The background image is the Stoa of Attalos. This is not the porch from which Zeno taught, but it conveys to me a sense of serenity and peace all the same. The pillars of the Stoa have stood tall in my life for several years now, both literally and philosophically: I used this same image as my personal desktop wallpaper for nearly two years. Stoicism has made me more mindful and free, though I think I may have overdone it at one point. Its focus on the individual as sovereign over his or her own mind has influenced other parts of my worldview, including my growing interest in anarchism. I've been working on an essay called "From Freethought to Anarchism" that will explore the transition more.
I cannot predict what this blog will look like in the next four years, though I intend to continue philosophical musings and celebrate life and the human spirit. I may continue to explore blogger's template customizer.
6 comments:
I'm dying of curiosity -- how does one "overdo" Stoicism? I'm not trying to be flippant but it is a practical concern for me. Any time someone finds a new method for giving their life direction there's an element of risk to his personality. I don't want to go around smiling like some new-age-cult member. It's less likely since there is no peer pressure to blend in with the group. I'd love to hear more.
In my case, I became a bit of a Puritan. This doen't appear to have been a problem for anyone else, leading me to suspect I tend to take things too seriously. The advice of Aurelius, Epictetus, and others is that we should only be concerned with those things under our control. This advice was tested under fire for me and it worked spendidly, and that's why I began studying Stoicism in the first place. I got a little...hopped up on being 'wise', and after a few years some scold inside me started silently chiding other people for getting worked up about trivialities, which -- of course -- was irrational of me, since other people's affairs are theirs, not mine. I mused in another post ("On Being Frank") that I was steadily fixated on doing what was 'right' and not what would be best or make me happiest. This is amusing, of course, given that Stoicism is essentially about mental well-being.
I'm also concerned about the prospect of being too detached from the affairs of the world. We human beings are social creatures, and I'd bet on some level we NEED to feel attached and influenced by affairs outside ourselves. This is still something I'm trying to sort out.
When I become overly serious or contemplative, I just remember the words of Jean-Luc Picard: "Sometimes, you just have to embrace the absurd." ;-)
Thanks for dropping by. :)
Nicely put.....
Oh, BTW...
You may have noticed a new label on my Blog: Ancient Texts.
It's only got a single entry ATM: Meditations... but I have two more in my review pile awaiting posting and more planned. I'm sure that you'll appreciate some of them...
@ CyberKitten: Will look forward to them. I have a collection of ancient texts in my own to-read basket, though it's one I've had the better part of a year. Tomorrow we're posting lists of books we resolve to read this year, and I put that one on there.
I have two now sitting in my review pile (which is quite large as I managed to read 9 books over the Christmas/New Year break) including one by Cicero which you'll find interesting, no doubt..... [grin]
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