The Stoic Magazine Library

We all face setbacks 

We all face setbacks in our life. How best to cope with such setbacks? Socrates provides a four-pronged strategy for resilience. 

On Christmas day 2009, al-Qaeda attempted unsuccessfully to bomb the North-western flight bound to Detroit from Amsterdam.

Marcus Aurelius learned to turn his everyday experiences into metaphors for the art of living. In this article, Donald Robertson explains how Marcus drew upon his experience of sports such as the pankration, a bare-handed combat sport that combined wrestling and boxing, and the spectacle of gladiatorial bouts, as he recounts in Meditations. - Editor 

The year is 180 AD. As another long and difficult winter draws to a close on the northern frontier, the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius lies dying in bed at his military camp in Vindobona (modern-day Vienna). Six days ago he was stricken with a fever, and the symptoms have been worsening rapidly. 

Marcus Aurelius was a keen observer of everyday life. As we saw in the March issue of THE STOIC, Marcus turned his everyday experiences into metaphors for the art of living. In this article, Donald Robertson explains how Marcus also turned everyday experiences into philosophical metaphors. 

Chuck Chakrapani, Editor 

Prayer as a form of self-improvement 

We tend to be self-centred. We constantly wonder what I should do if I fall ill, if I get angry, if someone is angry at me, if I don’t have enough money, if my coworkers are jerks, if my boss embarrasses me in front of others, if I fail to get the job I want … But while we are busy thinking about ourselves, life presents us with situations that we are not prepared for. Now what? Modern Stoics respond to our last month’s picture, the burning image of the Notre Dame Cathedral. 

Walking since the time of Socrates 

Socrates was known for walking barefoot. His student Antisthenes, who inspired the Cynics and Stoics, likewise walked barefoot for miles to listen to him talk each day. It’s said they were both good friends with a shoe-maker called Simon. The Cynic philosopher Diogenes used to say that both mental and physical training are required to become a true philosopher. Constant physical exercise that is in accord with nature leads to a ful-filled life. 

Canadian Stoicism 

There’s is a growing reaction against the vapidity of modern life. A number of young Canadians have become disillusioned with the relentless march of social media, celebrity culture, consumerism, and other potentially soul-destroying forces. Many of them are turning to a surprising source of help and consolation: the ancient philosophy of Stoicism. 

A few years ago, when my daughter Poppy was four, she began asking me to tell her stories. I didn’t know any children’s stories, so I told her what came to mind: stories about Greek myths, heroes, and philosophers. One of her favorites is about the Athenian general Xenophon.

All psychological techniques described in the surviving Stoic writings are-grounded in one continual practice, paying attention to the way we use our judgment to form opinions, particularly our value judgments. 

https://amzn.to/2SswfJ1The ancient Stoic philosophers were very interested in food. They talk both about what we should eat and how we should eat it, if we want to live wisely and gain strength of character.