Stoicism: How to Use Stoic Philosophy to Find Inner Peace and Happiness

by Jason Hemlock

“Don’t seek for everything to happen as you wish it would, but rather wish that everything happens as it actually will—then your life will flow well.”

The Stoics sought freedom from being ruled by their passions by using logic and reason. They weren’t looking to eliminate their emotions so much as transcend them by developing clarity of thought and inner peace. They looked to achieve a high degree of self-control, self-awareness and self-discipline.

“If evil be spoken of you and it be true, correct yourself, if it be a lie, laugh at it.”

“Time is a sort of river of passing events, and strong is its current; no sooner is a thing brought to sight than it is swept by and another takes its place, and this too will be swept away.”

“We are more often frightened than hurt; and we suffer more in imagination than in reality.”

“Life is very short and anxious for those who forget the past, neglect the present, and fear the future.”

Life is a game, so play it with all your heart.

“Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.”

Wisdom, justice, self-awareness, bravery – these are the goals you should be aiming for.

“In your actions, don’t procrastinate. In your conversations, don’t confuse. In your thoughts, don’t wander. In your soul, don’t be passive or aggressive. In your life, don’t be all about business.” – Marcus Aurelius

As Marcus Aurelius said, “Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature’s delight.”