When did they carve it? Who first uttered the words? Why did they put them there? Did Zeno see them when he visited as a young man? Did Cleanthes? Did Chrysippus?
We don't know, but we do know that for thousands of years, three inscriptions adorned the Temple of Apollo in Delphi, the mythic heart of the ancient world that was nestled high in the slopes of Mount Parnassus at the top of the Sacred Way, where generations of Greeks went for guidance as they struggled with vexing problems and dilemmas.
They were:
Γνῶθι σεαυτόν ("Know thyself")
Μηδὲν ἄγαν ("Nothing in excess")
Ἐγγύα πάρα δ' Ἄτα ("Surety brings ruin")
What do they mean? Know Thyself: Knowing your strengths, your flaws, your patterns, impulses, fears, desires, biases, and blind spots. Nothing in Excess: This is the virtue of temperance, doing the right thing, in the right amount, in the right way, no more, no less. Surety Brings Ruin: Murphy's Law. Pride goeth before the fall…don't count your chickens before they hatch.
If you read the Stoics with those three Delphic maxims in mind, you will see traces and echoes of them everywhere. Zeno: "Nothing is more hostile to a firm grasp on knowledge than self-deception." Epictetus: "Freedom isn't secured by filling up on your heart's desire but by removing your desire." Seneca: "The unexpected blow lands the heaviest."
Indeed, the Stoics were not only intimately familiar with these maxims—it's what they were striving for: a life of self-clarity, moderation in all things, and freedom from delusion, ego and entitlement.
And at the core of that pursuit?
The one virtue that made the rest possible?
The one thing that helps us know ourselves, find the right amount, and stay open?
"So many and so great are the powers which will be found in man," Cicero wrote, "of all which Wisdom is the parent and director." It's wisdom that helps us understand who we are, what is enough, and when we are and aren't being foolish.
After exploring courage in Courage Is Calling, temperance in Discipline Is Destiny, and justice in Right Thing, Right Now, Wisdom Takes Work completes this Stoic Virtues series by examining the most foundational virtue of all. Without wisdom, the other virtues cannot truly flourish—it is wisdom that guides our courage, moderates our discipline, and directs our sense of justice. As the culmination of the Stoic Virtues series, Wisdom Takes Work was written to help you develop this essential virtue that the Stoics considered the master key to a well-lived life.
It's been my honor (hey, Ryan here!) and daily work to write these emails each morning (I like to think it's made me a little wiser). If you've gotten anything out of them—if you've enjoyed the writing at all—I'd love for you to consider preordering my new book, Wisdom Takes Work: Learn. Apply. Repeat.
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