Feeling
Grief
Stoic passages for grief, each with a modern reading you can use today.
- Cleanthes In every difficulty keep these words ready: Lead me, God and Fate, toward the end appointed for me. I will follow;…
- Epictetus He was imprisoned; the claim that he suffered evil is something you added.
- Epictetus If you kiss your child, or your wife, say that you only kiss things which are human, and thus you will not be…
- Epictetus Never say of anything, "I have lost it"; but, "I have returned it." Is your child dead? It is returned. Is your wife…
- Epictetus We govern our rational choice and whatever follows from that moral will. Beyond our control are the body and its…
- Epictetus When loss stings, remember that what you love is fragile and lent, not a possession. Hold child, sibling, and friend…
- Epictetus When you see anyone weeping in grief because his son has gone abroad, or is dead, or because he has suffered in his…
- Marcus Aurelius Accept then, and be pleased with whatsoever doth happen, though otherwise harsh and un-pleasing, as tending to that…
- Marcus Aurelius Accept what comes without pride; release what leaves without clinging.
- Marcus Aurelius All parts of the world, (all things I mean that are contained within the whole world), must of necessity at some time…
- Marcus Aurelius All substances come soon to their change, and either they shall be resolved by way of exhalation (if so be that all…
- Marcus Aurelius All that I consist of, is either form or matter. No corruption can reduce either of these unto nothing: for neither…
- Marcus Aurelius All things that are in the world, are always in the estate of alteration. Thou also art in a perpetual change, yea and…
- Marcus Aurelius Anger and grief often harm us more than the events that first stirred them.
- Marcus Aurelius As a physician's prescription aims at healing, so nature may prescribe illness, disability, or hardship for the work…
- Marcus Aurelius As a pig that cries and flings when his throat is cut, fancy to thyself every one to be, that grieves for any worldly…
- Marcus Aurelius As generation is, so also death, a secret of nature's wisdom: a mixture of elements, resolved into the same elements…
- Marcus Aurelius 'As often as a father kisseth his child, he should say secretly with himself' (said Epictetus,) 'tomorrow perchance…
- Marcus Aurelius But this thou mayest be sure of, that this (if it be so indeed) would never have been so ordered by the Gods, had it…
- Marcus Aurelius Cross this short span of life in accord with nature, then arrive at your final rest with grace, as a ripe olive falls,…
- Marcus Aurelius Dig within yourself: there is a spring of goodness there, ready to flow whenever you continue digging.
- Marcus Aurelius Fit and accommodate thyself to that estate and to those occurrences, which by the destinies have been annexed unto…
- Marcus Aurelius For the motion of the mind to any injustice, or incontinency, or to sorrow, or to fear, is nothing else but a…
- Marcus Aurelius Give what thou wilt, and take away what thou wilt, saith he that is well taught and truly modest, to Him that gives,…
- Marcus Aurelius He therefore that forsakes the law, is a fugitive. So is he, whosoever he be, that is either sorry, angry, or afraid,…
- Marcus Aurelius How many of them who came into the world at the same time when I did, are already gone out of it?
- Marcus Aurelius If thou canst but withdraw conceit and opinion concerning that which may seem hurtful and offensive, thou thyself art…
- Marcus Aurelius In another man's mind and understanding thy evil Cannot subsist, nor in any proper temper or distemper of the natural…
- Marcus Aurelius 'In my sickness' (saith Epicurus of himself:) 'my discourses were not concerning the nature of my disease, neither was…
- Marcus Aurelius Is it so with thee, that hitherto thou hast neither by word or deed wronged any of them? Remember withal through how…
- Marcus Aurelius It is against himself that he doth offend: why should it trouble thee? Hath anything happened unto thee? It is well,…
- Marcus Aurelius It is that, that all men have ever been subject unto. That thou camest therefore I am not angry with thee, only…
- Marcus Aurelius Keep before your mind those consumed by anger, resentment, success, disaster, wrongdoing, or distinction. Ask where it…
- Marcus Aurelius Let that of Heraclitus never be out of thy mind, that the death of earth, is water, and the death of water, is air;…
- Marcus Aurelius Let the several deaths of men of all sorts, and of all sorts of professions, and of all sort of nations, be a…
- Marcus Aurelius Loss and corruption, is in very deed nothing else but change and alteration; and that is it, which the nature of the…
- Marcus Aurelius Nature hath its end as well in the end and final consummation of anything that is, as in the begin-nine and…
- Marcus Aurelius Nothing can happen unto thee, which is not incidental unto thee, as thou art a man. As nothing can happen either to an…
- Marcus Aurelius O man! as a citizen thou hast lived, and conversed in this great city the world. Whether just for so many years, or…
- Marcus Aurelius Of an operation and of a purpose there is an ending, or of an action and of a purpose we say commonly, that it is at…
- Marcus Aurelius Of everything therefore thou must use thyself to say, This immediately comes from God, this by that fatal connection,…
- Marcus Aurelius Of the same nature is sickness and death; slander, and lying in wait, and whatsoever else ordinarily doth unto fools…
- Marcus Aurelius Put aside what is past, leave the future to the larger order, and direct the present toward reverence and justice:…
- Marcus Aurelius Regard the life already lived as finished; receive what remains as a gift, and live it in accord with nature. Love the…
- Marcus Aurelius Some things hasten to be, and others to be no more. And even whatsoever now is, some part thereof hath already…
- Marcus Aurelius That inward mistress part of man if it be in its own true natural temper, is towards all worldly chances and events…
- Marcus Aurelius The nature of the universe, of the common substance of all things as it were of so much wax hath now perchance formed…
- Marcus Aurelius The next, that all these things, which now thou seest, shall within a very little while be changed, and be no more:…
- Marcus Aurelius Those things that are his own, and in his own power, he himself takes order, for that they be good: and as for those…
- Marcus Aurelius Thou must comfort thyself in the expectation of thy natural dissolution, and in the meantime not grieve at the delay;…
- Marcus Aurelius Thou must not in matter of death carry thyself scornfully, but as one that is well pleased with it, as being one of…
- Marcus Aurelius To find out, and set to thyself some certain way and method of contemplation, whereby thou mayest clearly discern and…
- Marcus Aurelius To live with the Gods. He liveth with the Gods, who at all times affords unto them the spectacle of a soul, both…
- Marcus Aurelius To suffer change can be no hurt; as no benefit it is, by change to attain to being. The age and time of the world is…
- Marcus Aurelius Use thyself therefore often to meditate upon this, that the nature of the universe delights in nothing more, than in…
- Marcus Aurelius What pain soever thou art in, let this presently come to thy mind, that it is not a thing whereof thou needest to be…
- Marcus Aurelius Whatsoever dieth and falleth, however and wheresoever it die and fall, it cannot fall out of the world, here it have…
- Marcus Aurelius Whatsoever is material, doth soon vanish away into the common substance of the whole; and whatsoever is formal, or,…
- Marcus Aurelius Whatsoever it is that thou goest about, consider of it by thyself, and ask thyself, What? because I shall do this no…
- Marcus Aurelius When pain comes, remember it is no disgrace and cannot corrupt your ruling mind or prevent rational, social action. Do…
- Marcus Aurelius Where the matter may be effected agreeably to that reason, which both unto the Gods and men is common, there can be no…
- Marcus Aurelius Why should I grieve myself; who never did willingly grieve any other! One thing rejoices one and another thing another.
- Marcus Aurelius Why then should that rather be an unhappiness, than this a happiness? But however, canst thou, O man! term that…
- Musonius Rufus How could banishment prevent a person from cultivating themselves or attaining virtue, when exile has never barred…
- Seneca Believe me: true joy is a weighty matter. Can anyone face death, poverty, restrained pleasure, and pain with ease…
- Seneca Death is a release from and an end of all pains: beyond it our sufferings cannot extend: it restores us to the…
- Seneca Hold in your bosom Novatilla, who soon will present you with great-grandchildren, she whom I had so entirely adopted…
- Seneca How many funerals pass our houses? yet we do not think of death. How many untimely deaths? we think only of our son’s…
- Seneca However, to pass by all other instances, not to speak of the other deaths which have occurred in my own house. Fortune…
- Seneca I will effect this cure, if possible, with your goodwill: if you disapprove of my efforts, or dislike them, then you…
- Seneca It appears as though this plague moved in a regular orbit, and spread ruin and desolation among us all without…
- Seneca It is better, therefore, to conquer it than to cheat it; for a grief which has been deceived and driven away either by…
- Seneca It is better to overcome grief than to trick it.
- Seneca It is hard, no doubt, for a mind which has received so rude a shock to betake itself so quickly to these livelier…
- Seneca It is to guarantee the safety of all these that Fortune has struck you in this quarter: you have many left in whom you…
- Seneca It is your trouble, Marcia, which has been dealt with here: it is beside your couch of mourning that Areus has been…
- Seneca Lay aside lamentations and wailings, and all the usual noisy manifestations of female sorrow: you have gained nothing…
- Seneca Let us add, if you please, to these grounds of complaint the disposition of the youth himself, cut off in the midst of…
- Seneca Let us be free from this evil, let us clear our minds of it, and extirpate root and branch a passion which grows again…
- Seneca Look at your father and your grandfather: the former fell into the hands of a foreign murderer: I allowed no man to…
- Seneca Nature demands from us a certain amount of grief, our imagination adds some more to it; but I will never forbid you to…
- Seneca Nature gave him to you, as she gives others to other brothers, not as an absolute property, but as a loan: afterwards…
- Seneca Nevertheless Bibulus, who during the whole of his year of office had remained hidden in his house, to cast reproach…
- Seneca No one therefore could console you as well as he: when he speaks his words have greater weight, as though they were…
- Seneca Nothing, I think, is more admirable than that those who are in high places should pardon many shortcomings in others,…
- Seneca Nothing is more unjust than that any one should inherit the quarrels of his father. Whenever we are loth to pardon any…
- Seneca Revenge takes up much time, and throws itself in the way of many injuries while it is smarting under one. We all…
- Seneca The Emperor Augustus lost his darling sister Octavia, and though Nature destined him for heaven, yet she did not relax…
- Seneca The foundations of new cities are laid, new names of nations arise, while the former ones die out, or become absorbed…
- Seneca The great Gaius Caesar, who proved such a merciful conqueror in the civil war, did the same thing; he burned a packet…
- Seneca There is no reason for you to suppose me conquered and yourself my conqueror. It is your fortune which has overcome…
- Seneca There is, therefore, no reason for a service which is useless if it is not felt by him who is the object of it, and…
- Seneca Think of your son’s handsome person, which you had guarded in perfect purity among all the temptations of a voluptuous…
- Seneca To rejoice and be glad is the proper and natural function of virtue: it is as much beneath her dignity to be angry, as…
- Seneca Unable to serve in one public role, serve in another. If speech is denied, offer a quiet example. If civic duties are…
- Seneca Whatever gift Fortune bestows upon a man, let him think while he enjoys it, that it will prove as fickle as the…
- Seneca Whatever has arrived at perfection, is ripe for dissolution. Consummate virtue flees away and betakes itself out of…
- Seneca When he was in the act of holding the doorpost and dedicating the Capitol the news of his son’s death was brought to…
- Seneca Whenever you are engaged in other pursuits your mind will be relieved from its burden: at present you keep watch over…
- Seneca You are mistaken! your brother has not lost the light of day, but has obtained a more enduring light: whither he has…
- Seneca You cannot even say that you have been specially marked by the gods for misfortune because you have had no pleasure in…
- Seneca You have asked me, Lucilius, why, if the world be ruled by providence, so many evils befall good men?
- Seneca You have grieved at the only grief so good a son could cause you: all else is beyond the power of fortune to harm, and…
- Seneca You have no grounds for excusing yourself on the ground of being a woman, who has a sort of right to weep without…
- Seneca You lost your most affectionate uncle, a brave and excellent man, just when you were awaiting his return: and, lest…
- Seneca You may as well say—“What then? When a good man sees his father or his son being cut down, I suppose he will not weep…
- Seneca You may make this simile apply to your whole entrance into life. I have explained to you what attractions and what…
- Seneca You must be aware that none of them know how to behave, whether to mention Drusus in your presence or not, as they…
- Seneca You must now show a virtue equal to hers, recall your mind from grief, and take care that no one may think that you…
- Seneca You need not, therefore, hasten to the burial-place of your son: that which lies there is but the worst part of him…
- Seneca You never would deny me anything, and I hope, though all grief is obstinate, that you will surely not refuse me this…
- Seneca You say, “I am deprived of the embraces of my darling son, I cannot enjoy the pleasure of seeing him and of hearing…
- Seneca You say, 'I am in terrible pain.' Does bearing it badly lessen the pain at all?
- Seneca You say that the wise man is not mad, yet you admit that he sometimes loses his reason, talks nonsense, and is driven…
- Seneca You, therefore, who allow them to trouble you to an unreasonable extent ought especially to restrain yourselves, and…
- Seneca You will show more respect for the youth himself, who well deserves that it should make you glad to speak and think of…