Roman Philosophy

Para conquistar el mundo, uno debe conquistarse primero a sí mismo: las emociones, las acciones y los pensamientos. Eisenhower dijo que la libertad es la práctica de la autodisciplina. Cicerón definió la virtud de la templanza como el esplendor de la vida. Sin límites ni autocontrol, no solo nos arriesgamos a no alcanzar nuestro potencial y a perder lo que hemos logrado, sino que, además, nos aseguramos una vida de humillación y miseria.

To master anything, one must first master themselves–one’s emotions, one’s thoughts, one’s actions. Eisenhower famously said that freedom is really the opportunity to practice self-discipline. Cicero called the virtue of temperance the polish of life. Without boundaries and restraint, we risk not only failing to meet our full potential and jeopardizing what we have achieved, but we ensure misery and shame. In a world of temptation and excess, this ancient idea is more urgent than ever.

"Love is the desire for the perpetual possession of the good." These timeless words echo through the ages, inviting listeners to explore one of the most profound questions of human existence. What is love? Is it a mere passion of the body, or a divine force that elevates the soul? In The Symposium, Plato takes us to an ancient Athenian banquet where the finest minds of the classical world—philosophers, poets, and politicians—gather to unravel this enigma.

Epictetus, a Greek stoic and freed slave, ran a thriving philosophy school in Nicropolis in the early second century AD. His animated discussions were celebrated for their rhetorical wizardry and were written down by Arrian, his most famous pupil. Together with the Enchiridion, a manual of his main ideas, and the fragments collected here, The Discourses argue that happiness lies in learning to perceive exactly what is in our power to change and what is not, and in embracing our fate to live in harmony with god and nature.

Discover the timeless wisdom of Rome's most enlightened emperor in "Marcus Aurelius: The Man Who Became Unbreakable." This captivating journey through the life and mind of a true philosopher-king will transform your perspective on leadership, resilience, and personal growth. Step into the sandals of Marcus Aurelius as he grapples with plagues, wars, and the weight of an empire on his shoulders. Witness how Stoic principles forged an unbreakable spirit in the face of unimaginable challenges. From the battlefield to the throne room, every page resonates with practical wisdom that transcends ...

Nada es posible sin la virtud del coraje. Desde los antiguos espartanos hasta el Movimiento por los derechos civiles; desde científicos pioneros hasta empresarios innovadores; desde Charles de Gaulle hasta Florence Nightingale, los grandes líderes han pasado a la historia por los riesgos que se atrevieron a asumir. Sin embargo, hoy somos muchos los que nos vemos paralizados por el miedo.

There are many versions of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, so what’s so special about this one? A new, more accessible translation into modern English. A unique summary of 86 of the main ideas, along with the reference numbers of the passages in which they are mentioned. An insightful introduction to the life of Marcus Aurelius. The history of the Meditations – how they survived almost 2,000 years.The Meditations is a collection of twelve notebooks of thoughts written by Marcus Aurelius over a nineteen-year period. It is the diary of a Roman Emperor, written in the form of a series ...

Epictetus, one of the greatest of the ancient thinkers, believed that the primary mission of philosophy is to help ordinary people meet the challenges of daily life and deal with losses, disappointments, and grief. His prescription for the good life: master desires, perform one's duties, and learn to think clearly about oneself and the larger community. This recording includes an interview with philosopher Jacob Needleman on the significance of Epictetus' work.

Plato's dialogue in the Symposium, which has as its topic the subject of love, explores the idea of love as a means of ascent to contemplation of the Divine. For Plato, generally, to love other human beings is to direct one's mind to love of Divinity. One proceeds from recognition of another's beauty to appreciation of Beauty as it exists apart from any individual, to consideration of Divinity, the source of Beauty, to love of Divinity.

Epicurus of Samos (341-270 BCE) was the founder of the philosophical system to which he gave his name: Epicureanism. It is a label that is often misused and misunderstood today, with ‘a life of pleasure’ as the key aim misinterpreted as a life of indulgence. In fact, the philosophy of Epicurus demonstrated also by his life, was anything but! He established a school in Athens called The Garden, underpinned by his system of ethics.

Hermeticism or Hermetism is a philosophical system based on the purported teachings of Hermes Trismegistus (a legendary Hellenistic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth). These teachings are contained in the various writings attributed to Hermes (the Hermetica), which were produced over a period spanning many centuries (c. 300 BCE — 1200 CE) and may be very different in content and scope.

Conocer lo que puedes controlar y lo que no, intentar llevar una vida plena, definir la persona que queremos ser... Cualquiera que se acerque a los textos recogidos en esta obra descubrirá que la contemplación del mundo implica un conocimiento activo -los ejemplos de Epicteto están extraídos de la vida cotidiana- y que contemplar es, en un sentido literal, ver. El ejercicio contemplativo lleva al conocimiento y éste a la serenidad de espíritu y, en última instancia, a la felicidad.

In Aristotle's Rhetoric, the philosopher identifies rhetoric as one of the three key elements of philosophy, along with logic and dialectic. According to Aristotle, logic is concerned with reasoning to reach scientific certainty while dialectic and rhetoric - because they are concerned with probability - are the branches of philosophy best suited to human affairs. Rhetoric is a tool for practical debate, a means for persuading a general audience to resolve practical issues using probable knowledge.

A lo largo de la historia, algunos libros han cambiado el mundo. Han transformado la manera en que nos vemos a nosotros mismos y a los demás. Han inspirado el debate, la discordia, la guerra y la revolución. Han iluminado, indignado, provocado y consolado. Han enriquecido vidas, y también las han destruido.

The term philosophy means "love of wisdom". In a broad sense, philosophy is an activity people undertake when they seek to understand fundamental truths about themselves, the world, and their relationship to the world and to each other. The Titans of Philosophy Collection contains Book 1: The Analects or Selected Sayings; Book 2: The Allegory of the Cave; Book 3: Metaphysics; Book 4: The Meditations; Book 5: Critique of Pure Reason; and Book 6: Fear and Trembling.

Here are the Socratic Dialogues presented as Plato designed them to be - living discussions between friends and protagonists, with the personality of Socrates himself coming alive as he deals with a host of subjects, from justice and inspiration to courage, poetry and the gods. Plato's Socratic Dialogues provide a bedrock for classical Western philosophy. For centuries they have been read, studied and discussed via the flat pages of books, but the ideal medium for them is the spoken word.

This famous work by Lucretius is a masterpiece of didactic poetry, and it still stands today as the finest exposition of Epicurean philosophy ever written. The poem was produced in the middle of first century B.C., a period that was to witness a flowering of Latin literature unequaled for beauty and intellectual power in subsequent ages. The Latin title, De Rerum Natura, translates literally to On the Nature of Things and is meant to impress the reader with the breadth and depth of Epicurean philosophy.

Is good character something that can be taught? In 430 BCE, Socrates set out to teach the vain, power-seeking Athenian statesman Alcibiades how to be a good person—and failed spectacularly. Alcibiades went on to beguile his city into a hopeless war with Syracuse, and all of Athens paid the price. In The Quest for Character, philosophy professor Massimo Pigliucci tells this famous story and asks what we can learn from it.

Whenever we worry about what to eat, how to love, or simply how to be happy, we are worrying about how to lead a good life. No goal is more elusive. In How to Be a Stoic, philosopher Massimo Pigliucci offers Stoicism, the ancient philosophy that inspired the great emperor Marcus Aurelius, as the best way to attain it. Stoicism is a pragmatic philosophy that teaches us to act depending on what is within our control and separate things worth getting upset about from those that are not.

The philosophy of Ancient Greece provides the background of Western ethical thought and politics. In this approachable introduction, Hugh Griffith, a leading translator of Plato, covers the main ground from the Pre-Socratics through Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and the Epicureans.