Zeno of Citium
Zeno of Citium – 334 BCE – 262 BCE
A Hellenistic philosopher: Founder of Stoicism, three branches of philosophy: physics, ethics, logic.
A few principles of modern Stoicism
- Develop an internal locus of control: “Man is disturbed not by things, but by the views he takes of them.” Epictetus.
- Guard your time: “We’re tight-fisted with property and money, yet think too little of wasting time, the one thing about which we should all be the toughest misers.: Seneca
- Don’t outsource your happiness: “I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, yet sets less value on his own opinions of himself than on the opinions of others.” Marcus Aurelius
- Remember that nothing endures: “Alexander the Great and his mule driver both died and the same thing happened to both.” Marcus Aurelius
(Excerpted in gratitude from: https://dailystoic.com/stoicism-modernity/)
On The Stoicism of Helium
Helium walks into a bar. The bartender tells him “Sorry we don’t serve noble gases here.” Helium doesn’t react.
(Note: Helium is a Noble Gas, a family of gasses that – you guessed it - do not react…)
Bottom line: What do you think? Did Buddhist teachings follow the ancient trade routes to the Mediterranean and influence Zeno? Not sure? Check out this short video
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