This comment is enlightening to me because it furthers Epicurus' stance on pain/pleasure. In death, there is no sensation of either pleasure or pain, we are completely removed from all sensitivity or awareness, meaning that humans should not fear death and what will happen in the aftermath. Death is not positive or negative in this stance, because we do not know what to expect from it, and we should not worry about it while alive.

I am confused by this passage. I understand desires withering the heart and what is meant by that. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought one of the themes of Taoism is to slow down in life, and to be mindful, garner inner peace, and find balance...wouldn't this mean we would want to hear the sounds of nature, look at the trees, and think philosophical thoughts? Unless this is meant in the context of over-consuming and being greedy about food/music/art so we can't feel the true sensations of life? I don't know, I am a little lost on the entire context of this.

I found this passage enlightening. When we as humans try to gain too much wealth, vanity, possessions, etc.. we will never be completely content within our lives and in ourselves. Continously trying to chase after perfection or an ideal life will just be our downfall. At the end of the day, all we have is ourselves and the connections that we have made as humans; it is necessary in this philosophy to slow down and be mindful, live a balanced life, and focus on our own work, not with materialness.

I understand this sentence, but i find it slightly disturbing. I think that the idea of going with the natural flow of nature and letting outcomes happen as they will with non-interference is an interesting idea, but that is not how I would choose to live my life. It may be my own personal issues, but I like a certain amount of control over situations, advocating for myself, and trying to set myself up for success. I do believe in "everything happens for a reason," and have been trying to allow more "flow" into my life, but i don't think i can fully believe in "not-doing." Trust in the universe to do the right thing is a big part of my own personal philosophy, so I think that a mixture of "not-doing" and "doing" would be best for me so everything falls into place.

I found this passage interesting. Lao is comparing two different things like high and low/long and short but making a point that you can't have one without another. Everything in the world has a balance, and even the most opposite things in the world are interconnected and play a role. I like the idea that he makes with difficult and easy, there are no easy times without difficulties... it is so important to take things slow and appreciate the easy moments we get to experience, knowing that it comes hand in hand with the bad.

I am confused on this paragraph. When Epicetus is referencing a person being "restored," where are they getting restored to? The afterlife or is this just a sense of closure on the widowers part? I understand that the widow or person experiencing grief has "lost" this person in a sense of their presence being gone and they will never see them again, but the restoring part is confusing me.

I found this passage disturbing in a few ways. When a person has their leg amputated, has a mastectomy, or any sort of change to their body, self concept, and their function, a part of their "will" will alter because their body does not work in the same way anymore. Yes, a person can be reflective and not let this damper their life...but I feel like directly after such a major change to one's body, they will have to re-learn how to live certain parts of their life whether this be walking, wardrobes, driving, talking or any daily activities of life... Self-concept and how a person sees themself and their opinion is a major theme in Stoicism, and disease/impediments can easily change a person's concept of their own individuality and body. There will be good and bad days, mindset is very important to healing and making progress in life.

I thought this was an interesting phrase that talked about possessions and validation. The elated horse thinks he is beautiful, meaning that he is gathering validation from internal happiness and character. But the person who says "I have a beautiful horse" is using appearances to find happiness, instead of finding it within themselves. This paragraph is important to recognize the vitality of what we truly think is necessary in our lives, and that the only thing that truly belongs to us is ourselves and our opinions. That person will never truly own the horse, and therefore the elation of owning the horse will never be completely fulfilling.

I found this passage enlightening. I feel like as humans when something negative happens to us, we want to blame the people around us in order not to take responsibility and to continue to think of ourselves in a positive light instead of looking inward. I think that one of the whole points of stoicism is self-awareness and reflection on our own actions/opinions and this quote encapsulates that idea. Rather than blaming someone else for our negative emotions that they had no control over, rather look deeper into the situation and our own attitude.

I found this confusing, because I feel as though justice systems are mutual agreements set up by men in order to keep people safe, create law, and set up punishments etc... Epicurus says that natural justice is "mutual agreements not to inflict nor allow harm," and I may be confused on his definition of natural and absolute justice and how those intertwine. He says later that how the details of justice vary, and I think I would just need more clarification on that aspect.

I found this passage disturbing and I do not necessarily agree with it. I think that because we have two different people with two different moral compasses, their views on the world are polar and there is a struggle in comparing them. This "unjust" person has an opposite view of anxiety, punishment, power, fear, etc... because they are "morally wrong," and may not experience the same emotional spectrum as a person who always does the right thing.

This sentence is interesting to me because I think humans desperately want to understand and fully comprehend everything happening around them to feel some sense of control, but they will never grasp the power of the universe/nature/death because I don't think it is something that is meant to be understood. Humans want to preoccupy themselves with science and nature and the study of those subjects, rather than looking deeper inside of their own vices of pain and desire.