Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
STOIC
MORNING RITUAL
BEFORE
MEETING
T H E D AY
Ask yourself the following first thing in
the morning:
-What am I lacking in attaining freedom
from passion?
-What for tranquility?
-What am I? A mere body, estate-holder,
or reputation? None of these things.
-What, then? A rational being.
-What then is demanded of me?
Meditate on your actions.
-How did I steer away from serenity?
-What did I do that was unfriendly,
unsocial, or uncaring?
-What did I fail to do in all these things?
Epictetus, Discourses, 4.6.34-35
its meditation. For others, its exercise. For many, its morning
ritual.
When you first rise in the morning
tell yourself: I will encounter busy-
bodies, ingrates, egomaniacs, liars,
envy-mongers, and cranks. They
are all stricken with these afflictions
because they dont know the difference
between good and evil. Because I have
understood the beauty of good and
the ugliness of evil, I know that these
wrong-doers are still akin to me...and
that none can do me harm, or implicate
me in ugliness--nor can I be angry at my
relatives or hate them. For we are made
for cooperation.
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 2.1
THE DAILY STOIC
Before you write that off as a depressing thought, ask
someone who seems like theyre being a jerk (as we all have
been ourselves in the past). The question is: Are you going
WWW.DAILYSTOIC.COM
This morning exercise calls to mind a joke from the writer
inspired by Stoicism).
No one can implicate me in uglinessnor
can I be angry at my relative or hate him.
THE DAILY STOIC
The point of the preparation is not write everyone off in
advance. Its that, maybe, because youve prepared for it, youll
Every day. Let philosophy and hard work guide you to better
WWW.DAILYSTOIC.COM