Nov

The Six Mistakes of Man by Cicero

Cicero

People in recovery will know that abstinence from addictive substances or actions is only the beginning of recovery. The writings of the various 12-Step Fellowships is full of spiritually sound ideas and goals.

These Six Mistakes of Man are, to me, similar in principle to the Serenity Prayer and the Prayer of St Francis of Assisi.

And, as they are over 2000 years old they demonstrate that spirituality is timeless.

Marcus Cicero was a prominent philosopher who was born in 106 BC. He was a statesman, poet, orator and a philosopher all combined into one.

I think he had a tendency to hit the nail on the head with his philosophical writings. Here are what he thought were “The six mistakes of Man”:

The delusion that personal gain (emotional, sexual or money) is made by crushing others.
The tendency to worry about things that cannot be changed or corrected.
Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot do it ourselves.
Refusing to set aside trivial preferences or prejudices.
Neglecting development and refinement of the mind, and not acquiring the habit of reading and studying.
Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do