Required Reading: Letter 21: On The Renown Which My Writings Will Bring You
“Your greatest difficulty is with yourself; for you are your own stumbling block…”
“It is your own studies that will make you shine and render you eminent”—Your own studies; for the study of the philosophy; of wisdom, has within it the power to make you eminent. The question is, is it public eminence you seek? Or the eminence that is privately adored by you; your own attainment of wisdom?
For wisdom does not parade itself in public; it is quiet; not boastful; yet powerful. This is the renown which “my writings will bring you”; these letters have within them the spiritual intelligence to change anyone from the inside-out. And this is what we seekers of wisdom desire; that light so bright in its own capacity, that it needs no approval to glow! It is self-reliant; self-assured; self-confident that it shines forth unimpeded; unhindered by whatever lies in front; behind, sideways, above or beneath; it just shines!
It is true what the thinker states “on the renown which my writings will bring you’; for if we sit and analyze all of the greats, it is indeed the mention of their names in past and not so distant future that make them renowned. Who would have heard of Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, The Christ, Budha, Mohammed, Malcolm, King if their names were not mentioned in posterity by those who ascertained them worthy!
It is by the philosophy of such giants that we have the wisdom to study their words and ways of life and if we are wise, to follow them. And if one looks extremely close, he would find a fine thread runs through all of them; it was Wisdom they desired and not Fortune’s gifts! Farewell!
Word of the day:
Eminent (adjective): distinguised; notable; remarkable in degree (The Oxford American Desk Dictionary And Thesaurus 2nd Edition).
Quotations:
“You do not know what you want. You are better at approving the right course than at following it out.”
“You see where the true happiness lies, but you have not the courage to attain it.”
“If you are attracted by fame, my letters will make you more renowned than all the things which you cherish and which make you cherished.” – Epicurus
“I shall find favour among later generations; I can take with me names that will endure as long as mine.”
“If you wish to make Pythocles rich, do not add to his store of money, but subtract from his desires.” -Epicurus.
“The belly will not listen to advice; it makes demands, it importunes. And yet it is not a troublesome creditor; you can send it away at small cost, provided only that you give it what you owe, not merely all you are able to give.”
Questions:
1) What do you want? Keep it simple.
2) Do you want to be renowned; the world over? Why?
3) Do you believe you can handle being renowned? “Know Thyself” – Socrates (Delphic Maxim).
Activities:
1) List ten “wants”; one in each category: Spiritual | Health | Financial | Family | Career | Philantrophy | Social | Academic | Home | Travel
2) List what you would want to be renowned for.
3) Work on this an hour minimum every day.
