Breakfast with Seneca: A Stoic Guide to the Art of Living

INDEX

Page numbers listed correspond to the print edition of this book. You can use your device’s search function to locate particular terms in the text.

“ABC Theory of Emotion” (Albert Ellis): based on Stoic philosophy, 54

abolition of slavery: and Stoic ideas, 138, 141–42

addiction, 41

advantages. See goods vs. advantages in Stoic philosophy

adversity, 88–102; as an opportunity to manifest virtue or goodness, 7; as something we should expect, 7; as a test of character, 7, 95; as training, 99–100; transforming adversity into something good, 100–102; and virtue, 89–95, 100–102

American Psychological Association (APA), 61, 72–73, 226n2

amor fati (love your fate), 113–14

anger (or rage), 60–78; arises from mental judgments, 63–64, 70–71; as avoidable, 64; develops in a three-step process, 67–69; harmful effects of, 62–63; how to cure, 69–74; not a solution to injustice, 76; Stoic theory of, 67–69; symptoms of, 61–62; “a temporary form of insanity,” 60; it “topples” mind and reason, 62–63; ways to avoid, 74–76. See also On Anger (Seneca)

anxiety, 46–59; and cognitive theory of emotion, 48; concern vs. worry, 53, 123; and feedback loops, 51–52; how it arises, 47–48; how to overcome anxiety, 52–59; and imagination, 47, 49–52; of maintaining wealth, 121–22, 123–34; and mindfulness (prosochē), 53; and testing impressions, 53; and worrying about the future, 47–48, 49–50, 53, 56; worrying about worrying (meta-worry or meta-anxiety), 52

Apicius, 121

appreciation: appreciating the gifts of Fortune, 187, 210; relationship to love and gratitude, 195, 203–4; in Stoic philosophy, 168, 194, 195, 196, 203–5. See also gratitude; love

Aristo of Chios: on false beliefs and mental suffering, 222n3–223

Aristotle: believed external goods are needed for eudaimonia, 93–94; his rejection of human equality, 138; on three levels of friendship, 20–22

atomism, 149

authenticity. See living with authenticity

Beck, Aaron T. (psychologist): influenced by Stoicism, 55

benefitting others, 161

Buffett, Warren: frugality of, 120–21

Burrus (head of Praetorian Guard), 10

busyness, 37–39; and “preoccupation,” 38–39. See also time

Caligula, 10; wanted Seneca put to death out of jealousy, 11

cardinal virtues (wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice), 87, 91; and Plato, 91. See also virtue

character-development: and good company, 137–38; and mental tranquility, 81, 207; requires friendship, 21–22, 23; won’t be achieved by travel, 80–81

Chrysippus: criticized by Seneca, 157; on false judgments giving rise to negative emotions, 226n15; on premeditation of future adversity, 228n15

Cicero: on gratitude, 192; on human kinship and okeiōsis, 144–45; on natural law, 139–40; and Stoic philosophy, 139

Claudius, 10; exiled Seneca to Corsica for eight years, 11, 118, 182

Cleanthes: on Fate, 111

cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): and Aaron T. Beck, 55; and Albert Ellis, 54–55; and Donald Robertson, 225n13; influenced by Stoicism, 54–56

cognitive distancing, 72

cognitive restructuring, 73–74

cognitive theory of emotion: and Stoic philosophy, 48, 54

community, human. See human community

complaining, 102–114; as a bad habit, 105; as expressing emotional dissatisfaction, 105; in office settings, 104–5; as rebellion against the laws of nature, 114; in Stoic philosophy, 107, 110–14

“completing life” to discover lasting happiness, 174–75, 179–80, 207, 210, 242n10. See also eudaimonia

concern vs. worry, 49, 53, 123

consistency: and self-consistency, 153–55; vs. wandering, 36, 82, 83. See also virtue, as consistently good

Consolation to Marcia (Seneca), 183, 188

consumerism: Roman, 13–15

contagious behavior, 131–34; across species, 135; also transmits good influences, 137. See also crowd psychology

contributing to society, 8–9; 148–53, 160–62. See also living with authenticity

cosmopolis (“world-city” or “city of the cosmos”): as “community of the cosmos,” 150; and global community, 142–43; and okeiōsis, 146; implies civic engagement, 150. See also human community

critical thinking and philosophy, 26, 136, 156–57

crowds: harmful, 129–38

crowd psychology, 129–37; and contagious behavior, 131–34, 135; and Gabriel Tarde, 133, 134; and gladiatorial games, 120–30; and Gustave Le Bon, 133–34; and hypnosis, 133–34; and imitation, 133, 134; and mob justice, 133; and “Twitter mobs,” 133. See also emotional contagions; unconscious influence

Cynic philosophers, 24; Diogenes of Sinope, described as “a Socrates gone mad,” 24

daily review (philosophical exercise practiced by Seneca and other Stoics), 30–31. See also Stoic philosophical exercises

Dawkins, Richard: his experience of gratitude, 202

death, 163–80; death of Socrates, 166–67; and euthanasia, 178; as the “master fear,” 167, 172, 171; meaning of “death is nothing to us” (Epicurus), 174; overcoming the fear of death, 171–74; philosophy as a preparation for death (Socrates), 167; reasons not to fear death, 172–74; “rehearse for death” (Epicurus), 167; remembering death, 165–70; as the ultimate test of character, 165, 172. See also life; memento mori (remembering death); old age

Declaration of Independence: and Stoic ideas about equality and natural law and natural rights, 140–41

Demetrius (friend of Seneca), 99, 173

destination. See having a destination; wandering vs. having a destination

dichotomy of control, 6; Epictetus on, 92–93; as expressed by Seneca, 91–92; term coined by William B. Irvine, 228n4

Diogenes of Sinope: described as “a Socrates gone mad,” 24

Diotima of Mantinea (teacher of Socrates), 23

egalitarianism: in the Stoic view of virtue, 94

Einstein, Albert: on the rationality present in nature, 110; as a pantheist, 198

Ellis, Albert (psychologist): “ABC Theory of Emotion,” 54; a founder of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), 54; influenced by Stoicism, 54–55

Emerson, Ralph Waldo: and Seneca, xiii

emotional contagions, 133–34, 135. See also crowd psychology

emotions: “ABC Theory of Emotion” (Albert Ellis), and Stoic philosophy, 54–55; the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology, 65–66; Stoics experience normal human feelings, 64–65. See also love or affection; eupatheiai (good emotions); pathē (extreme negative emotions); propatheiai (natural human feelings)

envy: and wealth, 122

Epictetus: on adversity as training, 100; on amor fati, 113; on complaining, 112; dichotomy of control, 92–93; on emotions, 2; on fear of death, 172, 174; on finding goodness inside, 93; on “follow nature,” 111, 114; a former slave, 42; on freedom, 42, 207; on gratitude, 204; on judgments or opinions, 56; on memento mori, 167; on mindfulness (prosochē), 53; on persistence, 159; ridiculed Epicurean philosophers for their antisocial views, 150; on testing impressions, 70; on transforming adversity, 102

Epicurus, 148: his diet, 149, 234n1; encouraged his followers to avoid marriage and politics, 150; “live unnoticed,” 150; on not fearing death, 174; on philosophy as therapy, 4; “rehearse for death,” 167; on wealth, 120

Epicurean philosophy, 148–50; and atomism, 149; “pleasure” only meant the absence of pain, 149

equality: “all men are created equal,” 140–41; human equality in Stoic philosophy, 138–39

eudaimonia (well-being): found by “completing life” in Seneca, 174–75, 210; as “the happy life,” 175; as a lasting state of mind, 211; as “a life truly worth living” in Stoicism, 8; and Stoic joy, 211–13; virtue results in, 7–8, 211–12. See also tranquility or peace of mind

eupatheiai (good emotions), 65–66. See also emotions, the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology

euthanasia, 178

everything is on loan to us from the universe, 114, 186–88; Epictetus on, 187; Seneca on, 187

expectancy: postponing life for the future, 42, 85

exposure therapy, 98: and “practicing poverty,” 125–26; and premeditation of future adversity, 98

external things: as advantages but not real goods, 93–94; as “false goods,” 28, 209; finding real goodness inside, 93; gratitude and appreciation for, 187, 204, 210; not a source of real happiness, 209. See also everything is on loan to us from the universe

false beliefs: as a cause of mental suffering, 7, 18, 19, 27–29, 41, 48, 49, 50, 53, 56, 63, 66, 67, 207, 212. See also judgments or opinions

fame and fortune, 120, 122

Fate (cause and effect), 108, 111–12; Cleanthes on Fate, 111; story of dog and cart, 111

“follow nature” (live in agreement with nature), 5; and complaining, 110–14; Epictetus on, 111; meanings of, 110–12

Ferriss, Timothy: on “practicing poverty,” 125–26; how wealth affects people differently, 120

Fortune, 115–18, 120; appreciating the gifts of Fortune, 187, 203–4; 210; and dichotomy of control, 91–92; Fortuna, a Roman goddess, 115; gifts of Fortune are only on loan to us, 187, 210; nonattachment from the gifts of Fortune, 118, 127; 187; not “up to us,” 91, 116; rising above Fortune and chance, 207–9; transforming misfortune into something good, 100; using the gifts of Fortune, 127–28, 209–10; and virtue, 91–92; Wheel of Fortune, 115–17. See also fame and fortune; freedom, as rising above fortune and chance; poverty; wealth

Frankl, Viktor, 70

freedom: Epictetus on, 42, 206; and eudaimonia, 206–8; meaning of in Greece and Rome (self-possession), 41; as rising above Fortune and chance, 207–9; as self-sufficiency, 208–10; in Seneca’s philosophy, 40–42, 206–9, 210.

freedmen, 40

feelings. See emotions, the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology; propatheiai

friendship: essential for character-development, 21–22, 23, 137–38; and the experience of timeless human community, 44; friends vs. acquaintances, 21; friends as “mirrors,” 22; and letter-writing, 19–20; and real philosophy, xiii–xiv; in Seneca’s philosophy, xiii–iv, 16–23; 31–31, 137–38; with thinkers from the past, 43; three levels of (in Aristotle), 20–22

generosity and gratitude, 200, 205. See also gratitude

Gleiser, Marcelo: on tribalism, 142

God: athesim, pantheism, and theism, 198–99; as being equivalent to nature in Stoic philosophy, 109, 139, 199–200, 240n25

gods: how Stoic philosophers thought about the traditional gods, 200–201

goods vs. advantages in Stoic philosophy, 92–94; wealth as an advantage, 67, 127

grass is greener syndrome, 86

gratitude: both a virtue and an emotion, 192, 195; feeling gratitude for one’s life at the time of death, 204–5; feelings of gratitude inspired by memento mori, 167, 187–88; gratitude for existence experienced by atheists, 202–3; importance of in Stoicism, 192–95; makes society possible, 195; Marcus Aurelius on, 114, 194; as “a philosophical emotion,” 203; and premeditation of future adversity, 98–99; psychology of, 195–96; relationship to appreciation and love, 193, 203–5; replacing grief with gratitude, 188–89; three types of, 196–97; toward nature, 201. See also appreciation; generosity

greed: based on a false belief, 67; gave birth to poverty, 119; and wealth, 122

grief, 181–89; finding moderation in grief, 183–85; as a natural human feeling, 181–84; reducing the shock of, 185–88; replacing grief with gratitude, 188–89; and the Stoic sage, 181; and weeping, 181–83. See also propatheiai (natural human feelings)

happiness: discovered within, 209, 210; found by “completing life,” 174–75, 210; not dependent on external things, 209; and “the happy life,” 175, 210. See also eudaimonia; Stoic joy

having a destination, 79–87, 154; and self-consistency, 153–55. See also Stoic philosophy, as a path; wandering vs. having a destination

hedonic adaptation, 98

Helvia (mother of Seneca), 118, 182

herd mentality, 133. See also crowd psychology

Hierocles: on okeiōsis, 145–47

Highest Good: and having a guiding purpose, 87

hedonism: Roman, 13–15; Seneca on the emptiness of, 15

Holiday, Ryan: on transforming adversity, 102

Holowchak, Mark, 85

Horace, 79

human community, 138–47; and affection or love, 63, 65, 144–45, 191; and the cosmopolis, 142–44, 150–51; and identity politics, 143; and philosophy, xiv; tearing apart, 143; timeless community, 44–45

human equality. See equality

human kinship, 144–47. See also human community; okeiōsis

human nature: identical in Seneca’s time and our own, xii, 12–15

human rights: implied by Stoic philosophy, 140–41, 233n24; as natural rights, 140–41. See also natural law, in Stoic philosophy and Cicero

hypnosis, 133–36. See also crowd psychology; unconscious influence

imagination: and anxiety, 49–50

impressions: Epictetus on, 70; and Socratic questioning, 53–54; testing or evaluating, 53, 54, 57, 70–71

“invisible influences”: as a metaphor for unconscious socialization, 135–36. See also socialization

Irvine, William B.: on fame and fortune, 122; on overcoming hedonic adaptation, 98

Jefferson, Thomas: on natural rights, 140–41; work on abolition of slavery, 141

Jobs, Steve, 179–80

judgments or opinions: and “ABC Theory of Emotion,” 54–55; as being under our control, 7; Chrysippus on, 226n15; and cognitive behavioral therapy, 55–56; Epictetus on, 56; and false beliefs, 19, 56; that give rise to anger, 63–64; as giving rise to negative emotions, 49, 53–55, 63, 67, 222n3–223; 226n15; importance of in Stoic philosophy, 4; Marcus Aurelius on, 74. See also false beliefs, as a cause of mental suffering

Kelly, Kevin, 125

King Jr., Martin Luther, 141

Lactantius: on the Stoic view of human equality, 139

Le Bon, Gustave, 133–34

leisure: as essential in life, 39, 84–85

letter-writing and friendship, 19–20

life: life’s quality matters, not its duration, 175–76; living each day as if it’s your last, 179–80. See also “completing life” to discover lasting happiness; death

living with authenticity 151–62; and intellectual freedom, 156–58; and persistence, 158–59; and self-consistency, 153–55; and self-knowledge 151–53

living within one’s means, 126

Locke, John: on natural rights, 140–41

Logos (rationality or intelligence), 107–8, 109, 138; Einstein on the rationality present in nature, 110

loneliness, 20, 142; and social media, 20

love or affection, 190–92, 193, 195; as the foundation of human society, 63, 65, 144–45, 191; the most primary human feeling in Stoic psychology, 65; philostorgia (family love or affection), 170, 191; relationship to appreciation and gratitude, 193, 204; and Stoic ethics, 191. See also emotions, the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology; okeiōsis

Lucilius Junior (friend of Seneca), 16–17; his financial anxiety, 123–24; saw Seneca as a philosophical mentor, 18–19

Lyon, France (Ludunum): fire at, 88–89

manumission, 40

Marcia (friend of Seneca), 183, 184, 187, 188, 189

Marcus Aurelius: on amor fati, 114; on desiring what you already have, 194; on gratitude, 114, 194, 205; on human kinship, 144; on judgments, 74; on living in the present moment, 50, 53; on love, 191; read Seneca, 50; on transforming adversity, 102; used premeditation of future adversity, 96; wept in public, 182. See also Meditations

May, Rollo, 70–71

mindfulness (prosochē): analyzing emotions as they arise, 53, 57. See also impressions, testing or evaluating

Meditations (Marcus Aurelius), 29, 96, 2005, 224n19

memento mori (remembering death), 165–70; Epictetus on, 167; Epicurus on, 167; as inspiring gratitude, 167, 187–88; and reducing the shock of grief, 185–88; Socrates on, 167. See also death; premeditation of future adversity; Stoic philosophical exercises

Metronax (friend of Seneca), 176

misfortune. See adversity

Mitsis, Phillip: on the Stoic origin of natural rights, 233n24

mob mentality, 133. See also crowd psychology

natural law: in Stoic philosophy and Cicero, 139–41

natural wealth (nature provides for our basic needs), 118–20, 126

Nero: became emperor before turning seventeen, 10; forced Seneca to commit suicide, 12

Nicomachian Ethics (Aristotle): on friendship, 21

Nietzsche, Friedrich: and amor fati, 113; his experience of gratitude, 202

okeiōsis (affinity and kinship), 144–47; and the circles of Hierocles, 145–57; described by Cicero as the basis of human society, 144–45. See also human community

old age, 163–65, 176–79; as being pleasurable, 177; and euthanasia, 178; as resembling a lingering death, 177–79. See also death

On Anger (Seneca), 61, 64

On Benefts (Seneca), 192

On Leisure (Seneca), 85

On Providence (Seneca), 99

On the Constancy of the Wise Person (Seneca), 159

On the Happy Life (Seneca), 127

On the Shortness of Life (Seneca), 36, 38

opposites: things turn into their opposites, 88–89

Palladio, Andrea, 79

Panaetius: on four aspects of human nature, 152–53

pantheism: definition of, 198, 201; as being neither atheism nor theism, 199, 201

paradoxes. See Stoic paradoxes

path (metaphor for Stoic philosophy), 25–31, 82, 83; leading to freedom, 40–42; making progress every day, 29–31. See also having a destination, 79–87; progress; “progressor”; wandering vs. having a destination

pathē (“passions” or extreme negative emotions), 60, 65–66; Chrysippus on, 226n15; like “little mental illnesses,” 67, 226n15. See also emotions, the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology

philosophical mentoring, 17–19

philosophy. See Epicurean philosophy; Stoic philosophy; real philosophy vs. academic philosophy

philosophy as therapy, 2–3; and Epicurus, 4; and Seneca, 2, 4; and Socrates, 3

philostorgia (family love or affection), 170, 191; and philanthropy, 191. See also love and affection

Pigliucci, Massimo, 61, 221n6

Plato: and cardinal virtues, 91; on Diogenes of Sinope, 24

Polybius (friend of Seneca), 185, 187

poverty: fear of, 171; originated from greed, 119. See also practicing poverty; voluntary simplicity; wealth

practicing poverty, 125–26

premeditation of future adversity (praemeditatio malorum): Chrysippus on, 228n15; and the experience of gratitude, 98–99, 170, 194; and exposure therapy, 98; Marcus Aurelius on, 96; Seneca on, 95–96

“preoccupation” and postponing life, 38–39. See also busyness

presence: living in the present moment, 50, 52–53, 57–59, 179, 194, 210, 219–20; and Seneca’s metaphor of the sun and the clouds, 58–59

progress (concept of character-development): an aspect of real philosophy, 8; and “completing life,” 174–75; as freeing yourself from slavery, 40–42; making incremental progress every day, 29; and persistence, 158–60; requires friendship and others, 31–32, 137–38; and self-knowledge, 23–29; one of Seneca’s most-used terms in the Letters, 28; in Stoic philosophy, 8, 22–31. See also character-development; “progressor”

“progressor” (prokoptōn or “one who makes progress”): name for a student of Stoic philosophy, 28–29

propatheiai (natural human feelings), 65–66; and grief, 181–84. See also emotions, the four types of emotions in Stoic psychology

Providence, 108–9

psychological inflation: and wealth, 121

purpose: related to “having a destination,” 86–87

real philosophy vs. academic philosophy, xiii–xiv, 18; involves making progress, 8

reason: possessed by all people, and human equality, 139. See also Logos

Robertson, Donald: on love in Stoicism, 193; his writings on Stoicism and cognitive behavioral therapy, 225n13

Rohn, Jim, 137

Roman Senate, 10

Rumi, Jalaluddin: on generosity, 200

Rushdy, Ashraf, 193

Sagan, Carl: as a pantheist, 198, 240n23

sage(s). See Stoic sage

Sampson, Tony D.: on online emotional contagions, 134

Sarajevo, xiii, 47, 96, 164, 170

self-development. See character-development; progress

self-knowledge: as essential for progress or character-development, 23–29; Socrates on, 23–24, 25; in Stoic philosophy, 151–53

self-sufficiency: and freedom, 41, 208–10

Sellars, John, 67: on passions or pathē (extreme negative emotions); on okeiōsis, 146

Seneca, Lucius Annaeus (Seneca the Younger): accused of hypocrisy due to his wealth, 127, 128, 231n29; on amor fati (love your fate), 113–14; on anger, 60–64, 68–71, 74–78; on anxiety, 47–48, 49–54; on benefitting others, 161; biographical details, 9–12; on contributing to society, 160–62; criticism of Chrysippus, 157; criticism of Zeno, 157; described unconscious socialization, 135; on complaining, 103, 112–14; on “completing life” to discover lasting happiness, 174–75, 210; his consolations on grief, xii, 182, 237n3; on death, 167, 171–74, 176; death of his infant son, 11, 182; on dichotomy of control, 91–92; elected as consul, 10; exiled to Corsica by Claudius, 11, 118, 182; his deep psychological insight, 15; on the emptiness of hedonism, 14; his failed efforts at educating Nero, 11; his father (Seneca the Elder), 9, 165; felt that he had squandered his time working for Nero, 35, 161; forced to commit suicide by Nero, 11–12; on Fortune, 91–92, 93, 116, 117, 118, 187, 209; on freedom, 40–42, 206–9, 210; on friendship, xiii–iv, 16–23, 137–38; 31–32; on gratitude, 188–89, 192–93, 199, 201, 204; on grief, 181–89; on hedonic adaptation, 98; on human community and the cosmopolis, 142–44; humanized the idea of the Stoic sage, 25; on human kinship, 144; his ill-health, 9, 165; on intellectual freedom, 156–58; on leisure, 85; list of his philosophical writings, 245–46, lived in Alexandria for ten years, 9; on living in the present moment, 53, 56, 58–59, 63, 65, 144, 187; on living with authenticity, 151–62; lost half his wealth overnight, 11, 115; on love, 190–91; on making “progress,” 28; his metaphor of the sun and the clouds, 58–59; his mother (Helvia), 118, 182; on nonattachment to wealth and the gifts of Fortune, 118, 127, 128; on old age, 163–64, 176–79; on persistence, 158–59; as a philosophical mentor, 17–19, 55; on philosophy as therapy, 2, 4; his philosophy of time, 33–45; on poverty, 115, 119, 122, 123, 124–26, 171; on premeditation of future adversity, 95–96, on “real philosophy,” xiii–iv, 8, 18; on retirement, 38–39; as a Roman senator, 10; on scientific knowledge, 157; on self-consistency, 153–55; on self-sufficiency, 208–20; on self-understanding, 151–53; on Stoic joy, 58–59, 211–13; on Stoic sage, 64–65, 181; on his teachings as resembling “medical remedies,” 4, 161; threatened by Caligula with death, 11; on transforming adversity, 100–102; and travel, 80, 85; his unique contributions to Stoic philosophy, 15, 135–36, 157, 222n14; on virtue, 6, 89, 91–92, 211–12; on voluntary simplicity, 123, 124–26; on wealth, 118–28, 204; on work and leisure, 39; on “working for later generations,” 161. See also crowd psychology; natural wealth; progress

setbacks. See adversity

Sextus (teacher of Marcus Aurelius), 191

simple living. See voluntary simplicity

slavery: as a metaphor in Stoic philosophy, 40–42, 224n11; Stoic ideas and the abolition of slavery, 138, 141–42

social conditioning, 67. See also socializaion

socialization: deliberate, 134–35; unconscious, 134–36

social media: and loneliness, 20; and online emotional contagions, 134

social status, 39, 122; Roman obsession with, 13–15; and wealth, 122. See also fame and fortune

society. See contributing to society; human community

Socrates: died without fear, 166–67; identified as a sage by many, 27; on self-knowledge, 23–24; and Stoic philosophy, 3

Socratic questioning: in psychotherapy, 53–54. See also impressions, testing or evaluating

Solomon, Robert: on gratitude as “a philosophical emotion,” 203

Spinoza, Baruch: as a pantheist, 198, 240n23

status. See fame and fortune

Stephens, William O., 192

Stoic Challenge, The (William B. Irvine), 98

Stoic joy: finding Stoic joy and lasting happiness, 211–13; and living in the present moment, 58–59

Stoic paradoxes, 8, 41

Stoic philosopher, qualities of: characteristics of a Stoic sage, 26–27; notable for kindness, 209; resembles a doctor, 77; skilled at taming adversity, 101. See also Stoic sage

Stoic philosophical exercises: listing of, 217–20. See also daily review; memento mori; premeditation of future adversity

Stoic philosophy: and “ABC Theory of Emotion,” 54; in Cicero, 139; and civic engagement, 150; and the cognitive theory of emotion, 48–49; and contributing to society, 8–9; differing ideas on grief, 181; and egalitarianism, 94; eight core teachings of, 4–9; freedom in, 206–8; on goods vs. advantages, 92–94; and gratitude, 192–95; and human equality, 139–41; as leading to freedom, 40–42; the logical fallacy of seeing virtue as an all-or-nothing state, 24–25; and love, 65, 190–92; misconceptions about, 2; and natural law, 139; and natural rights (human rights), 140, 233n24; and pantheism, 201; as a path, 25, 40–42, 82, 82, 174; and Socrates, 3; on suicide, 178; on transforming adversity, 100–102; views of nature, 107–12; on wealth as an advantage that should be desired, 14, 127. See also Aristos of Chios; Cicero; contributing to society; cosmopolis; Epictetus; eudaimonia; judgments or opinions; Lucius Annaeus Seneca; Marcus Aurelius; Panaetius; progress; tranquility or peace of mind; virtue

Stoicism as a school: started in Athens, 300 BC, 1, 3; and Stoa Poikilē (Painted Porch); and Zeno of Citium, 3

Stoic sage, 8, 24–27; characteristics of, 26–27; the experience of “sage-like moments,” 31; experiences normal human feelings, 64–65, 181; and grief, 181; humanized by Seneca, 25; notable for kindness, 209; Socrates identified as a sage, 27, 223n15; Zeno’s ideas about, 24–25. See also Stoic philosopher, qualities of

sun and the clouds: metaphor of tranquility, mindful presence, and Stoic joy, 58–59; 212–13

sun: as a symbol of generosity, 200, 205

Tarde, Gabriel, 133, 134

time: and busyness, 37; loss of, 34–37; experiencing the fullness of, 42–45; one of our most valuable possessions, 34–37; Seneca’s philosophy of, 33–45

tranquility or peace of mind, 3, 7, 18, 26, 31, 49, 59, 66, 81, 100, 107, 111, 148, 150, 160, 165, 171, 175, 207, 211, 210, 212, 213

travel, 80, 85

tribalism, 142–43; toxic, 143

Twenty-One Days Without Complaining Challenge, 105–6

Twain, Mark: on worrying about the future, 50

unconscious influence, 131–34. See also crowd psychology

virtue (excellence of character), 5–6, 87; and adversity, 85–95, 100–102; as an all-or-nothing state, 24–25; as being rational and honorable, 91–92; as consistently good, 6; and dichotomy of control, 91–93; meaning of aretē (virtue), 90–91; as the only true good, 5–6, 94; results in eudaimonia or well-being, 7, 211–12; as the source of goodness in the world, 6. See also cardinal virtues (wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice)

voluntary poverty. See voluntary simplicity

voluntary simplicity: Seneca on, 124–26; in Stoic philosophy, 14

wandering vs. having a destination, 37–38, 81–83, 154

Watkins, P. C.: on gratitude, 196

Wilson, Emily: biography of Seneca, 9; on the Stoic sage, 27

wealth, 115–28; and addiction to luxury, 121; anxiety of maintaining it, 121–22, 123–24; dangers of extreme wealth, 120–22; and envy, 122; and fame and fortune, 120, 122; and greed, 122; and living within one’s means, 126; natural wealth, 118–20; nonattachment to, 127; and pain of loss, 122; provides an opportunity to practice virtue, 127–28; and psychological inflation, 121; and Seneca’s detachment from the gifts of Fortune, 118, 127–28; and social status, 122; and voluntary simplicity, 124–26; how wealth affects people differently, 120, 121. See also Fortune; poverty

work and leisure, 39, 84–85

worry. See anxiety

Zeno of Citium: criticized by Seneca, 157; founder of Stoic philosophy, 3; ideas on Stoic sage, 24–25; influenced by Socrates and the Cynic philosophers, 24–25; on living in agreement with nature, 5; and okeiōsis, 144; saw Socrates as a sage, 22n14; and Stoic paradoxes, 41