It seems obvious to us today, and no one asks why or how to use it. Yet it only appeared 5,000 years ago and humanity has lived for hundreds of thousands of years without this fundamental invention.
I write regularly about my growing awareness of the way we live and how to be more serene, happy, free and compassionate. I feel like I'm reinventing a wheel, even though the ancient philiosphes have been explaining this to us for over 2,000 years!
It's funny how our thoughts and emotions need to be ‘worked on’ all the time. Only individual experience allows you to develop your own wheel, your own consciousness.
So why am I still sharing MY wheel? I don't really know yet. Part of me will be satisfied by the likes and comments. Another part, more connected and true, isn't looking for this satisfaction, but just wants to be alive and serve Life.
Today, as I go through THE wheel of Stoicism, I realise that they were proposing timeless principles for leading a serene life while facing up to the challenges and crises we also face. Here are ten of their fundamental precepts to which I fully subscribe:
- Recognise that our thoughts, desires and actions are under our control, while external events are not.
- Embrace inevitable events with serenity, transforming obstacles into opportunities for growth.
- Act with justice, courage, temperance and wisdom.
- Living in the present moment
- Develop an attitude of emotional detachment to maintain peace of mind in the face of challenges and turn them into our superpowers
- Learn to manage our emotions so that we can make decisions in line with our purpose and values
- Recognise our interconnection with the universe
- Anticipating difficulties
- Practise gratitude
- Seek wisdom through introspection
As I reread these recommendations, I'm humbled because I couldn't say it better myself. Like you who've just read them, I realise that I already know all these principles of life... but I don't practice them every day.
The solution lies in ritual. Like taking care of my teeth, it's a habitual routine where I apply these precepts with full awareness. I invite you to choose one to start with...