Atthe beginning of the Spring semester, I stepped into what would be my first and only college philosophy class — where I learned about a man named Epictetus for the first time.
Anyone who’s ever read about stoic philosophy or read anything from
has probably heard of him.
He was a man who began as a slave and then went on to inspire people for centuries to come — including myself. For philosophy class, we read the Enchiridion of Epictetus, something I studied deeply, far beyond the requirements for the class simply because of how many intelligent and helpful things he says.
Here are a few quotes from him that have positively shaped my view of life and improved my everyday actions, thoughts, and personal philosophy for life:
“Don’t explain your philosophy. Embody it.”
This quote has been written on a sticky note on my mirror since I first heard it.
So many people in our world today sit around and talk about what they believe and what they think. While there is certainly merit to that, doesn’t what a man does say so much more than what he says?
We haven’t really accepted a philosophy until we’re living it out in the circumstances of our daily life — particularly those that are difficult and give necessitation to different philosophies of life to deal with certain situations that arise.