The Daily Stoic - Epictetus - Discourses Pt. 5: Against the Sceptics

Episode Date: December 17, 2023

In today’s audiobook reading, Ryan presents an excerpt from one of the seminal texts of Stoicism, the Discourses of Epictetus, read by Michael Reid. As a series of lectures given by Epictetus that were written down by his pupil Arrian in 108 A.D., these discourses provide practical advice to think on and practice in order to move oneself closer toward the ultimate goal of living free and happy. In this fifth section, Epictetus discusses how we build strength and respond to conflict through ancient wisdom.✉️ Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Check out the Daily Stoic Store for Stoic inspired products, signed books, and more.📱 Follow us: Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Download the Coho app today or visit www.coho.ca for more details. Welcome to the weekend edition of the Daily Stoic. Each weekday we bring you a meditation inspired by the ancient Stoics, something to help you live up to those four Stoic virtues of courage, justice, temperance, and wisdom. And then here on the weekend, we take a deeper dive into those same topics. We interview Stoic philosophers. We explore at length how these Stoic ideas can be applied to our actual lives and the

challenging issues of our time. Here on the weekend when you have a little bit more space when things have slowed down, be sure to take some time to think, to go for a walk, to sit with your journal, and most importantly to prepare for what the week ahead may bring. Hey, it's Ryan Holiday. Welcome to another weekend episode of the Daily Stoic podcast. We've talked about Epic Titus here quite a bit. Actually, we just rolled out this really cool new YouTube video about Epic Titus' secrets for resilience. You can check that out at youtube.com slash daily

Stoic. But Epic Tetis is fascinating because unlike all the other Stoics, he actually experienced profound and real adversity without any of the privileges that would have balanced out the life of Marcus Aurelis or Santa Carcato, right? He's born a slave, he spends 30 years in slavery. In fact, even his name, Epic Titus, it means acquired one. Like, this dude doesn't even get his own name. Now, Epic Titus doesn't write anything down as far as we know. Epic Titus that we're gonna hear from today,

even the Epic Titus that Marcus Aurelis quotes in his meditations is coming to us from lecture notes from his students. Was Marcus's from his philosophy teacher Rousticus, or these Rousticus's notes, or is Rousticus himself just handing Marcus Aurelius the notes from Arian, who also writes a fascinating book about Alexander the Great, who is a favorite of Hadrian, the Emperor? Anyways, that's why Epochetus's work is called the Discourses, because it's the lecture notes it's what Epochetus is talking about at his philosophy school in Necopolis in Greece,

the early 2nd century AD. And there's a bunch of different translations. I like the Penguin Classics translation. Robin Waterfeld has a new translation of Epochetus. It's also quite good. In today's episode, we're reading one from an older translation. This is gonna be read to us by Michael Reed.

He's been doing a bunch of awesome voice over work for Daily Stoke, including the Epic Tetis video that I mentioned earlier. But Epic Tetis starts at the beginning, right? He says, this is about what's in our control and what isn't, how to make use of what's in our power and treat the rest as something we accept, something as we put up with, something we put up with, something we come to terms with, something we find out how to use, how to be made better for having gone through, which is all the more poignant, again, when you think about what epictetus went through in his life, the things he had to come to terms with, the things he had to accept. He's not being glib about. He's not talking about being stuck in traffic, right? He's talking about his lame lake, which was broken by a cruel slave master. He's talking about the years of his life that were stolen. He's talking about the injustices of the

society that he lives in, which came down so hard on him. So, I wanted to bring you some thoughts directly from Epictetus himself, although direct Epictetus gives his lectures, a herian, and other students write them down, then these get translated and translated and translated, and then they were read. And then this excerpt of Epictetus's discourses is brought to you by Daily Stoic and Michael Reed. And you can grab any of the translations of Epic Teeth's from the Painted Porch, grab them anywhere books are sold. But I hope this is a little intro

into the one and only Epic Teeth's. If a man objects to truths that are all too evident, it is no easy task finding arguments that will change his mind. This is proof neither of his own strength nor of his teacher's weakness. When someone caught in an argument hardens to stone, there is just no more reasoning with them. Now a person can suffer two kinds of petrification, that of the intellect and that of the sense of honor. When somebody assumes a defiant stance, resolved neither to ascent to self-evident truths

nor leave off fighting. Most of us dread the deadening of the body and will do anything to avoid it. About the deadening of the soul, however, we don't care one Iota. Even in the case of the soul, we regard a man as pitiful if he is deficient in thinking or learning. We pity the mentally retarded and students with learning difficulties. But if somebody's sense of shame and respect are dead, we will actually call this determination. Do you realize that you are awake?

No. Any more than when I dream and I have the impression that I am awake. And is the one impression in no way different from the other? No. Can I go on reasoning with such a person? What fire or iron can be applied to him to make him conscious of his condition? He senses it, but pretends he doesn't. That makes him even worse off than a corpse. One person does not notice a contradiction in his reasoning.

He is unfortunate. Another person notices it, alright? But does not budge and does not back down. He is even more unfortunate. His sense of honor and truthfulness has been excised. And his reason, not excised, but brutalised. Am I to call this strength of character? I can't, any more than I can apply the same name to the strength of degenerates that enables Thanks so much for listening.

If you could rate this podcast and leave a review on iTunes, that would mean so much to us and it would really help the show. We appreciate it and I'll see you next episode. Hey, Prime Members! You can listen to the Daily Stoic early and ad-free on Amazon Music, download the Amazon Music app today, or you can listen early and add free with Wondery Plus in Apple podcasts. Hi, it's me, the Grand Puba of Bahambad, the OG Green Grump, the Grinch, from Wondery. Tis the Grinch Holiday talk show is a pathetic attempt

by the people of O'Vill to use my situation as a teachable moment. So, join me, the Grinch, along with Cindy Luhu, and of course my dog Max every week for this complete waste of time. Listen as I launch a campaign against Christmas cheer, grilling celebrity guests, like chestnuts on an open fire. Now try to get my heart to grow a few sizes, but it's not gonna work, honey. Your family will love the show!

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