considering the absence of one thing we worth. As a substitute of worrying about dropping one thing, an individual deliberately meditates on its absence, with the intention of fostering gratitude and contentment. When doing this train at school, college students have imagined the lack of a possession, a scholarship or perhaps a beloved pet.
A 3rd train is journaling to plan and evaluate one’s day. Reflecting on ideas and actions permits a extra goal, rational option to choose whether or not somebody resides in accordance with their rules.
As soon as the workouts are integrated with idea, Stoicism can develop into a sort of religious undertaking. As Epictetus wrote, “For simply as wooden is the fabric of the carpenter, and bronze that of the sculptor, the artwork of residing has every particular person’s personal life as its materials.”
The best way of the prokopton
So what does it imply to be a practising Stoic – a “prokopton,” in Greek?
For each historic and trendy practitioners, Stoicism is more than a set of abstract ideas. It’s a set of guiding rules that permeate all features of 1’s life. The aim is progress, not perfection – and exploring Stoic concepts alongside others is inspired.
Immediately, there are at the least three comparatively sturdy Stoic communities on-line: The Daily Stoic, Modern Stoicism and the College of Stoic Philosophers.
By having devoted communities, a guiding framework and distinctive religious workouts, parallels between Stoicism and plenty of mainstream religions are simple. For contemporary folks on the lookout for such issues, Stoicism could serve as a surrogate or complement to mainstream faith. Folks as we speak have a tendency to seek out the unique Stoics’ notions about physics and theology implausible, however aside from these concepts, the core rules of recent Stoicism may be palatable to individuals who determine with contemporary faith traditions – or none.
The traditional Greeks believed {that a} philosophy of life is vital for human flourishing. With out a guiding ethos, they feared, people are more likely to lead unstructured and unproductive lives, to pursue superficial pleasures and to really feel that their lives lack function. Stoicism supplied a path for some to follow – then, and now.
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