We all know what it’s like to sit in a library or classroom or some other public space and try to concentrate there. We all know the people who turn their heads at every noise, who lift their eyes from their books whenever someone talks, whenever a mere pin drops. Maybe that is ourselves. And […]

It is not easy, the path we tread. The road is long and winding, treacherous indeed, and sometimes we tire so much that we cannot think of moving on. Do not reject such difficulty, but do not chide yourself for feeling this weariness either. We are all finite beings, although infinite in potential. All people, […]

The subconscious mind is like a wellspring, bringing forth the water we drink. From the depths it comes, unseen, until it manifests itself on the surface. So, too, are our minds the wellsprings of our actions, of our perceptions, and many other aspects of our lives. Marcus Aurelius, Roman philosopher and emperor, wrote incessantly about […]

Western society is a hive of activity, of rushing and going, of nonstop motion. Humanity has never been more driven about, so bombarded by information and spurred to often senseless action, and what this gives us is often an illusion of activity, an illusion of productivity. But are we really going anywhere? As the Roman […]

Laozi was an ancient Chinese philosopher and writer, known as the reputed author of the Tao Te Ching. He is seen as the founder of philosophical Taoism. His work has been immortalized through the ages, and much of it stands today as a timeless reminder of what it means to live full to one’s potential […]

All art is imitation to some extent. We are inspired by the works of others, by nature itself, or by countless other things that may draw our attention and enamor us with their example. There is no such thing as complete originality, for no matter what we do we draw upon that which has shaped […]

We all know what contentment means–or at least we think we do. It is such a simple concept. To be content is to be happy with what one has, to look upon his or her life and feel no envy, no bitterness, but simply a calm acceptance of what is and an elation of all […]

You cannot run away from yourself . . . For several years of his life, Seneca (c. 4 BC – AD 64) was the guiding hand of the Roman Empire. His timeless writings, which are well portrayed in Letters from a Stoic, were derived mainly from Stoic principles, which had been developed centuries earlier in […]

Remember that this moment is all that you have. That your future is yet to come, and your past is finished. It is only now, this very instant, that is yours to shape to your will–or to let others shape it to theirs. All of your dreams, all of your goals, everything you desire, it […]