Author: DesertMystic
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Stoicism + Jewish Wisdom Week 1
This year, I will begin exploring stoicism. To start this journey, I have selected “A Handbook for New Stoics: How to Thrive in a World Out of Your Control” by Massimo Pigliucci. In the introduction, Massimo states that the primary goal of stoicism is to “discover what is in your control,” and ultimately, “the only…
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My Examined Life – Introduction
“And all the days of Mathusala were nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died.” I was recently musing about the fragility of life. Perhaps it is because I am halfway through my life that I am starting to think more and more about my purpose, death, and the life hereafter. I have started focusing…
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The Sayings of Confucius
September 29: The Sayings of Confucius – Prophet of 400 Million People Confucius was a Chinese magistrate in 500 b. c. He lost the favor of the Emperor and wandered from city to city, teaching and giving counsel. After his death, Emperor and people alike bowed before his shrine. Read from Sayings of Confucius Vol. 44,…
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Washington’s Farewell Address
I am always fascinated when I read historical works – those from the Western Canon. I am intrigued because the more I read, the more I realize that humans have struggled with the same problems since their inception. Kohelet says it best in Ecclesiastes (1:9), “The thing that has been, it is that which shall…
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Some Fruits of Solitude – William Penn
Definitions: Purpose: In the preface, Penn states that this “enchiridion” was written to help the reader with life lessons that otherwise would take time and end in regret. He mentions that in reflecting on life, there are things that could have been done better, even if you are not the “idlest man in the world.”…
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The Iliad: Book I
Summary After King Agamemnon and Achilles sacked the city of Thebe, King Agamemnon took Chryseis and Achilles took Briseis. Both women were daughters of Chryses, a priest of Apollo. Chryses, the priest of Apollo, prayed to Apollo for the return of his daughter Chryseis, who responded by firing arrows at the Greeks for approximately nine…