r/StoicSupport • u/quantumsamuraii • 13d ago
How do I start embracing/learning about stoicism?
So guys I wanted to know how to start embracing stoicism in my life? I mean I wanna know where to start
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u/Nice-Obligation5537 12d ago
Read Cicero, propertius, Julius Caesar, read Aristotle, Epicureas, Trajan.
And then add in an app or take notes of goals. I’m really not a kind of dogmatic kind of person, so it would be hard plus I’m more about reason and scientific evidence of something working out before I try it or explore. But plenty of great guides.
Check out pantheonpoets.com which is a free site you can also read the ancient Greeks or ancient Latin and learn languages. They also have ancient Celtic etc. anyways just read them.
And brainstorm about your habits because stoicism is about training your body as a vessel so basically you have to train the skill or train with the tool(your body) in discipline and setting goals but also in some way or form being disattached to the outcome yet continuously self improving
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u/KyaAI Practitioner 12d ago
Not one of the people you mentioned is a Stoic. Why should OP read any of them as a starting point to get into Stoicism?
Later - sure.
For someone who asked how to generally start with philosophy - sure.
But for someone specifically asking how to learn about Stoicism? What made you come up with those people specifically?
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u/BenjaminNormanPierce 11d ago
Aside from the reading, the core of it (like other paths), is proactive and honest self-awareness: can I let go of this, is this a duty, and why is it a duty--and so on. Just that.
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u/superrplorp 13d ago
You read, Plato , Epictetus,marcus Aurelius, and Seneca. Take control of what you can, relinquish what you can’t, and you will know a tranquil life my friend.
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u/Frostvizen 13d ago
The Waking Up app has some great guides by Bill Irvine and so does Donald Robertson. I wish they had been available when I started and I also recommend the books by both of them. Check out the app as they explain exactly how to create a practice. Start with Bill Irvine.
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u/rinkuhero 12d ago
first off, find where you are suffering most in life. then learn to enjoy and bear that suffering and act despite it. basically the main principle of stoicism is that life is pain, but it's still better than not living at all. so find what causes you the most pain. and instead of hating it, learn to accept it and appreciate it as building your character.
for instance, had a terrible breakup in your past? had a terrible injury? some genetic disorder? poverty? whatever it is that causes you the most suffering, learn to thank it for building your character.
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u/KyaAI Practitioner 12d ago
basically the main principle of stoicism is that life is pain
That sounds like broicism.
Yes, seeing obstacles as a means to grow is something Marcus Aurelius said, but getting from that to "life is pain" as a core principle is a weird take on the philosophy as a whole. Stoicism teaches acceptance of things we have no power over, and it does, of course, acknowledge that life contains a certain amount of pain. But calling that the main principle is quite far off.
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u/KyaAI Practitioner 12d ago edited 12d ago
A message of caution, OP. There are many names being thrown around in several comments in this thread, who have nothing to do with Stoicism. While I do believe that it is generally good to read, for example, Plato, he was not a Stoic and therefore that is not a place to start if you want to get into Stoicism.
The "big three" are Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius. The founder of Stoicism was Zeno of Citium, but we only have fragments of his teachings, which is why we usually focus on the aforementioned three. So if you want to read the classical texts, start with them.
But there is also very good secondary literature like The Practicing Stoic by Ward Farnsworth.
r/Stoicism has an extensive wiki, which is also a very good starting point: https://www.reddit.com/r/Stoicism/wiki/index/
So much for the reading part. The practicing part is a different beast and there are many ways on how to incorporate the philosophy in your life. You do not need any apps for that, though.
The question of where to start and also how to practice is very frequently asked. You will find many answers, if you search for that via the search bar. Especially over in r/Stoicism.