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Epictetus (Greek: Επίκτητος; c.55–c.135) was a Greek Stoic philosopher. The name given by his parents, if one was given, is not known - the word epiktetos in Greek simply means "acquired."<br /><br />Epictetus spent his youth as a slave in Rome to Epaphroditos, a very wealthy freedman of Nero. Even as a slave, Epictetus used his time productively, studying Stoic Philosophy under Musonius Rufus. He was eventually freed and lived a relatively hard life in ill health in Rome. <br /><br />So far as is known, Epictetus himself wrote nothing. All that we have of his work was transcribed by his pupil Arrian. The main work is The Discourses, four books of which have been preserved (out of an original eight). Arrian also compiled a popular digest, entitled the Enchiridion, or Handbook. In a preface to the Discourses, addressed to Lucius Gellius, Arrian states that "whatever I heard him say I used to write down, word for word, as best I could, endeavouring to preserve it as a memorial, for my own future use, of his way of thinking and the frankness of his speech". (Summary by Wikipedia)

2Golden Sayings of Epictetus

By Epictetus

Aphorisms from the Stoic Greek.

Encheiridion, stoische Regeln für ein zufriedenes Leben. Knapp und ausgezeichnet. Geschrieben von Epiktet (ca. 50-138). Übersetzung durch Carl Conz von 1864. (Summary by redaer)<BR>This reading is in German.

4Selection from the Discourses of Epictetus with the Encheiridion

By Epictetus

Selection of text from the four-volume work by Epictetus commonly referred to as the Discourses. The sections are mostly quite short but packed with wisdom and hard earned experience. Also included is the Encheiridion ("Manual"), a summary of theoretical and applied Stoicism.

The Enchiridion (also translated as “Handbook” or “Manual”) of Epictetus is a short collection of Stoic precepts compiled by Arrian, a student of Epictetus. Epictetus (c. 50 – 135 AD) was a Greek philosopher and a champion of Stoicism, a philosophy dedicated to tranquility of the mind and soul via practical, actionable advice. Popular in the ancient and medieval world, it has even found favor in the contemporary military; fighter pilot James Stockdale attributed his survival of over seven years as a prisoner of war to the way of thinking contained in this short work. (summary written by John Pederson)

Philosophical discourses of Epictetus as recorded by his affectionate student, Arrian. One main precept expounded is that we do not fear events but rather our thoughts about those events. (Summary by the reader)

The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius is studied and admired by successful people the world over. Marcus Aurelius thought of the Enchiridion in a similar fashion. This is not esoteric philosophy. The Enchiridion is a guide to developing an internal monologue that fosters determination, resilience, pragmatism, and an escape from the anxiety that grips so many in the modern world. The Enchiridion is a collection of Epictetus' lectures, written down and compiled by his student and historian Arrian of Nicomedia. - Summary by Brian Mumford with facts from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy