in Ramblings

A brief defence of Stoicism’s most controversial advice

deal with life. But it seems limited with its advice on relationships. Epictetus (50–135 CE), a prominent Stoic philosopher in Rome, argues that to be happy, you must detach from the things and the people you love:

If you kiss your own child or wife, say to yourself that you are kissing a human being; for when they die you will not be disturbed (Handbook, 3).

How does that advice even make sense? Attachment makes relationships possible at all. Let me explain with a story.

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