Some people with exceptional minds quickly grasp virtue, or produce it withing themselves. But other dim and lazy types, hindered by bad habits, must have their rusty souls constantly scrubbed down…. The weaker sorts will be helped and lifted from their bad opinions if we put them in the care of philosophy’s principles.
—Seneca, Moral Letters, 95.36-37
Stoicism is not an evangelical religion. You’re not obligated to save anyone—there’s no risk of hell if a soul remains in ignorance of the teaching of Epictetus or Marcus Aurelius.
But now that you’ve learned and studied a better path, you can be of service to others. You can share your wisdom or insight with a friend or stranger—remembering that behavior is always a better example than a lecture.
Everyone deserves to benefit from “philosophy’s principles” as Seneca put it. If you see someone who is in need of help, or has asked for guidance, provide it. You owe them that much.
* Source: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman