World Philosophical Heritage

Wisdom and teachings of
Stoicism

14 quote(s) | Page 1 / 1

H atred is not only a vice, but a vice which goes point-blank against Nature.
Hatred divides instead of joining and frustrates God's will in human society.
One man is born to help another.
Hatred makes us destroy one another.
Love unites-hatred separates.
Love is beneficial-hatred is destructive.
Love succors even strangers, hatred destroys the most intimate friendship.
Love fills all hearts with joy, hatred ruins all those who possess it.
Nature is bountiful, hatred is pernicious.
It is not hatred, but mutual love, that holds all mankind together.

quote 3047 | Seneca
Davis, Chas. Greek and Roman Stoicism. Boston: Herbert B. Turner and Co., 1903, pp. 226, 236, 241.

W hat is God?
The Mind of the universe.
What is He?
All that you see, and all that you don't see.
Guide and guardian of the universe,
Soul and spirit of the world,
Builder and master of so great a work-
to Him all names belong.
Would you call Him Destiny?
You will not err.
Cause of causes, all things depend on Him.
Would you rather say Providence?
This will be right.
By His plan the world is guided safely through its motions.
Or Nature?
This title does Him no wrong.
Of Him are all things born, and in Him all things live.
Or Universe?
You are not mistaken.
He is all that we see,
wholly present in every part,
sustaining this entire creation.

quote 3046 | Seneca
Davis, Chas. Greek and Roman Stoicism. Boston: Herbert B. Turner and Co., 1903, pp. 226, 236, 241.

I f we had understanding,
Would we ever cease chanting and blessing the Divine Power, both openly and in secret?
Whether digging or ploughing or eating, should we not sing a hymn to God?

Great is God, for He has given us the instruments to till the ground …
He has given us hands, the power of digestion, and the wisdom of the body that controls the breath.

Great is God, for He has given us a mind to apprehend these things and to duly use them!

I am old and lame-what else can I do but sing to God?
Were I nightingale, I should do after the manner of a nightingale.
Were I a swan, I should do after the manner of a swan.
But now, since I am a reasonable man, I must sing to God: this is my work.
I will do it; I will not desert my post …

And I call upon you to join this self-same hymn.

quote 3045 | Epictetus
Crossley, Hastings, trans. The Golden Sayings of Epictetus. New York: P E Collier and Son, 1909, verses 1, 66, 77.

T he Philosophers say that there is a God, and that His Will directs the Universe … But the more important lesson is to discover God's nature. Upon discovering that nature, a man would please God by making his own nature like unto God's. If the Divine is faithful, he must also be faithful; if free, he must also be free; if beneficent, he must also be beneficent; if magnanimous, he must also be magnanimous. Thus to make God's nature one's own, a man must imitate Him in every thought, word, and deed.

quote 3044 | Epictetus
Crossley, Hastings, trans. The Golden Sayings of Epictetus. New York: P E Collier and Son, 1909, verses 1, 66, 77.

S how me a Man of God.
Show me a man modeled after the doctrines that are ever upon his lips.
Show me a man who is hard-pressed-and happy,
In danger-and happy,
On his death-bed-and happy,
in exile-and happy,
In evil report-and happy.

Show him to me.
I ask again.

So help me, Heaven,
I long to see one Man of God!
And if you cannot show me one fully realized, let me see one in whom the process is at work or one whose bent is in that direction.
Do me that favor!
Grudge it not to an old man, to behold such wonder.
Do you think I wish to see the Zeus or Athena of Phidias, sparkling with ivory and gold?
No. Show me one of you, a human soul, longing to be of one with God.

quote 3043 | Epictetus
Crossley, Hastings, trans. The Golden Sayings of Epictetus. New York: P E Collier and Son, 1909, verses 1, 66, 77.

Y ou have seen a hand, a foot, or perhaps a head severed from its body and lying some distance away. Such is the state a man brings himself to-as far as he is able-when he refuses to accept what befalls him, breaks away from helping others, or when he pursues self-seeking action. He becomes an outcast from the unity of Nature; though born of it, his own hand has cut him from it. Yet here is the beautiful proviso: it lies within everyone's power to join Nature once again. God has not granted such favor to any other part of creation: once you have been separated, once you have been cleft asunder, He will, at any moment, allow you to return.

0 Universe, all that is in tune with you is also in tune with me. Every note of your harmony resonates in my innermost being. For me, nothing is early and nothing is late if it is timely for you. 0 Nature, all that your seasons bring is fruit for me. From thee comes all things; in thee do all things live and grow; and to thee do all things return. "Dear City of God" is our cry, even though the poets say, "Dear City of the King."

Waste no more time talking about great souls and how they should he. Be one yourself!

quote 3042 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 8:34, Book 4:23, and Book 10: 16

R emember that the Hidden Power within us pulls the strings; there is the guiding force, there is the life, there, one might say, is the man himself Never think of yourself as a mere body with its various appendages; the body is like the ax of a carpenter: dare we think that the ax is the carpenter himself? Without this Inner Cause, which dictates both action and inaction, the body is of no more use than the weaver's shuttle without a weaver, the writer's pen without a writer, or the coachman's whip without a horse and carriage.

Honor the highest thing in the Universe; it is the power on which all things depend; it is the light by which all of life is guided. Honor the highest within yourself; for it, too, is the power on which all things depend, and the light by which all life is guided.

Dig within. Within is the well-spring of Good; and it is always ready to bubble up, if you just dig.

quote 3041 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 10:38, Book 5:2 1, and Book 7:59.

I t is possible to live out your whole life in perfect contentment, even though the whole world deafens you with its roar and wild beasts tear apart your body like a lump of clay. For nothing can shake a steady mind out of its peaceful repose; nothing can bar it from correct judgment, nor defeat its readiness to see the benefit that all things bring.

quote 3040 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 7:68.

A s Marcus, I have Rome; as a human being, I have the Universe.

quote 3039 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 7:13, Book 11:9, and Book 6:44.

M en may block your path, but never let them obstruct you from right action, never let them destroy the feeling of charity you have toward them. You must be firm in both: steadfast in judgment and action, kind to those who do you harm. To lose your temper with them is no less a sign of weakness than one cowed into abandoning his proper course of action. In both cases, the post of duty has been deserted.

quote 3038 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 7:13, Book 11:9, and Book 6:44.

C onstantly remind yourself, I am a member of the whole body of conscious things." If you think of yourself as a mere "part," then love for mankind will not well up in your heart; you will look for some reward in every act of kindness and miss the boon which the act itself is offering. Then all your work will be seen as a mere duty and not as the very portal connecting you with the Universe itself.

quote 3037 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 7:13, Book 11:9, and Book 6:44.

I n a man's life, his time is but a moment, his being a mere flux, his senses a dim glimpse, his body food for the worms, and his soul a restless eddy … the things of the body pass like a flowing stream; life is a brief sojourn, and one's mark in this world is soon forgotten.

quote 3036 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 2:4 and Book 2:17.

I t is time to realize that you are a member of the Universe, that you are born of Nature itself, and to know that a limit has been set to your time. Use every moment wisely, to perceive your inner refulgence, or it will be gone and nevermore within your reach.

quote 3035 | Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius, Book 2:4 and Book 2:17.

A t daybreak, when you loathe the idea of having to leave your bed, have this thought ready in your mind: I am rising for the work of man." Should I have misgivings about doing that for which I was born, and for the sake of which I came into this world? Is this the grand purpose of my existence-to lie here snug and warm underneath my blanket? Certainly it feels more pleasant. Was it for pleasure that you were made, and not for work, nor for effort? Look at the plants, sparrows, ants, spiders, and bees, all working busily away, each doing its part in welding an orderly Universe. So who are you to go against the bidding of Nature? Who are you to refuse man his share of the work?

To live each day as though it were your last-never flustered, never lazy, never a false word-herein lies the perfection of character.

quote 3034 | Marcus Aurelius
Book 5:1 and Book 7:69.

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Wisdom and teachings ofStoicism

Wisdom and teachings of
Stoicism