The Cynics were ancient Greek philosophers who stood athwart the flood of society's material excess, unexamined conventions, and even norms of politeness and thundered "No!" Diogenes, the most famous Cynic, wasn't shy about literally extending his middle finger to the world. When asked why he was called Diogenes the Dog, he replied "because I fawn on those who give, I bark at those who don't, and I bite scoundrels." How to Say No is a delightful collection of brief ancient writing...

Diogenes Laertius’ compendium on the lives and doctrines of Greek and Italian philosophers ranges over three centuries, from Thales to Epicurus, carefully compiled from hundreds of sources and enriched with numerous quotations. This comprehensive eBook presents Diogenes’ complete extant works, with beautiful illustrations, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1)* Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Diogenes’ life and w...

'many men compete in digging and kicking but no one at all in the pursuit of human excellence.' Diogenes the Cynic is best remembered today for having lived in a storage-jar, and walking the streets with a lamp in daylight, looking for an honest man. Such stories formed part of a rich tradition of sayings and anecdotes; his biting wit and eccentric behaviour were legendary, and it was by means of these oft-repeated and embellished aphorisms that his moral teachings were tr...

An entertaining and enlightening collection of ancient writings about the philosophers who advocated simple living and rejected unthinking conformityThe Cynics were ancient Greek philosophers who stood athwart the flood of society’s material excess, unexamined conventions, and even norms of politeness and thundered “No!” Diogenes, the most famous Cynic, wasn’t shy about literally extending his middle finger to the world, expressing mock surprise that “most people g...

"I would rather go mad than feel pleasure."- Antisthenes.For Cynics the secret to happiness was living a life of virtue in harmony with Nature with only the bare essentials necessary for survival. They rejected materialism and were free of belongings. Many were homeless and proud of it. The Cynics emphasized the value of self-sufficiency, or autarkeia. They ate one (vegetarian) meal a day and made a habit of walking vast distances to stay in shape. The school extol...

Originally written in Greek sometime in the 3rd century, “Lives of the Eminent Philosophers” is the historically significant collection of biographies of important Greek philosophers by Diogenes Laertius. Little is known about Laertius and his life, but his collection of the life stories and philosophical ideas of over eighty Greek philosophers is the most complete surviving history of these influential figures. Based upon sources that have long since been lost to time, Laertius tells of b...

Everyone wants to live a meaningful life. Long before our own day of self-help books offering twelve-step programs and other guides to attain happiness, the philosophers of ancient Greece explored the riddle of what makes a life worth living, producing a wide variety of ideas and examples to follow. This rich tradition was recast by Diogenes Laertius into an anthology, a miscellany of maxims and anecdotes, that generations of Western readers have consulted for edification as well as entert...

In ***The Stoics***Diogenes Laërtius details the lives and philosophical opinions of the first Greek Stoic philosophers:Zeno of CitiumAriston of ChiosHerillus of CarthageDionysius the RenegadeCleanthes of AssosSphaerus of BosphorusChrysippus of SoliLaërtius’ main sources were Favorinus and Diocles of Magnesia, but his work also draws (either directly or indirectly) on books by Antisthenes of Rhodes, Al...

Everyone wants to live a meaningful life. Long before our own day of self-help books offering twelve-step programs and other guides to attain happiness, the philosophers of ancient Greece explored the riddle of what makes a life worth living, producing a wide variety of ideas and examples to follow. This rich tradition was recast by Diogenes Laertius into an anthology, a miscellany of maxims and anecdotes, that generations of Western readers have consulted for edification as well as entert...

'Poverty does not consist in the want of money,' I answered, 'nor is begging to be deplored. Poverty consists in the desire to have everything, and through violent means if necessary'From their founding in the fifth century BC and for over 800 years, the Cynic philosophers sought to cure humanity of greed and vice with their proposal of living simply. They guaranteed happiness to their adherents through freedom of speech, poverty, self-sufficiency and phys...

“The truth is hypothetical.”Scepticism (or skepticism), the belief that requires all information to be well supported by evidence, originated in the Skeptikoi, a first century BC Greek school who “asserted nothing.” The school was founded by Aenesidemus; our main source of the school’s teachings is Sextus Empiricus and the leader of the Sceptics was Pyrrho of Elis (365-275 BC) who had traveled to India and studied with the gymnosophists (naked lovers of wisdom). From India, Pyrrho ...

“The truth is hypothetical.”Scepticism (or skepticism), the belief that requires all information to be well supported by evidence, originated in the Skeptikoi, a first century BC Greek school who “asserted nothing.” The school was founded by Aenesidemus; our main source of the school’s teachings is Sextus Empiricus and the leader of the Sceptics was Pyrrho of Elis (365-275 BC) who had traveled to India and studied with the gymnosophists (naked lovers of wisdom). F...