This is an excerpt from my first book, Philosophy for Life and Other Dangerous Situations, which explores how people use practices from ancient Greek philosophies in modern life.
Read More
The Stoic philosopher Epictetus told his students that the wise man “keeps guard against himself as his own enemy, and one lying in wait for him”. This is a view of human folly shared by the rather younger field of behavioral economics. As James Montier, behavioral economist and member of GMO’s asset allocation team, puts it: “Your worst enemy when it comes to investment is yourself.”
Read More
Aaron Beck, who died today aged 100, was the founder of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) — arguably the most influential and ubiquitous form of talking therapy today, one in which the NHS has put billions of pounds. CBT personally helped me to recover from social anxiety in the early Noughties.
Read More
The Stoics believe that everything in life depends on the perspective you take on it. As Stoic philosopher and Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius put it, ‘life itself is but what you deem it’.
Part of their philosophical therapy involves learning to choose a wise or skillful perspective on events that are causing you emotional disturbance. Think of it like being a good film director, choosing the right angle and the right lens to frame the action.
Read More
We’re constantly getting hooked by our thoughts, beliefs and feelings, getting lost in the drama. But luckily, there’s a host of defusion techniques we can use to defuse, from ACT, CBT, Stoicism, Buddhism and many other therapeutic traditions. Here are 10 of my favourite.
Read More
Back in the 1960s, many people thought psychedelics would save the world. Professors Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert (now called Ram Dass) of Harvard University had a graph on their office wall, showing how long they thought it would take the entire human race to take LSD and become enlightened.
Read More
In less than a month, I will be sitting in the Amazon jungle, tripping out on ayahuasca. I'm in the midst of my preparation for this nine-day retreat. I have to start the special diet - no pork, no alcohol, no drugs, and no masturbation. There goes my Friday night.
Read More
I've been exploring the history of ecstasy in modern culture. One of the ways the Enlightenment tried to naturalize ecstasy was by developing the concept of hypnosis. In the 18th century, Franz Mesmer showed that he could achieve just as miraculous healings as a priest through his own rituals, the success of which he attributed to ‘magnetic fluids’.
Read More
Can the ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism help us in responding to acute political and personal problems? How does Stoicism reconcile the search for inner peace of mind with affection, love and social concerns?
Read More
The modern Stoic movement, which brings together atheists and theists, is one example of a new friendship and alliance between people for whom metaphysical disagreements are less important than friendship and spiritual practice. The New Atheism wars are over, and a new messy spirituality has emerged.
Read More
If you're trying to carve out a better career and life for yourself, you face obstacles. Some of those obstacles are external - finding the right job opportunity, testing your idea, choosing your partners and investors, balancing the books.
Read More
At the end of Philosophy for Life, I asked what the Socratic-Stoic tradition of philosophy misses out, and suggested there is an alternate approach to life and to emotional healing, which I called the Dionysiac tradition:
Read More
It is quite easy to make noise in our culture. The internet and online media are like a giant echo chamber, and within a few days one angry tweet can turn into an ear-splitting feedback scream of indignation. Because of that, we can become entirely focused on making noise in our culture - getting retweeted, getting on the news, getting publicity somehow or other.
Read More
I had Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder from 1995 until 2001. Seven years of fear, anxiety, depression and paranoia, which I feared would last forever. But I got better, thanks to a near-death experience.
Read More
I'm doing a very brief talk this evening exploring the relationship between Christianity, Stoicism and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. This essay 'unpacks' the ideas I'll speed through this evening.
Read More
This panel was part of an event in November called Stoicism for Everyday Life, which was funded by the AHRC. The videoing of this event was funded by the Centre for the History of the Emotions. I love the philosophical expressions assumed by me and the other participants when we're not speaking. Very pensive!
Read More
Tomorrow is the big event on Stoicism for Everyday Life in London, at which Mark Vernon and I will be discussing the relationship between Stoicism and Christianity. Mark has an interesting story to tell - he was a priest, who then left Christianity and found an alternative in Greek philosophy (particularly Plato) and depth psychology.
Read More
At the age of 19, Sam Sullivan, a lanky, athletic teenager from Vancouver, British Columbia, broke his spine in a skiing accident, and lost the use of his arms, legs and body. For six years, he battled with depression and suicidal impulses. Then he managed to get a philosophical perspective on what had happened to him, so that his spirit wouldn't be crushed along with his body. He says:
Read More
As part of my continued fascination with how people use ancient philosophies in modern life, I went to interview Jonathan Newhouse, chairman of Conde Nast International, which publishes the non-US editions of magazines like Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Glamour and House and Garden.
Read More
I might start doing a regular feature looking at people's life-philosophy. This week, it's Alexei Sayle, pioneer of alternative comedy, former member of the Communist Party, and one of the stars of the Comic Strip. Here he tells me about his fondness for Stoic philosophy, and why Alcoholics Anonymous is his ideal model of a philosophical community.
Read More
Here's a conversation with John Lloyd, the TV producer behind Not the Nine O'Clock News, Blackadder, Spitting Image and QI, talking about how ancient philosophy helped him to get through five years of depression.
Read More
Live Like A Stoic Week is happening for the second year - this year, it's taking place from November 25 to December 1. Everyone who is interested in Stoicism, or who practices it today, is encouraged to take part, get involved in an event or activity, and help spread the word.
Read More
Is it possible to for a professional sports team to put character before external success? I visited Saracens rugby club to find out.
Read More
I was slightly surprised to see that Julian Baggini had used his column in the Independent to make some criticisms of 'Stoic Week', part of a project at Exeter University with which I'm involved. When you think of all the serious things happening in the world at the moment, from extreme weather to the war in Gaza, it seems odd to use your column in a national newspaper to criticise a project which, taken all together, is in my opinion a small but positive thing within the philosophical landscape.
Read More
We’re coming to the end of Stoic Week. People all over the world have been practicing Stoic exercises and reflecting on Stoic ideas this week, thanks to this wonderful initiative, launched by a young post-grad at Exeter University called Patrick Ussher. Some of Patrick’s students have been sharing their thoughts on the exercises via YouTube.
Read More
Tonight, Channel 4 is showing the hypnotist and illusionist Derren Brown's Apocalypse. The show involves Brown hypnotising a man into believing that civilisation has collapsed after a meteor shower - an illusion enhanced with various actors and special effects (including, if the trailer is to be believed, zombies!)
Read More
The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed there was no newsletter last weekend. Apologies. The reason for this is I have journeyed deep into the warm, pulsating heart of the happiness movement.
Read More
As regular readers know, I’m researching the rise of grassroots philosophy groups for a project called Philosophical Communities. This has got me thinking about the roles of groups and networks in the history of ideas, and I’d like to sketch out some initial thinking. I hope the following isn’t too pretentious...
Read More
My city hosts the Olympics today, and I feel a bit anxious - like when you hear guests buzzing on the door bell, the house is a mess, and you've just had a raging argument with your wife. Well, I am very proud to be British, and proud to be a Londoner. I hope the games go really well and my fellow Londoners aren't too grumpy to the tourists.
Read More