Two quotes
I’ve been reading a little about the Stoics recently. They were a Greek/Roman school of philosophers who started about 300 BCE and who continued teaching until 529 CE, when the Christian emperor Justinian I banned pagan philosophies.
There are a lot of similarities between Stoicism and Buddhism. Here are two quotes that parallel each other very closely.
“…as the material of the carpenter is wood, and that of statuary bronze, so the subject-matter of the art of living is each person’s own life.”
– Epictetus
“Irrigators guide water; fletchers shape arrows; carpenters bend wood; the wise control themselves.”
– The Buddha
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You’re currently reading “Two quotes,” an entry on Bodhipaksa's blog, bodhi tree swaying
Published: Dec 22 2009
I loved reading Epictetus in college. Here’s another wonderful Buddhist sounding quote by him “Do not seek to bring things to pass in accordance with your wishes, but wish for them as they are, and you will find them.” Good advice!
Out of curiosity, do you see any reason to suggest a historical connection of the thought of the two philosophies on the basis of these sorts of similarities?
It’s not impossible. Ashoka sent Buddhist missionaries to Greece, and people did get around a lot even without being sent by kings. But I really don’t know.
I’m currently studying Ancient Philosophy in college, and I was thinking the same thing about the Stoic’s the other night while reading about them. Here’s another Buddhist sounding one by Epictetus: “Man is disturbed not by things, but by the views he takes of them.” This one by Marcus Aurelius sounds like it is taken right out of the Dhammapada: “Get rid of the judgment, get rid of the ‘I am hurt,’ you are rid of the hurt itself.”
Those are astonishing quotes. Thanks for sharing them.