A brief about the most important tents of Stoicism and its comparison with Tamil concept of Aram (Virtue)

1. S
T
OI
CI
S
M
a
r
v
i
nd s
ubr
a
ma
ni
a
m

2. Introduction to
STOICISM
Stoicism is predominantly a philosophy of personal ethics informed by a
system of logic and its views on the natural world. According to its teachings,
as social beings, the path to happiness for humans is found in accepting the
moment as it presents itself, by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the
desire for pleasure or fear of pain, by using one's mind to understand the
world.The Stoics are especially known for teaching that "virtue/aram (Tamil)
is the only good" for human beings, and that external things, such as health,
wealth, and pleasure are not good or bad in themselves. Stoicism teaches
that becoming a clear and unbiased thinker allows one to understand the
universal reason.
The Stoic philosophy is close to my heart because it shares commonality
with the Tamil concept of Aram, as opposed to Dharma. Dharma or cosmic
law is a set of prescribed rules that have to be followed in given situations
purportedly given by Gods. But Aram and Stoicism stress on the need to do
what is right irrespective of the situation by natural law.
1

3. How do we differentiate between Aram/Virtue and Dharma/Cosmic Law?
Marcus Aurelius says of Virtue
Sangam Literature talks of a King, Aai Andiran who rules the Ancient Tamil
Kingdom of Ay, possibly half a millennia before the Stoic Philosophers. He
was known as one of the Last Seven Philanthropists of the Sangam Age.
These seven kings were known for their Virtue,Charity and ruling with benev-
olence. When the people praise Aai Andiran for his charity and magnanimity
and wish that he attain Heaven for his deeds (Dharma), the king shoots back
“Aai Andiran does not act benevolent and grant charity to attain a better
place in heaven or in the next life after death. I do it now because it is virtue
(Aram) and should be done.”
The above story underscores the theme that Dharma which prescribes a
king to do certain things in return for heaven and or a pleasant afterlife is
lesser than Aram which prescribes that Virtue is a duty of the king and has to
be followed irrespective of the situation or outcome.
2
“If it is not right, do not do it,
if it is not true, do not say it.”
Stoicism was first put forth by Zeno, a Greek Philosopher and later built upon
by many others like Seneca, Epictetus and Markus Aurelies. Many of its princi-
ples have been touched upon by modern philosophers.

4. The Key tenets of Stoicism are Logic, Physics & Ethics. Various philosophers at
different times have advocated many principles of Stoicism. But I am not ven-
turing into all of them in this work.From my understanding and reading of Sto-
icism,I believe that these 5 Key teachings can help you during these tumultu-
ous times:
3
MEMENTO MORI:
Remember, you will die when your time is up
Memento Mori may sound particularly a very sombre or morbid term when
looked up within the larger perspective of stoicism. But within Stoicism, the
term reminds us to celebrate life and feel inspired. Meditating on your mor-
tality need not necessarily be depressing, it is infact a powerful tool to
remind yourself of the gift of life and not waste it in trivial pursuits. Seneca, a
Stoic Philosopher even named his biography Dying Every Day.
Marcus Aurelius best describes it in his “Meditations”
“You could leave life right now. Let that determine
what you do and say and think.”

5. Manicavasagar, was an 8th century philosopher saint of Tamil Land. He brushes
away the concept of death claiming, “I do not fear death, nor do I fear rebirth.
Even if you give me the heavens, I don't wish it. For I have lived a fulfilling life
and shall pass away on earth in contentment.” Stoics aim to attain such a level
of contentment in living life and in death.
Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and other stoic philosophers continuously stressed on
the need to live a life of Virtue now and not wait. Aurelieus was the Roman Em-
peror and Philosopher who ruled in the first century. At this time, the Roman
Empire was the largest consisting of about ¼ of the world's population and
Marcus Aurelius was the most powerful man of his time. The emperor consid-
ered it imperative to remind himself that death is imminent while running the
empire and managing his obligations day in and day out by living virtuously. It
is for this reason that he is placed among the “5 Good Emperors” while the rest
were known to indulge in excess.
In modern day, Steve Jobs the Inventor and Technocrat who founded Apple
famously said,
“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever en-
countered to help me make the big choices in life. Almost everything — all
external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these
things just fall away in the face of death,
4

6. leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die
is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to
lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
The essence of the term Memento Mori is to live a life of virtue. Remember,
Death gives life purpose and meaning.
5
AMOR FATI:
Love your Fate
Amor Fati is central to the stoic philosophy of life and the concept of em-
bracing fate has been put forth by all the Stoic Philosophers. But it was Fred-
ric Nietzsche, the German philosopher who extended it and made it central
to his philosophy. Nietzsche says,
“My formula for greatness in a human being is amor fati: that one wants
nothing to be different, not forward, not backward, not in all eternity. Not
merely bear what is necessary, still less conceal it—all idealism is mendacity
in the face of what is necessary—but love it."

7. Amor Fati is a Stoic Mindset that essentially means making the best out of
everything that life/fate throws at you.When describing Fate, we have to be
careful not to get into the religious concept of predetermined fate. In fact,
all Stoic philosophers agree that Man makes his own fate and nothing is
predetermined. When we understand what happens to us, be it good or
bad is beyond our control, we end up with loving and embracing whatever
it is and face it.
Albert Camus, the French philosopher says
6
“A will to live without rejecting anything of life,
which is the virtue I honor most in this world."
Epictetus was a Greek slave who became one of Stoicisms greatest philos-
ophers and greatly influenced Marcus Aurelius and others. Epictetus' life
was filled with adversity since he was born a slave and was reportedly crip-
pled. He says,
“Do not seek for things to happen the way you want them to; rather, wish
that what happens happens the way it happens: then you will be happy.”
To stoics all external events are beyond our control. We should accept
calmly and dispassionately whatever happens. However, stoics believe that
individuals are responsible for their own actions, which they can examine
and control through rigorous self-discipline.

8. The Tamil Poet Avvaiyar, in her seminal work “Naalvazhi” laments that
7
“The things that you desire, you will not get,
The things that you want rid of, will not go away
It is fate, but the nature of mankind is to worry long
Till the heart aches and the body suffer.”
Fate when viewed from the Stoic perspective means to embrace and
accept life as it presents itself before us and even come to love it, despite
what the situation may be.When we start to love fate, we will come to be-
lieve in our hearts. If this is what I have got to do, I might as well be happy
about it.
LOCUS OF CONTROL:
Only care about things you can control
Locus of Control is a central stoic philosophy which lays focus on controlling
only what you can influence. Stoics strongly believe that the only things
beyond our control are things outside of the mind. Epictetus says,

9. “Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opin-
ion, 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 own actions.”
With a strong Locus of Control, stoics believed that men have the ability to
choose how to respond to events that are outside their control. In fact,
Choice is the only thing that can never be taken from you. No matter what
the situation is, you and you alone decide how to respond to the situation.
Epictetus simply puts it,
8
“Man is disturbed not by things, but by
the views he takes of them.”
Massimo Puglucci called it the Epictetus promise. If you truly understand the
difference between what is and what is not under your control, and act ac-
cordingly, you will become psychologically invincible, impervious to the ups
and downs of fortune. Thiruvallur, a second century BC Tamil Philosopher who
wrote the Thirukural, a book of proverbs famously called the Book of Universal
Morals said,
“Firmness in action is (simply) one's firmness of mind; all other (abilities) are
not of this nature.”

10. “One of the most important practices in Stoic philosophy is differentiating
between what we can change and what we can't. What we have influence
over and what we do not. In essence, what you can control, as always, is how
you respond.
9
PREMEDITATIO MALORUM:
Prepare for the worst
“n its simplest form, Premeditatio Malorum means, expect the unexpected.
What is important to understand is that it is not ok just to expect, but to medi-
tate on what to expect. It is an exercise in which you think deeply about what
setbacks we may face in life, what could be taken away from us or what could
go wrong. Again within the framework of stoicism, this exercise is not to wallow
in a feeling of deprivation or failure, but rather think ahead and be prepared
for the worst that is to come.
Think through and possibly come up with a particular plan. Seneca says,
“Nothing happens to the wise man
against his expectation”

11. Just expecting to lose is not enough if you want to accomplish something. If
you rehearse everything that can go wrong within your mind (Meditate), you
will not be caught by surprise when things actually go wrong.
Booker T. Washington was born a Slave in America but after emancipation
went on to become of the greatest educationalists and Philanthropists.
Having to face uncertainty all the time, He famously said,
“When I begin my work in the morning, I expect to have a successful and
pleasant day of it, but at the same time I prepare myself to hear that one of
our school buildings is on fire, or has burned, or that some disagreeable ac-
cident had occurred, or that someone has abused me in a public address or
a printed article, for something that I have done or omitted to do, or or
something that he had heard that I had said—probably something I had
never thought of saying.”
Thiruvalluar says,
10
“An act is to be performed after considering the
effort required, the obstacles to be encountered,
and the great profit to be gained
(on its completion).”
We should be brutally honest with ourselves and never be afraid to confront
reality. That is the best way we can prepare for success and be ready for
failure.

12. The Stoic believe that the obstacles that prevent us from achieving our goals
can be used as a stepping stone to achieve those very goals. Sometimes
these obstacles may even be necessary in order to achieve these goals or
act as a motivator. Churchill famously said “Never let a good crisis go to
waste.” Great men have always looked at obstacles and moments of crises
as merely distractions that can be sidestepped or overcome easily in order
to achieve something greater . Marcus Aurelius wrote,
"Our actions may be impeded, but there can be no impeding our intentions
or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts
and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting.”
Stoicism believes that in rationally confronting whatever stands in your way,
we will find the solution that lets you continue.Marcus Aurelieus continues,
11
EX EMPEDOMENTO VIA:
The obstacle is the way

13. This necessarily does not mean Stoics always look for victory when overcom-
ing obstacles. Stoicism believes that failure itself may be an obstacle that is
much needed. Failure may force us to rethink a different strategy or path,
that we may not have considered or thought about. Sometimes the obsta-
cles that are needed to overcome may not be physical or worldly obstacles
at all, but rather obstacles inside us. It may be fear, insecurity or perhaps
arrogance that we need to overcome and in the process become stronger
than we already were, taking us a step closer to the goal.
Dwight D.Eisenhower was an American General in the Second World War. He
was in charge of the Allied troops in the European Campaign. A series of
counter offensives by the Germans threatened to push the Allies back to the
sea and the allied high command was sombre and was in the brink of giving
up the assault on Germany. But Eisenhower walked into the conference and
said in a thundering voice
“The present situation is to be regarded as an opportunity for us and not
disaster.There will be only cheerful faces at this conference table.”
12
“The impediment to action advances action.
What stands in the way becomes the way."

14. In the ensuing counter offensive, Eisenhower was able to trap the Germans by
luring them into trap by making use of a tactical opportunity within the
German obstacle.
Thiruvalluvar says,
13
“If troubles come,
laugh;
there is nothing like that,
to press upon and drive away sorrow.”
Ryan Holiday, an American Author expands upon this stoic philosophy in his
book “The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph ''
He argues that the way we respond to obstacles is what defines us and that
Obstacles don't inhibit succes“If troubles come, laugh; there is nothing like that,
to press upon and drive away sorrow.”s, but rather create success.
Conclusion:
When you practice Stoicism as a way of life with the above 5 principles, and you
make sure that the practise of Virtue/Aram is what anchors is in every action,
this anchor itself will hold you steadily like a ship in choppy waters.

15. S
T
OI
CI
S
M
Ar
v
i
n
d
S
ubr
a
ma
ni
a
m