💀 Dying Every Day
Dying Every Day (Stoicism in a Year) is a podcast by the Perennial Leader Project. Each episode turns a selected passage from Stoic philosophy into a guided meditation designed to help you (and me) learn how to live.
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Marcus Aurelius on being adaptable
Welcome to another episode of Dying Every Day (Stoicism in a Year). We’ve reached Day 97, and we’re learning how to adapt and overcome obstacles.
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In his Meditations, the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote to himself,
In a sense, people are our proper occupation. Our job is to do them good and put up with them. …
They may impede our actions, but they cannot impede our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting.
The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.
+Adapted from Meditations, 5.20
How comfortable are you adapting to life? What about in the face of obstacles or challenges?
Learning to let life unfold, or to put it another way, to adapt instead of resisting, is difficult for us all. As the Stoic teacher Epictetus stressed, “Don’t demand that things happen as you wish, but wish that they happen as they do happen, and you will go on well.”
For the Stoics, obstacles are opportunities.
In a letter known today as On Ill-Health and Endurance of Suffering, Seneca advised his friend Lucilius,
Of course, I prefer that war should not occur, but if war does occur, I shall desire that I may nobly endure the wounds, the starvation, and all that the war brings. … The conclusion is that hardships are not desirable, but virtue is desirable, as it enables us to endure hardships patiently.
It’s important to remember that difficult circumstances (as well as every moment of life) invite us to practice our philosophy. Each day and moment is a precious opportunity to embody virtue.
Reflection Prompt
Consider reflecting (or journaling) on what it means to be adaptable. You might ask yourself, “What role does virtue play in navigating obstacles?” and/or “How can I remember to view hardships and challenges as opportunities?”
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Thank you for listening; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
J.W.
P.S. I greatly appreciate your time, attention, and support!
Loving your work! Started recommending you my friend 🙌
Greetings Paolo! Thanks for recommending; glad to hear you found something useful.