"If anyone tells you that a certain person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you but answer, "He was ignorant of my other faults, else he would not have mentioned these alone." Epictetus
The Stoics were known for their wise aphorisms.
Epictetus said things like, "Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants" and "It is unrealistic to expect people to see you as you see yourself."
These are valuable lessons, but so serious, dealing with topics of life and behavior. You might read the Stoics and come away thinking they were all so earnest, so sober.
"He who laughs at himself never runs out of things to laugh at." Epictetus
In reality they had a good sense of humor, but not the kind we often encounter today. They didn't delight in the misfortunes of others. They didn't find humor in seeing others suffer. They teach us that being able to laugh at ourselves, to not take ourselves so seriously, is a healthy attitude to have. Humility keeps our ego in check. Humility allows us to ask for help when we need it.
Many of the lessons they left us involve helping people overcome their suffering and lift themselves out of misery.
The most basic lesson in Stoicism is that we should concern ourselves with those things we can control and recognize those things we cannot.
"Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, whatever are our own actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, whatever are not our actions." Epictetus
One of those things in our control is our ego, our tendency to take ourselves too seriously at times. And the best way to control our ego and keep it in check is humor, especially humor directed at ourselves.
Humility is the ability to not take yourself less seriously, to laugh at yourself. It shows your ego is in check.
"It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows" Epictetus
Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less. Humility encourages you to listen more and talk less.
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