Justice: Giving Everyone Their Due

Page 16 THE STOI C Volume 1, Issue 12 HOW TO BE A STOIC WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW HOW Justice: Giving everyone their due Big idea 6. Be just One of the basic beliefs of Stoicism is that we have a natu- When we deal with others, we need a second skill—justice. ral affection for others. It is natural, normal, and therefore What is justice? It is giving what is due to others, being fair necessary to cultivate concern for others and the world we in your dealings with them, and not taking anything that live in. belongs to them. This is the second “wall” of our Stoic Whatever is rational will not be in conflict with natural affec- house. tion. Stoicism is very clear in saying that a person’s happiness or The two things cannot be in conflict. unhappiness does not come from others. If it is true that Epictetus, Discourses 1.11 (Chuck Chakrapani, Stoic Foun- no one can hurt us no matter what they do, it also follows that we can hurt no one, no matter what we do. So why be dations Ch. 11) just? Why not steal, lie, cheat, or even commit murder for Our relationship to the world personal benefit? When we take what is due to others, we are not acting in Because it will hurt us. accordance with nature. We start believing external things such as injustice to others can Because we are first related to our family, bring us happiness. We create disharmony by then to our friends, then to the society we putting our personal part in conflict with our live in, and to the world, we are also a part of universal part. Disharmony with nature can- the universe. We cannot be unjust to others not result in happiness. When we are in con- without it indirectly affecting ourselves. Since flict with others, we are in conflict with our- we are a part of society, when we hurt soci- selves. When we think we need something ety, we hurt ourselves. external (the main reason for injustice) or The rational principle that rules us has this others don’t deserve justice and act on that quality: it is content with itself when it does thought, we unwisely believe that externals what is just and thus achieves peace. will bring us happiness. Our life stops flowing Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 7.28 (Chuck smoothly. Hence the need for acting justly in Chakrapani, Stoic Meditations, 7.28) our dealings with others. Our relationship to others The Stoic philosopher Hierocles thought of a The first skill—wisdom—taught us how to person as being in the center of a set of con- deal with ourselves; how to judge our im- centric circles (the Hierocles circle.) Our rela- pressions the right way and to decide on the This is the twelfth excerpt tionship starts with ourselves and expands to next course of action. We need the skill of from our 10-week course on include family, friends, neighbors, society, the wisdom not only when we deal with our- Stoicism. The book covering city, the world, and the universe. all course material, readings selves but also when we deal with externals. We are a part of the whole and therefore we Although wisdom is of primary importance, and exercises is available from https://amzn.to/2Ck0fje are related to others and to the world. What is we need additional skills as well. not good for others cannot be good for us. The next skill we need relates to our interac- What is not good for the beehive is not good tion with others—those we know, those we don’t, and, for the bee. more broadly, the world at large. For Stoics, happiness does not depend on the place they live in. They are fully in- M. Aurelius Meditations, 6.54 (Chuck Chakrapani, Stoic volved in this world. They don’t retreat from it or go to a Meditations, 6.54) secluded place to find happiness. Their refuge is the “inner citadel” and not an outward place. Wherever they are—in their own city, in exile somewhere or in a prison—they are fully engaged in the world. .

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