Epictetus 10-20

“What upsets people is not things themselves but their judgments about things.”(Epictetus Section 5) As I kept reading through Epictetus I encountered this quote and it really caught my attention. At first when I read it I thought it was not true but then as I reflected more about it I realized that it is true. Well at least that is the way that my mentality works. For example it does not upset me that it rains. In fact I like the rain. I think that it is nice and can help create a cozy environment. But what does bother me is me and other people judging it by saying that due to the rain we cannot play outside, or that the BBQ cannot be made due to the rain. Those are the judgments that make me be upset about the fact that it is raining.

This happens in a lot of cases, it may come to vary depending on the mood that you have. Also on the person that may tell you something. Another very similar example of this occurred in passage 20: “what is insulting is not the person who abuses you or hits you, but the judgment about them...” This is basically the same idea written in other words saying how what is insulting is not the person that preformed the actions, but the judgments on the way the person preformed the actions on you.

In my personal experience this is very true. As far as I have read of Epictetus I can see how this is a very good manual and a great guide to your life and to your understanding of actions and thought of others.