Anicius Boethius (480-524) wrote most amazing and famous book “The Consolation of Philosophy.”
What makes it so remarkable is the context of its creation. Boethius wrote it while imprisoned and awaiting execution for treason, a charge he claimed was unjust. Despite his dire circumstances, the book isn’t a bitter rant, but a profound dialogue between himself and a personified figure called Lady Philosophy.
Boethius popularized the idea of “Fortune’s Wheel,” explaining that earthly success is temporary and true happiness comes from within and through the divine. His book tackled “heavy” questions, like why bad things happen to good people and the nature of free will.
For nearly a thousand years, it was the most popular book in the Western world after the Bible. Famous figures like King Alfred the Great, Chaucer, and Queen Elizabeth I even did their own translations of it.
If everything external disappeared tomorrow, who would you be?
