🖼️ Monday Muse
The “Monday Muse” is a weekly collection of reminders, insights, and maxims on the art of living. The term “muse” has two meanings: (1) a state of deep thought; and (2) a source of inspiration. May the following (in a small way) be a source of contemplation and wisdom to live your highest good.
📌 Perennial Reminder(s)
The American philosopher Mortimer Adler (1902—2001) on Aristotle, moral virtue, and good habits:
Moral virtue, Aristotle tells us, is the habit of making right choices. Making one or two right choices among many wrong choices will not do. If the wrong choices greatly outnumber the right choices, you will be moving steadily in the wrong direction—away from achieving happiness instead of toward it. That is why Aristotle stresses the notion of habit. …
Good habits, or moral virtues, are habits of making the right choices among goods, real and apparent. Bad habits, which Aristotle calls ‘vices,’ are habits of making the wrong choices. Every time you make a right choice and act on it, you are doing something that moves you toward your ultimate goal of living a good life. […]
Source: Aristotle for Everybody (via Reading & the Good Life)
📜 Perennial Maxim(s)
The Greek philosopher Epicurus (341—270 BC) on having enough:
Follow: Instagram | Youtube | Notes
💡 Perennial Insight(s)
The Scottish author and teacher Stephen Batchelor on mindful awareness:
For Thogmé Zangpo, mindfulness is ‘the recollection of all one aspires to let go of and realize,’ while awareness is ‘knowing how to do that letting go and realizing.’ Mindful awareness thus encompasses the entire project of human flourishing. To be mindful means to remember to let go of compulsive reactivity and realize a nonreactive way of life, while to be aware means to know how to refine the psychological, contemplative, philosophical, and ethical skills needed to achieve these goals. …
Mindful awareness both embeds my attention in the raw immediacy of experience and serves as the moral compass that guides my response to that experience. […]
Source: The Art of Solitude
—
Thank you for reading; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
J.W. Bertolotti
P.S. If you’re interested in becoming a member but cannot afford it, feel free to request a complimentary membership or use this discount link.