Tag: Epictetus

Lessons From Epictetus: On Mastering the Will

“Wish the things which happen to be as they are, and you will have a tranquil flow of life.”—Epictetus, Roman philosopher It’s advice that’s alien to the modern mentality. Shouldn’t everyone want everything to be better? But when we consider various people’s definitions of “better” and how the logical conclusion of certain forms of progress is…


Dispatches From HQ

“Each person’s life is a kind of battle,” the philosopher Epictetus wrote more than 2,000 years ago. What was true then is true now. After all, what is life if not a series of challenges, even small ones? The baby has colic, Joe’s late for work, traffic on I-95 is backed up for miles, and…