Consider cycles in the natural world: you will see nothing that is actually extinguished; rather, things descend and rise again by turns. Summer is over, but another year will bring it back; winter is gone but will return in its proper months. Night has buried the sun, but day in turn will soon drive out the night. The stars retrace their previous movements; one part of the sky is continually rising, the other setting.
Seneca, Letters on Ethics, 36.11
As many of you know, I am always looking for ways to incorporate Stoicism into real life and real life into Stoicism. One thing I’ve been thinking about lately is seasonal living, which basically means basing your lifestyle on the rhythm of the seasons. (I’ve been inspired by YouTuber Molly Ella, who advocates living seasonally, including reading books and eating foods that are appropriate to the season.) Traditional religions and cultures have always done this, but with today’s climate-controlled living spaces, electric lighting, and the ready availability of many foods year-round, we frequently don’t pay much attention to natural seasonal variation.
What does this have to do with philosophy, you ask? Well, as someone trying to live philosophically, I always find it helpful to connect my principles to concrete behaviors as I go about the business of living. Plus, since our goal in Stoicism is living in agreement with nature, it only makes sense to deepen the connections between philosophical practice and seasonal change. This not only helps anchor our practice in the natural world, but it also necessarily draws our attention to the cadence of nature changing all around us.
So I decided to develop a calendar to focus on one of the four cardinal virtues each season. While it is perhaps idiosyncratic, it’s not arbitrary—I picked the virtue that to me seems to best represent the qualities of each season. Here’s the calendar:
Spring – season of courage > taking new steps, changing perspective, doing what needs to be done
Summer – season of justice > reaching out to others
Fall – season of temperance > making good choices
Winter – season of wisdom > developing inner resources to deal with all situations in life, celebrating and appreciating your life
This calendar also offers the opportunity to focus in more depth on the virtues, which is always a good thing. I’ll be publishing an essay on each virtue on the first day of each season (or as close to it as possible, given my normal Friday publishing schedule). My intention is to primarily focus on ancient definitions and descriptions of the virtues. While almost all the original writings from the Greek Stoa have been lost, there are a few accounts of Stoic virtue preserved in other ancient writers. These can be difficult and puzzling for modern audiences to access and understand, but I will offer my own interpretation based on scholarly sources.
I’ll just note that focusing on one virtue does not mean we don’t practice other virtues at the same time. The ancient Stoics believed in “unity of the virtues,” meaning that wisdom, justice, courage, and temperance were all aspects of knowing how to live well. They are all part of the same package, complementing and supporting each other. You couldn’t be truly virtuous in one area without also having the other virtues. So while we will highlight one particular virtue at a time, we should still try to incorporate the others into our lives as well.
One more note: since seasons are quite different all over the globe, those in the Southern hemisphere may wish to change the schedule to suit their own seasonal variation. People who live in tropical places where there isn’t as much change in temperature or weather might want to make their own modifications. Or make your own version—whatever you find useful in your own Stoic practice.
With the summer solstice is coming up next week, the first seasonal essay will look at justice. What did the ancient Stoics mean by this? How is it different from and similar to what we commonly understand as justice today? You might be surprised by the comprehensiveness of Stoic justice and how it can reframe our perspective in the 21st century. Please join me next week to learn more!
This idea of seasonal living resonates with me. I've been interested in adapting diet and activity to the seasons for a while now, but I'm excited about your concept here! Can't wait to read the essays!