The lectures that were never meant to be published

After being banished from Rome, Epictetus opened a school in Nicopolis, on the west coast of Greece. Young men from wealthy families came from across the empire to study with him.

He lived simply. When his iron lamp was stolen, he is said to have replaced it with a cheap clay one, remarking that the thief had lost more than he had: he had become a thief for the price of a lamp.

One student, Arrian, wrote down his lectures almost word for word. Arrian later became a Roman governor and wrote the most important surviving history of Alexander the Great. In a preface, he explained that he had recorded Epictetus’ words for himself, to remember them, and was publishing them only because copies had started to circulate.

Those notes became the Discourses and a short handbook called the Enchiridion. They have guided readers from Marcus Aurelius to modern soldiers and therapists. A teacher who wrote nothing became one of the most-read philosophers in history, because one student paid attention.