Random quote 1

The practice of randomly selecting a part of a holy book and reading it is great for those books that have very little cohesiveness but plenty of wisdom on each page.  Stoic books are like that, and I think picking out random quotes and discoursing on it for a while would be a good exercise.

OK, I'm randomly choosing Epictetus to start (actually that part wasn't so random).  Out of a 250 page book, I randomly choose a page, and get page 202.  Hm.  I see a problem.  This page has the end of one major paragraph and the start of another one.  I guess I'll choose the start of the paragraph (with a few transitional parts elided).

... a man ought to study all day long, for as not to be attached to what doth not belong to him; neither to a friend, to a place, an academy; nor even to his own body: but to remember the law, and to have that constantly before his eyes.  And what is the divine law?  To preserve inviolate what is properly our own : not to claim what belongs to other : to use what is given us; and not desire what is not given us : and, when any thing is taken away, to restore it readily; and to be thankful for the time you have permitted the use of it; and not cry after it, like a child for its nurse and its mamma.  For what doth is signify, what gets the better of use, or on what do you depend?  And in what are you superior to him, who cries for a puppet, if you lament for a paltry academy, and a portico, and an assembly of young people ; and such like amusements?  Another comes, lamenting, that he must no longer drink the water of Dircè.  Why, is not the Marcian water as good?  "But I was used to that."  And in time you will be used to the other.  And, when you are attached to this too, you may cry again, and set yourself in imitation of Euripides, to celebrate, in verse.

 I have to apologize for the completely crazy punctuation.  That's what you get with free books.

This paragraph is pretty typical of a Stoic philosopher.  No real surprises here.  But there are parts of interest.  Note that Epictetus says that we ought to study all day long.  What exactly does he mean by this?  It must mean that we have to constantly remind ourselves of these truths, as oppose to literally study.  Or maybe he really did want everyone to devote their lives to the philosophy.  Certainly Seneca said similar things.  But, reasonably speaking, we have our activities we have to perform, and studying Stoicism is not going to be our main activity.  The question really is how to "study all day long", in other words, how do we constantly remind ourselves of the Stoic philosophy?  We definitely need it, since it is so easy and natural to be attached to what doesn't belong to us.  This is where a daily journal as Seneca recommends (and I tried) may come in handy.  Maybe we should ask ourselves every day if we are valuing the right things.  I personally found journaling not very fruitful, but I didn't ask myself this question specifically.

The thought that our own body doesn't belong to us is another common one with Epictetus in particular.  The image is powerful, though.  If we don't even own our own body, we truly own nothing except our actions.

Epictetus's random quote has proved useful. The philosophy here is nothing new, but now I'm thinking about how this related so things going on in my life.  The random quote seems like a success!  I'll do it again soon.