“… The philosopher’s lecture-hall is a hospital — you shouldn’t walk out of it feeling pleasure, but pain, for you aren’t well when you enter it.”
EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 3.23.30
Philosophy and stoicism aren’t all roses and warm fuzzy feelings. It’s not about cozy cups of tea and a good book to snuggle up with on a rainy day. Stoicism isn’t fun and games, it’s a blueprint for life. It’s serious business.
Life is hard, and philosophy is medicine for the ill — and sometimes that medicine stings. That’s how you know it’s working. This is the wisdom in today’s entry of The Daily Stoic, and author Ryan Holiday uses the example of a physical therapy clinic as an example of how it can be painful to be worked back into the proper shape. If it doesn’t hurt, then you’re probably not doing it right.
We have to strengthen the soul. We have to get at the root of what ails us, and that can mean uprooting some negative behaviors, stopping some vices, and curing ourselves. That ain’t easy. And it hurts sometimes. And we shouldn’t be surprised when it does.
This process of healing can be really hard to accept and even harder to endure, but the end result is important and valuable. You’ll be glad you toughed it out —when you’re imperturbable and resilient and strong in a way that you’ve never been before.
