One of the most widely practiced philosophies nowadays is Buddhism, and many modern Westerners have integrated aspects into their daily lives. While similarities with stoicism may exist due to both being focused on mental training, there are distinct distinctions between the two approaches that should be noted.
- Stoicism focuses on developing an increased understanding of what causes happiness and suffering;
- Buddhism aims at cultivating inner calm through meditation on the Noble Eightfold Path; these are principles devised by Siddhartha Gautama following his enlightenment experience. Additionally, Buddhist philosophy also offers instruction about various kinds of meditation practices as well as their benefits, with advice for how best to incorporate them into everyday life.
Though Buddhism is a religion, its core philosophy – impermanence of all things and our ability to control our actions and reactions alone – cannot be overemphasized. Buddhism emphasizes living in the present while curbing cravings – similar to stoicism.
Buddhism emphasizes kindness over any other philosophy, which may explain why it has more followers worldwide. Buddhism stresses our interdependence, teaching that everyone deserves basic human dignity. Furthermore, its followers must look after sick or elderly members of society and behave in accordance with this ideology that all humankind is related together.
They share some common values
Stoicism and Buddhism share several characteristics in common, with mindfulness playing an essential part in helping individuals to reach a state of tranquility regardless of external conditions. Stoicism often associates itself with rational thought processes – something Buddhists also highly value.
Stoicism’s view on how we can develop virtue is that of having a dispassionate affection for all things, which means appreciating that good and evil coexist, as well as not letting our emotions dictate by false judgments (often known as emotions).
Both Buddhist and Stoic philosophy emphasize the need for practical application, and offer training techniques to assist us in applying their principles to real-life situations. Buddhist techniques involve meditation exercises while Stoicism incorporates reading texts aloud as well as daily reflection on virtues and values.
Stoicism was founded by Zeno of Citium after experiencing a shipwreck and loss of wealth and property in 300 BC, leading him to see that suffering exists in this world and founding his philosophy: Stoicism. Crates of Thebes taught him prior to developing his own ideas – initially known as Zenoism but changed later so as not to create a cult of personality around Zeno.