You can find a complete listing of all the articles on this site here. They are listed in reverse chronological order, and are all clickable links. Twenty-five articles are displayed per page, with the publication date included. To find older articles, click on the page numbers at the bottom.
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On The Acceptance Of Disappointments
There is no man who can boast of having enjoyed an unbroken string of successes. The variability of Fortune, a pervasive theme in these pages, is a force of nature that ensures success will be liberally interspersed by failure. So it seems to me that we ought to spent just as much time–perhaps even more…
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The Corrupt Rule Of Walter VI Of Brienne, The “Duke Of Athens”
The citizens of a free republic should always be alert to threats to their liberty. Such threats may come in a variety of forms; one of the most dangerous is that posed by a fraud or con artist who appears in the guise of a “people’s champion.” Skilled at manipulation and demagoguery, such men know…
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The Pursuit Of Work, And The Quest For Ideals
In 1893 Leo Tolstoy published an essay whose title was rather clumsily translated into English as “Non-Acting.” In it the great novelist compared the relative merits of two positions, one held by Emile Zola, and the other held by Alexandre Dumas. Both Zola and Dumas had been asked to state their opinions on what they…
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“The King Likes Only Empty Words” (Podcast)
The willingness to do what is necessary is an essential condition of success in any enterprise. There are those who are willing to do what is necessary, and those who are not. We discuss an anecdote from Sun Tzu’s “Art of War,” and several other historical examples, to bring these points into focus.
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The Travels Of John Bell In Persia and China
John Bell was born in 1690 in Antermony, Scotland. He seems to have decided at an early age to study medicine, but was lured into the world of adventure and travel by hearing stories of Peter the Great of Russia, who was a famous figure in Europe in the early eighteenth century. He resolved to…
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Solomon Outwits The Queen Of Sheba
The following tale is related in a forgotten nineteenth-century volume on the literature of the ancient world. Its ultimate source is the Talmud (literally, “learning”), that immense compendium of Judaic civil and religious law, garnished with the diligent commentaries of hundreds of learned men. To the foreigner unfamiliar with its mysteries, it appears to be…
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The Genius Of The Iliad
About a year and a half ago, I listened to an audio book translation of the Iliad. I like listening to audio books in my car as I drive around during the day; I can control the content of what I hear, and can avoid listening to the news. It had been a long time…
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“Pantheon” Is Now Available As An Audio Book
First published in 2015, Pantheon: Adventures in History, Biography, and the Mind is now available as an audio book.
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The Architect Of The Imagination
Man was born for action. Even if he does not know this–especially if he does not know this–his physical being revolts from long intermissions of supine inertia, and craves the physical release of the violent contest. This is part of his blood-spirit, his irreconcilable inner Being. He can try to deny this, and he can…
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The Bricklayer Of Granada: A Tale Of The Alhambra
I was lucky enough today to find an old copy of Washington Irving’s Tales of the Alhambra; the volume is lavishly illustrated and was actually published in Granada in the late 1940s. The following tale is found in this Andalusian collection; it reminds us of the influence of Fortune in the lives of mortals, a…
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The Recruit In The Soviet Army
In 1982 a former Soviet officer using the pen name Viktor Suvorov published a book entitled Inside the Soviet Army. The book discussed the doctrines, tactics, and organization of the Soviet Army. Reading it today feels like opening a time capsule; we even begin to feel in its pages a trace of nostalgia for the…
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The Syrian Lightning: The Fleeting Pleasures Of Imad Al-Din Al-Isfahani
The Persian scholar and poet Imad al-Din al-Isfahani (عماد الدين الأصفهاني) was an important figure in medieval Arabic literature. He was born in Isfahan in Persia in 1125 and studied in Baghdad. We are told that he studied law at the Nizamiya college there, but he preferred literature and adventure. His proficiency in letters brought…
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Sallust Is Now Available As An Engaging Audio Book
I am pleased to announce that my translation of Sallust’s Conspiracy of Catiline and The War of Jugurtha is now available as an audio book on Amazon and iTunes (click on the image above). The book is engagingly read by narrator Saethon Williams, who captures Sallust’s stirring narrative style. These great historical works are not…
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The Oppressive Burdens Of The Powerful
Many men are in the habit of seeing only the privileges of the powerful, while failing to take note of the crushing burdens that such men must carry. Nothing in this world is gifted to us for free; there is a price to be paid for every acquisition, every privilege, and every benefit. This cost…
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The Journey Through Life, And Out Of Life
When one examines the characters of different civilizations, one begins to notice commonalities of concern. That is, recurring patterns. Especially in the most ancient of civilizations. There is this obsession with capturing the Spirit of Life, mastering its principles, and using that Mastery as a sort of pole-vault—if you will—to leap over the Wall of…
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Giano Della Bella Confronts The Nobility And Institutes Reforms
The city-state of Florence in the late 13th century was suffering from an imbalance of political and economic power. In its hands, the nobility had concentrated vast powers to the exclusion of the common citizens, who were either ignored or deliberately disenfranchised. Political leaders functioned as the hand-puppets of powerful families–the medieval equivalent of the…
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Now Available: The Audio Book Of “Stoic Paradoxes”
The audio book of my translation of Cicero’s Stoic Paradoxes is now available on Amazon, iTunes, and Audible. You can find it by clicking on the image above. The audio book is complete and unabridged; it contains the complete texts of Stoic Paradoxes, as well as the Dream of Scipio, along with summaries and commentary.
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Rejecting Cynicism And Nihilism, And Embracing An Ennobling Vision
It is the responsibility of every man to keep himself out of the abyss. Yet he cannot do this job alone; a set of guiding principles must light the way along the dark and confusing pathways of the forest. In some cases, he must be hectored, badgered, cajoled, and—in the end—forced to keep along the…
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Two Relationship Questions From Readers (Podcast)
This podcast deals with two different questions I recently received: 1. A guy in his early 20s feels like his girlfriend is holding him back and smothering him, but he’s not sure how to handle the situation. 2. A girl in her 20s is feeling frustrated that she can’t find the kind of long-term relationship…
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Even Trivial Incidents Can Spark Disaster When Wise Leadership Is Absent
The astute observer of affairs will keep his finger on the pulse of unfolding events. He will make his observations, draw his own conclusions, and adjust his behavior accordingly. It is of no use to pretend that something is not what it clearly is; to live in denial is to live with a suspended sentence…
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The Life And Travels Of Leo Africanus
The diplomat and traveler now known as Leo Africanus was born Hasan Ibn Muhammad al-Wazan al-Fasi (حسن ابن محمد الوزان الفاسي) in the early 1490s in Spanish Grenada; of the exact date we are not certain. This period was not a favorable one to be an Andalusian Arab in Spain, as the last vestiges of…
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Military Adventurism Brings Disaster To The Reckless
In the year 1260, Tuscany was engulfed in war. The cities of Florence and Siena were engaged in mutual hostilities. About twenty-five miles from Siena was located the small town of Montalcino, which happened to be a friend and ally of Florence. The Sienese hoped that by staging an attack on Montalcino they might be able to compel…
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A Great Interview
This past weekend I had a great interview with the guys from GorillaRadio.tv. You can see it here:
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The Porfirio Insight: Knowing Where You Came From, And Where You’re Going
This is the third podcast I’ve done on Michael Porfirio, aka The G Manifesto. They’ve proven to be extremely popular. In this latest episode, we talk about the “Porfirio Insight”: the ability to step outside yourself, take stock in your life, and see where you are headed. It’s all about the journey, and whether the…
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The Fall Of Singapore: The Price Of Inept Leadership
It is a pleasant thing to recall our victories. Far less pleasant is to be reminded of our defeats. And yet there is something sublime in the recounting of a disaster; provided, of course, one does not have to be on the spot at the time of its unfolding. Catastrophes provide more fertile material for…
Original copy of Cicero’s De Officiis (On Duties) published in Holland in 1642. From the collection of Fortress of the Mind.
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