Episode 126 – Massimo Pigliucci – Stoicism, Virtue & thriving in a world out of control

Ideas worth returning to

Quotes

Five substantial excerpts from the published transcript, lightly edited for clarity without changing their meaning.

1. “The early Stoics often treated God, nature, truth, and the universe as different names for the same reality. In that sense they believed in God, but not necessarily as a separate supernatural person. Their divinity was embedded in the rational order and laws of the universe itself.”

   From the conversation

2. “A modern Stoic may be drawn to what is sometimes called Einstein’s God: confidence in the intelligible order of nature rather than belief in a personal deity. Science is possible because the universe behaves with enough regularity and logic for human reason to investigate and understand parts of it.”

   From the conversation

3. “For the Stoics, a good human life applies reason to improve social living. Marcus Aurelius repeatedly urges himself to do what social reason demands. The point of life is to be useful to others and make things better for the community, which also improves the conditions in which one lives.”

   From the conversation

4. “Marcus Aurelius begins his Meditations by naming people who treated him well and influenced him for the better. It is an exercise in humility and gratitude. Even a person holding extraordinary power can begin by acknowledging that character is formed through debts to teachers, relatives, friends, and examples provided by others.”

   From the conversation

5. “The Stoic goal is to become the best human being you can. That means developing the capacities most characteristic of humanity: reason and social cooperation. The more reasonably and sociably you live—and the more you help society rather than harm it—the more fully you realize human excellence.”

   From the conversation