Today, I will be running a guest post by a precocious young man named Adam Isom of adamisom.com. Adam’s blog is fairly new and currently ranges between philosophy and marketing, reflective “meditations” and in-depth analyses. He has given much thought to The Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius, and has written a thoughtful and insightful analysis that he would like to share with the world – and I’m more than happy to have him post it here.

First, I thought I’d dig up a few old posts on Marcus Aurelius and Stoic Philosophy in general — For a nice introduction to Stoicism please read ‘Use Stoic Philosophy to Achieve Total Joy and Untroubling Equanimity’, and in the following post ‘Practical Wisdom: ‘Meditations’ by Marcus Aurelius’ I write my own shorter review on ‘Meditations’.   Adam’s analysis takes a different tack, however, distilling the book down to its essence, thematically speaking. Due to its length, it will appear in two parts.

If you’re interested in writing on the subjects of philosophy and wisdom, or you wish to do a review on any philosophical self-help book you’re passionate about please contact me here about the possibility of a guest post.

So without further ado, I give you…

The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius by Adam Isom

Ask yourself: how many journals of campaigning emperors have I read this year? If the answer is none, you’re in for a treat: The Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius, also happens to be one of the most celebrated expositions of Stoic philosophy.

Today, we peek inside the secret journals, never meant to be read by anyone else, of the last Good Emperor of the Roman Republic. Despite their origin, the journals have been read, and continue to be read, by countless individuals seeking insight into living better.

This post does not replace actually reading the book, but it is intended to inform you what it’s all about before you even crack open the first page. The idea being, that leaves you free to focus on the subtle details and pithy expressions found therein.

How I approached reading The Meditations was to ask myself “what is he trying to say?” What follows is my multi-pronged answer to this question, examined through the concept of “themes”.

Read more…

Watch this fantastic lecture given by professor Michael Sugrue of Princeton University, as he presents an overview on the life and stoic ideals of none other than Plato’s “Philosopher King” himself – Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius.

Part 1

Read more…

In these troubling times of perpetual man-made conflict and recent natural disasters, let us now embrace the practical teachings of a wise old Stoic called Epictetus.

So why not apply this stoic wisdom daily so to calm our minds and strengthen our wills against all adversity.

As Epictetus advised regarding one who is experiencing trials and tribulations:

Chapter 24

How we should struggle with circumstances

It is circumstances which show what men are. Therefore when a difficulty
falls upon you, remember that God, like a trainer of wrestlers, has matched you
with a rough young man. “For what purpose?” you may say, Why, that you may
become an Olympic conqueror; but it is not accomplished without sweat. In my
opinion no man has had a more profitable difficulty than you have had, if you
choose to make use of it as an athlete would deal with a young antagonist. We
are now sending a scout to Rome; but no man sends a cowardly scout, who, if he
only hears a noise and sees a shadow anywhere, comes running back in terror and
reports that the enemy is close at hand. So now if you should come and tell us,
“Fearful is the state of affairs at Rome, terrible is death, terrible is exile;
terrible is calumny; terrible is poverty; fly, my friends; the enemy is near”;
we shall answer, “Begone, prophesy for yourself; we have committed only one
fault, that we sent such a scout.”

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Zeno of Citium was the founder of the Stoic school of philosophy

Let Stoicism be my Calming Influence Amid a Troubled World

This rather lengthy post (so get your printer ready) is about a branch of philosophy which is close to my heart and mind, and is what I have applied practically to my life with positive results thus far – namely the philosophy of Stoicism.

For example, certain people who have been in my presence (especially at my workplace), seem to think that I don’t have a care in the world.  They usually mention to me that judging by my demeanor I seem completely at ease and stress-free, despite others around me being totally anxiety-ridden and suffering from panic attacks whenever there is a slight (and I mean slight) sign of trouble in the air.

Don’t get me wrong, I too can suffer from stress and anxiety like the next person, and admittedly, can also be most impatient in certain situations and with people  – this obviously, can lead up to me becoming angry which, I know, can be detrimental to my health and character.  Yes, I have a few faults which I hope to address by using stoic techniques, which is up to now, helping to improve my temperament.  Obviously, there are times when I do slip into error, but I’m not going to punish myself over the odd indiscretion – I am only human after all. Read more…

Read the biography of Epictetus

Click here to read ‘Stoic Advice from Epictetus on the Art of Living – Part 2′

Stoic Philosopher Epictetus returns to offer you advice on how to get rid of any fears you may have of something that is inevitable for every one of us – death.  Epictetus also encourages us to improve our characters and behaviour by advising us always to concentrate on our own conduct wherever we may find ourselves in daily life.

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Here I bring you once again 3 of the greatest Stoic philosophers of ancient times.

Watch the following  video of wise quotations from my personal favourites, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus and Seneca: