We Can Go At Any Moment

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2:15Welcome to the Daily Stoic Podcast, where each day we bring you a passage of ancient wisdom designed to help you find strength, insight, and wisdom in everyday life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2 ,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at dailystoic.com.

2:42We can go at any moment. It's easy to nod along with a book or this email while you're reading it, or double tap the like button when you see an inspiring Instagram post. But how long does this stay with you? How quickly will the message flutter away? It's a critical problem for all of us out here who are trying to be better, who are actually trying to live the principles of philosophy and to rely on it in life's stressful moments, as well as life's ordinary hours. Stoicism as a philosophy was made to be kept in hand, always at the ready. Even the title of Epictetus's Inchiridion shows this. As A.

3:20A. Long writes in his recent translation of Epictetus for the Princeton University Press, in its earliest usage, Inchiridion refers to a handknife or a dagger. Arian may have wished to suggest that connotation of the work's defensive or protective function. It fits his admonition, the beginning and the end of the text, to keep Epictetus' message to hand. And that really tells you something about this philosophy, doesn't it? That it's not just a book, it's not just handy, it's designed to become almost an extension of ourselves, to protect and serve us in each day's task. When it comes to memento mori, this thing we talk about all the time here on Daily Stoic, different generations have attempted to keep this idea at hand in different ways.

4:06And the result can be seen across generations of writing and art and music and jewelry and ritual. Roman generals employed aides to remind them of this fact at the moments of their greatest triumph. Philosophers have kept skulls on their desks for thousands of years. In the Sufi tradition, some were called the people of the graves because of their practice of frequenting graveyards to ponder death and one's mortality. In Renaissance Europe, memento mori prayer beads were a popular way to keep death in mind. Famous artists from Rembrandt to Damien Hirst have added to the memento mori genre centuries apart from each other.

4:42Beneath the Church of Santa Maria in Rome, there is a crypt built in 1630, decorated with the remains of 4 ,000 friars. In the middle, there is a plaque inscribed in three different languages that state, what you are now, we once were. What we are now, you shall be. They were all trying to remember, to keep at hand, the idea that we can go at any moment. And while times change and it may no longer be practical to have a servant whisper death in your ear, the benefits of memento mori remain and must be always kept at hand. And literally at hand, right? This is what the memento mori signet ring we were talking about a couple weeks ago was meant to do and is meant to do.

5:31And it's why I wear one. You can see me wearing it in a lot of interviews and onstage appearances. I'm at the beach, so I took it off, but I was wearing it yesterday. The idea of the ring is that it reminds us not to obsess over trivialities or worry too much about what other people think, try to make more money than we could possibly spend or assume we're invincible or make plans too far off in the future. Because all these things are humbled, negated by death and we've got to stop pretending otherwise. That's one of the reasons I try to make cool stuff though that I'm proud of now rather than cutting corners and saying I'll make up for it later.

6:08This one was designed and crafted by LHN Jewelry based in Brooklyn. They used this ancient process that they carved into wax and they cast the brass and the silver. They sketched this by hand. They used the model of the coin, one of the first Daily Stoic products, the hourglass. the skull, the flower, and then they engraved it in the inside of the ringlet. That determined what you do and say and think. All the sawing and engraving and hammering and soldering was done with precision and care right here in the US. The Memento Mori premium signet ring is made of sterling silver and brass. The front has this cool antique patina on it.

6:48It's 17 millimeters by 17 millimeters. You've probably seen me wearing it a million times. I am, like I said, wearing it right now. You can go to dailystoic.com slash mmring to purchase, or just click in today's show notes.

7:21My family owns a 2023 Toyota 4Runner, and honestly, it's my favorite vehicle that I've ever owned. Around town, it's smooth and reliable, but where it really shines is on our trips into the backcountry. We've taken it on backpacking adventures to Colorado and New Mexico, loaded it up with gear, and never had to think twice about whether it could handle the terrain. That's what Toyota trucks are built for. Off-road confidence, rugged durability, and the freedom to explore. Toyota has a long history with the outdoor community, and they're committed to helping more people get out there and experience what nature has to do.

7:50From remote trails to scenic byways, Toyota Trucks empowers you to take the detour, roam freely, and discover places that still feel wild and untouched. And they're not just making great trucks, they're working to expand access to adventure so more people can connect with the outdoors and pass that passion on to the next generation. Discover your uncharted territory. Learn more at toyota.com slash trucks slash adventure dash detours. That's toyota.com slash trucks slash adventure dash detours. Look, ads are annoying. They are to be avoided, if at all possible. I understand as a content creator why they need to exist.

8:27That's why I don't begrudge them when they appear on the shows that I listen to. But again, as a person who has to pay a podcast producer and has to pay for equipment and for the studio and the building that the studio is in, it's a lot to keep something like the Daily Stoic going. So if you want to support a show but not listen to ads, well, we have partnered with Supercast to bring you an ad-free version of Daily Stoic. We're calling it Daily Stoic Premium. And with Premium, you can listen to every episode of the Daily Stoic podcast completely ad-free. No interruptions, just the ideas, just the messages, just the conversations you came here for.

9:11And you can also get early access to episodes before they're available to the public. And we're going to have a bunch of exclusive bonus content and extended interviews in there just for Daily Stoic Premium members as well. If you want to remove distractions, go deeper into stoicism and support the work we do here. Well, it takes less than a minute to sign up for Daily Stoic Premium, and we are offering a limited time discount of 20 % off your first year. Just go to dailystoic.com slash premium to sign up right now or click the link in the show descriptions to make those ads go away.