What does it mean to be a citizen, not just of a city, but of the cosmos itself? This episode explores the revolutionary political and ethical ideas of the Stoics, who were the first to fully develop the concept of a natural law guided by universal reason. Journey from the founding of the school by Zeno of Citium to the personal reflections of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Discover how the Stoic ideal of "living in accordance with nature" shaped a powerful philosophy of cosmopolitanism, where all rational beings belong to a single, universal homeland. We'll unravel how their concepts of virtue, duty, and the control of emotions were not just tools for inner peace, but the very foundation for justice and a new way of imagining human society.

What does it mean to live well, not merely to exist? In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle unfolds a vision of the good life rooted in eudaimonia—a state of flourishing achieved through the deliberate cultivation of virtue. Rather than prescribing rigid moral codes, Aristotle invites us to discern the golden mean between excess and deficiency, aligning our actions with rational purpose and the highest human capacities. This work challenges us to consider the art of ethical living as an ongoing, reflective practice, where the formation of character and the exercise of reason become the path to genuine fulfillment.

Seneca’s Naturales Quaestiones is more than ancient science—it’s Stoic philosophy turned toward the cosmos. In this episode, we explore how Seneca interrogates lightning, comets, and floods not just to explain them, but to draw ethical insight from them. Nature, for him, is a mirror for the soul and a stage for virtue.

Join us as we examine how Stoicism meets natural inquiry—and why, for Seneca, understanding the heavens was a moral pursuit.