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“These are the characteristics of the rational soul: self-awareness, self-examination, and self-determination. It reaps its own harvest..  It succeeds in its own purpose ..”—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 11.1–2

If you want to be free, get to know your real self. It has no form, no appearance, no root, no basis, no abode, but is lively and buoyant. It responds with versatile facility, but its function cannot be located.

We lose very little by taking a beat to consider our own thoughts. Is this really so bad? What do I really know about this person? Why do I have such strong feelings here? By asking these questions, we’re less likely to be carried away by them or make a move on a mistaken or …

Read more “Trust but Verify…”

“Today I escaped from the crush of circumstances, or better put, I threw them out, for the crush wasn’t from outside me but in my own assumptions.”—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 9.13

“Whenever someone has done wrong by you, immediately consider what notion of good or evil they had in doing it. For when you see that, you’ll feel compassion, instead of astonishment or rage.”—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 7.26”

We can’t live as both Jekyll and Hyde. Not for long, anyway. We have a choice: to stand with the philosopher and focus strenuously on the inside, or to behave like a leader of a mob, becoming whatever the crowd needs at a given moment. If we do not focus on our internal integration—on self-awareness—we …

Read more “Jekyll and Hyde”

So yes, use Stoicism to manage difficulties. But don’t forget to ask: Is this really the life I want? Every time you get upset, a little bit of life leaves the body. Are these really the things on which you want to spend that priceless resource? Don’t be afraid to make a change—a big one.

If you apply expedient means to go on to seek intellectual understanding, this is like wanting to see your own eyes because you think you have no eyes if you cannot see them. If you just seek understanding, then you do not understand it. Just know that which does not understand; this is seeing essence. …

Read more “Essence of the Mind…”

Zen mind is not Zen mind. That is, if you are attached to Zen mind, then you have a problem, and your way is very narrow. Throwing away Zen mind, is correct Zen mind. Only keep the question, “What is the best way of helping other people?” – Seung Sahn

“All you need are these: certainty of judgment in the present moment; action for the common good in the present moment; and an attitude of gratitude in the present moment for anything that comes your way.”—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 9.6