Ancient Stoic philosophy and ethics

Epictetus

50 – 135

Epictetus was a Greek Stoic philosopher born into slavery in Hierapolis, Phrygia, who studied under Musonius Rufus and later founded his own school in Nicopolis after being freed. He left no writings himself; his teachings were recorded by his student Arrian in the Discourses and the Enchiridion, foundational texts of Stoic ethics emphasizing inner freedom, the distinction between what is and is not in our power, and tranquil acceptance of fate. His emphasis on the sovereignty of the inner rational will over external circumstances made him a perennial influence on mystical and esoteric traditions focused on mental discipline and self-mastery.