How much ancient philosophy should you steal? Caleb and Anya Leonard from Classical Wisdom explore the art of philosophical eclecticism, from Heraclitus’s cryptic fragments to philosophical rivals between Stoics and other schools.

We start with Heraclitus, the riddling philosopher who wrote that you can’t step in the same river twice. His idea that strife creates harmony deeply influenced the Stoics. But he was deliberately obscure - even Socrates admitted he needed a “deep diver” to understand him. From there we discuss Skepticism and Epicureanism.

(00:03:57) Flux and constant change

(00:12:24) Providence vs chaos

(00:15:21) Is strife justice

(00:21:30) Fragments worth contemplating

(00:22:41) Skepticism: How we know what we know

(00:29:00) The Stoic-Skeptic debate

(00:31:00) Suspending judgment in heated times

(00:35:28) Epicureans and calculated pleasure

(00:39:00) Simple pleasures vs hedonism

(00:44:22) The value of eclecticism

Download the Stoa app (it’s a free download): https://stoameditation.com/pod

If you try the Stoa app and find it useful, but truly cannot afford it, email us and we’ll set you up with a free account.

Listen to more episodes and learn more here: https://stoameditation.com/blog/stoa-conversations/

Thanks to Michael Levy for graciously letting us use his music in the conversations:

https://ancientlyre.com/

Get full access to The Stoa Letter at www.stoaletter.com/subscribe