What do I mean by a philosophy of life?
I mean that out of all the things in life you might pursue what is the most valuable to you?
Why is that important you may ask.
Because if you lack a grand goal in living, you lack a coherent philosophy of life. Why is it important to have such a philosophy? Because without one, there is a danger that you will mislive— that despite all your activity, despite all the pleasant diversions you might have enjoyed while alive, you will end up living a bad life. There is, in other words, a danger that when you are on your deathbed, you will look back and realize that you wasted your one chance at living. Instead of spending your life pursuing something genuinely valuable, you squandered it because you allowed yourself to be distracted by the various baubles life has to offer.
Sourced from –
This blog article is a shameless plug for the above book (I am not an affiliate however). I just finished reading the book in two days flat and had myself a gala time. It is about the philosophy of the Stoics of ancient Greece and Rome. It is so well written in fact that had I not been committed to Buddhist meditation and eastern spirituality more generally speaking I would have wanted to be a Stoic practitioner myself.
Stoic philosophy differs from various organized religions in that it not only teaches various psychological methods to be tranquil and joyful but also gives advice about what goals in life are worth pursuing.
Do you want fame and fortune? Or have you achieved fame and fortune but are still not happy? The Stoics have an answer and a remedy.
Are you approaching old age and fear death? The Stoics have a remedy.
Other topics dealt with are dealing with social relations, insults, grief, anger, wealth, ill health, exile and our duty to mankind.
Stoic philosophy differs from organized religion in that it has something to say about all these subjects. Religion will only give very concise teachings. For example, Christianity teaches us to love God and to love our neighbour as we love ourselves. It says nothing about these very practical challenges that all of us face in life that were mentioned in the preceding two paragraphs.
So if you are of a scientific and analytical bent of mind and are not interested in practising spirituality as taught by organized religions then the philosophy of the Stoics may be for you.
Regardless of whether you accept the Stoic philosophy or not reading this book will be very beneficial to you as it will make you question your own philosophy or grand purpose of life (assuming you already have one). If you don’t have such a philosophy the book will get you interested in asking these larger questions and this may revolutionize your life for the better.
The book not only tell us what to do but also explains how and why practising this philosophy leads to tranquillity and joy.
I myself have learnt a lot from my reading. For example, I tried contemplating death and impermanence as a part of my practice of Buddhism but without much benefit. The Stoics give the same advice and this book explains how and why your life will change for the better if you remind yourself from time to time that you will die. You will live life more intensely and appreciate each moment. I have not found such a lucid explanation in all my reading of Buddhist books.
One day, sooner or later, we will have to face hardships. Reading about the Stoics will help you deal and recover from the catastrophes that are waiting for us. Quoting again from the above book:
… consider the plight of James Stockdale. (If the name rings a bell, it is probably because he was Ross Perot’s running mate in the 1992 campaign for president of the United States.) A navy pilot, Stockdale was shot down over Vietnam in 1965 and held as a prisoner of war until 1973. During that time, he experienced poor health, primitive living conditions, and the brutality of his jailers. And yet he not only survived but emerged an unbroken man. How did he manage it? In large part, he says, by practicing Stoicism.
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