Saturday was Halloween and you may have heard your share of ghost stories. But it's unlikely that you heard the one about Athenodorus the Stoic, advisor to the emperor Augustus. After all, aren't Stoics to be above such silly superstitions? Yes, they are and that's sort of the message of the story.
Some time in the early days of the Roman Empire, Athenodorus rented a large mansion in Athens that was purported to be haunted. Undaunted by the stories, Athenodorus set about putting his house in order.
Then, on the very first night in the house, Athenodorus was visited by a ghost clapped in irons and dragging heavy chains. There it was, the exact apparition he had been warned about. What did he do? Flee? Fall to his knees and pray? Not this Stoic! Instead, Athenodorus, in the middle of a writing session, motioned for the ghost to wait and returned to his work. Only when he had finished did he get up and follow the apparition into the courtyard, where it suddenly vanished.
Sensing this was a message, Athenodorus marked the spot where the ghost disappeared and then returned to tidy up his desk and go to bed. In the morning, he had workers return to the spot and ordered them to dig. Beneath the dirt they found ancient bones in chains, which Athenodorus had reburied with honors in a public funeral. The ghost was never seen again, by him or any other resident of the house.
Did this really happen? Who knows (you can see our video about it here). But there was a reason Athenodorus told this story to the young king, who was reportedly easily scared and a big believer in the supernatural. He was trying to teach Augustus a lesson: Stoics must always keep their head. Even the scariest situations can be resolved with reason and courage. And even if you believe in silly things like ghosts or superstitions, you can't let your life be ruled by them.
You must be in charge—no excuses.
We can't let anything rattle us. Today. Tomorrow. Whenever.
You can read more about Athenodorus—one of the many fascinating but less famous Stoics—in the new book Lives of the Stoics: The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius. You can also buy signed copies, along with all of the rest of our books, in the Daily Stoic store. They make great gifts!
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