Stoicism: Philosophy as a Way of Life

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The Stoic Kiss of Death

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The Stoic Kiss of Death

Contemplating love, loss, and mortality

Donald J. Robertson
Apr 1, 2021
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Share this post

The Stoic Kiss of Death

donaldrobertson.substack.com

Contemplating love, loss, and mortality

If you are kissing your child or wife, say that it is a human being [a mortal] whom you are kissing, for thus when they die, you will not be disturbed. — Epictetus

Photo by Zou Meng on Unsplash

This is of the most notorious passages in the ancient Stoic literature. It comes from the famous Encheiridion or Handbook (§…

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