Discourses

“In short, if we observe, we shall find that the human animal is pained by nothing so much as by that which is irrational; and, on the contrary, attracted to nothing so much as to that which is rational.”

“Now a bull is not made suddenly, nor a brave man; but we must discipline ourselves in the winter for the summer campaign, and not rashly run upon that which does not concern us.”

“If a man should be able to assent to this doctrine as he ought, that we are all sprung from God in an especial manner, and that God is the father both of men and of gods, I suppose that he would never have any ignoble or mean thoughts about himself.”

“Now if virtue promises good fortune and tranquillity and happiness, certainly also the progress towards virtue is progress towards each of these things.”

“From everything which is or happens in the world, it is easy to praise Providence, if a man possesses these two qualities, the faculty of seeing what belongs and happens to all persons and things, and a grateful disposition.”

“And why do I trouble myself about anything that can happen if I possess greatness of soul?”

“Yet I will show you that you have powers and means for greatness of soul and courage; but you show me what powers you have for finding fault and making accusations.”

“For what is the end proposed in reasoning? To establish true propositions, to remove the false, to withhold assent from those which are not plain.”

“Why are we still indolent and negligent and sluggish, and why do we seek pretences for not labouring and not being watchful in cultivating our reason?”

“But we think about ourselves, as if we were only stomachs, and intestines, and private parts; we fear, we desire; we flatter those who are able to help us in these matters, and we fear them also.”

“Whatever then we shall discover to be at the same time affectionate and also consistent with reason, this we confidently declare to be right and good.”

“And in a word, neither death nor exile nor pain nor anything of the kind is the cause of our doing anything or not doing; but our own opinions and our wills (δόγματα).”

“For he is free to whom every thing happens according to his will, and whom no man can hinder.”

“It would be of no value to know anything, if knowledge were adapted to every man's whim.”

“Where a man is against his will, there he is in prison.”

“For the magnitude of intelligence is not measured by length nor yet by height, but by thoughts.”

“Do you not rather thank the gods that they have allowed you to be above these things which they have not placed in your power, and have made you accountable only for those which are in your power?”

“But if you have been put in any such higher place, will you immediately make yourself a tyrant? Will you not remember who you are, and whom you rule?”

“When then you have shut the doors and made darkness within, remember never to say that you are alone, for you are not; but God is within, and your guardian spirit is within, and what need have they of light to see what you are doing?”

“Can any man hinder you from assenting to the truth? No man can.”

“But, you object: "If you place before me the fear of death, you do compel me." No, it is not what is placed before you that compels, but your opinion that it is better to do so and so than to die.”

“But if the greatest harm is the privation of the greatest things, and the greatest thing in every man is the will or choice such as it ought to be, and a man is deprived of this will, why are you also angry with him?”

“Do not admire your clothes, and then you will not be angry with the thief.”

“Therefore we ought to exercise ourselves in small things, and beginning with them to proceed to the greater.”

“If a man possesses any superiority, or thinks that he does, when he does not, such a man, if he is uninstructed, will of necessity be puffed up through it.”

“For in fact we thank the gods for those things in which we place our good.”

“For this reason it is the chief and the first work of a philosopher to examine appearances, and to distinguish them, and to admit none without examination.”

“But in the matter of our miserable ruling faculty, yawning and sleeping, we carelessly admit every appearance, for the harm is not noticed.”

“Most of us are afraid of the deadening of the body, and would devise every means to avoid such a thing, but we do not care about the soul's deadening.”

“Where is the wonder then if in philosophy also many things which are true appear paradoxical to the inexperienced?”

“This then is the beginning of philosophy, a man's perception of the state of his ruling faculty; for when a man knows that it is weak, then he will not employ it on things of the greatest difficulty.”

“For the origin of mental disturbance is this: wishing for something that does not happen.”

“But the man bought the lamp at this price: for a lamp he became a thief, a faithless fellow, and like a wild beast.”

“Then you too, when you are not able to make a man change his mind, be assured that he is a child, and clap your hands with him; and if you do not choose to do this, keep silent.”

“Is freedom any thing else than the power of living as we choose?”

“If you choose to be modest and faithful, who will not allow you to be so?”

“Things themselves (materials) are indifferent; but the use of them is not indifferent.”

“Where I can be hindered and compelled, the obtaining of those things is not in my power, nor is it good or bad; but the use is either bad or good, and the use is in my power.”

“Thus modest actions preserve the modest man, and immodest actions destroy him; and actions of fidelity preserve the faithful man, and the contrary actions destroy him.”

“Thus things are tested and weighed when the rules are ready. And to philosophize is this, to examine and confirm the rules; and then to use them when they are known is the act of a wise and good man.”

“But if you lay a rotten and ruinous foundation, will your miserable little building not fall down sooner as you lay more materials, and stronger ones, on top of it?”

“Give me a man who cares how he will do anything, not about obtaining a thing, but who cares about his own activity.”

“Consequently through lack of discipline we are always adding something to the appearance and representing things to be greater than what they are.”

“Generally then if you want to make anything a habit, do it; if you do not want to make it a habit, do not do it, but accustom yourself to do something else in place of it.”

“For take away the fear of death, and suppose as many thunders and lightnings as you please, and you will know what calm and serenity there is in the ruling faculty.”

“Do I have the awareness, which a man who knows nothing ought to have, that I know nothing?”

“For, universally—do not be deceived—every animal is attached to nothing so much as to its own interest.”

“For the ruling principle of a bad man cannot be trusted, it is insecure, has no certain rule by which it is directed, and is overpowered at different times by different appearances.”

“Is there then a skill in hearing also, as there is in speaking?”

“Every error includes contradiction: for since he who errs does not wish to err, but to be right, it is plain that he does not do what he wishes.”

“The soul is like a dish of water. Appearances are like the ray of light which falls on the water. When the water is moved, the ray also seems to be moved, yet it is not moved.”

“Govern us as rational animals: show us what is profitable to us, and we will follow it: show us what is unprofitable, and we will turn away from it.”

“For to every man the cause of his acting is opinion.”

“Let us examine one another: if I have any bad opinion, take it away: if you have any, show it.”

“You have utensils of gold; but your discourse, your opinions, your assents, your movements (pursuits), your desires are of earthen ware.”

“Is the world going to be turned upside down when you are dead?”

“Not everything which is difficult and dangerous is suitable for practice; but what contributes to working out what is proposed to us is suitable.”

“Practise, man, if you are irritable, to endure if you are abused, not to be vexed if you are treated with dishonour.”

“But none the less a man ought to be prepared in a manner for this also (being alone), to be able to be sufficient for himself and to be his own companion.”

“Every great power (faculty) is dangerous to beginners.”

“You must root out of men these two things, arrogance (pride) and distrust. Arrogance then is the opinion that you lack nothing (are deficient in nothing): but distrust is the opinion that you cannot be happy when so many circumstances surround you.”

“Cease, I adjure you by the gods, to admire material things. Cease to make yourselves slaves, first of things, then on account of things slaves of those who are able to give them or take them away.”

“Whatever you give me, I will make it happy, fortunate, honoured, a thing which a man will seek.”

“The carpenter does not come and say, Hear me talk about the carpenter's art; but having undertaken to build a house, he makes it, and proves that he knows the art.”

“For every thing that we do, if we refer it to no end, we shall do it to no purpose; and if we refer it to the wrong end, we shall miss the mark.”

“Do you wish to do good or to be praised?”

“For who is good if he does not know who he is? And who knows what he is, if he forgets that things which have been made are perishable, and that it is not possible for one human being to be with another always?”

“Do you not know that a good man does nothing for the sake of appearance, but for the sake of doing right?”

“Choose then whether you will be a hard drinker and pleasant to your former associates or a sober man and disagreeable to them.”

“But if reading does not secure for you a happy and tranquil life, what is the use of it?”

“If you are like a wolf, you must bite in return, and throw more stones. But if you consider what is proper for a man, examine your storehouse, see with what faculties you came into the world.”

“And who has lived so long with you as you with yourself? And who has so much power of convincing you as you have of convincing yourself; and who is better disposed and nearer to you than you are to yourself?”

“First strive to keep what you are unknown: be a philosopher to yourself (or, philosophize to yourself) for a short time.”

“Fight with yourself, restore yourself to decency, to modesty, to liberty.”

“And now think that you have been entrusted with your own body as with a horse; wash it, wipe it, take care that no man turns away from it, that no one gets out of the way for it.”

“Is there any part of life excepted, to which attention does not extend? For will you do it (any thing in life) worse by using attention, and better by not attending at all?”

“But if you really trust me, it is plain that you trust me because I am faithful and modest, not because I have told my affairs to you.”

“But now I am a rational creature, and I ought to praise God: this is my work; I do it, nor will I desert this post, so long as I am allowed to keep it; and I exhort you to join in this same song.”

“And it is good for you to know your own preparation and power, that in those matters where you have not been prepared, you may keep quiet, and not be vexed, if others have the advantage over you.”

“A tribunal and a prison are each a place, one high and the other low; but the will can be maintained equal, if you choose to maintain it equal in each.”

“If then I must expose myself to danger for a friend, and if it is my duty even to die for him, what need do I then have for divination?”

“Now this was the first and chief characteristic of Socrates, never to be irritated in argument, never to utter anything abusive, anything insulting, but to bear with abusive persons and to put an end to the quarrel.”

“When I see a man anxious, I say, What does this man want? If he did not want some thing which is not in his power, how could he be anxious?”

“Have you taken pains to learn what is a good man and what is a bad man, and how a man becomes one or the other?”

“And then, if you wish to be beautiful, young man, do labour at this: the acquisition of human excellence.”

“You are a human being; and this is a mortal animal which has the power of using appearances rationally.”

“For a man is not shown by the finger, as a stone or a piece of wood; but when any person shows the man's principles, then he shows him as a man.”

“But in public do not claim more than your due, nor attempt to appropriate to yourself what belongs to all.”

“For I wish to be surprised by disease or death when I am looking after nothing else than my own will, that I may be free from disturbance, that I may be free from hindrance, free from compulsion, and in a state of liberty.”

“Do not then mix things which are different, and do not expect, when you are labouring at one thing to make progress in another.”

“As we exercise ourselves against sophistical questions, so we ought to exercise ourselves daily against appearances; for these appearances also propose questions to us.”

“Now (you should say), the matter for me to work on is my understanding, as wood is to the carpenter, as hides to the shoemaker; and my business is the right use of appearances.”

“But above all the Cynic's ruling faculty must be purer than the sun; and if it is not, he must necessarily be a cunning scoundrel and an unprincipled fellow, since while he himself is entangled in some vice he will reprove others.”

“Is that shameful to you which is not your own act, that of which you are not the cause, that which has come to you by accident, as a headache, as a fever?”

“Men keep tame lions shut up, and feed them, and some take them about; and who will say that this lion is free? Is it not the fact that the more he lives at his ease, so much the more he is in a slavish condition?”

“For no man fears Caesar himself, but he fears death, banishment, deprivation of his property, prison, and disgrace.”

“Is it possible that he who desires any of the things which depend on others can be free from hindrance?”

“For fear comes from what you expect, but grief from that which is present.”

“For the good actor also preserves his character by stopping when he ought to stop, better than when he goes on acting beyond the proper time.”

“Do not make a tragic show of the thing, but speak of it as it is: it is now time for the matter (of the body) to be resolved into the things out of which it was composed.”

“When then I neither fear any thing which a tyrant can do to me, nor desire any thing which he can give, why do I still look on with wonder (admiration)?”

“But if the pot, in which your meat was cooked, should be broken, must you die of hunger, because you do not have the pot which you are accustomed to?”

“For freedom is secured not by the fulfilling of men's desires, but by the removal of desire.”

“Difficulties are what show men's character. Therefore when a difficult crisis meets you, remember that you are as the raw youth with whom God the trainer is wrestling.”

“What is the first business of the philosopher? To cast away conceit: for it is impossible for a man to begin learning what he thinks he knows.”

“No great thing comes suddenly into being, any more than a cluster of grapes or a fig. If you say to me now, 'I want a fig', I shall answer that it needs time. Let it flower first, then put forth its fruit and then ripen.”

“For it is not death or pain which is a fearful thing, but the fear of pain or death.”

“Every habit and every faculty is confirmed and strengthened by the corresponding acts, the faculty of walking by walking, that of running by running. If you wish to have a faculty for reading, read; if for writing, write.”

“We must make the best of those things that are in our power, and take the rest as nature gives it.”

“Wherever I go, it will be well with me: for even here it was not the place that made me well off, but my judgements, and I shall carry these away with me, for no one can rob me of them.”

“When any disturbing news is brought you, bear this in mind, that news cannot affect anything within the region of the will.”

“For I am not immortal, but a man, a part of the universe as an hour is part of the day. Like the hour I must be here and like an hour pass away.”

“Beware of one thing, man; see the price at which you sell your will. If you do nothing else, do not sell your will cheap.”

“No man is master of another man; his masters are only death and life, pleasure and pain.”

“As bad actors cannot sing alone, but only in a large company, so some men cannot walk alone. Man, if you are worth anything, you must walk alone, and talk to yourself and not hide in the chorus.”

“What then would you have death find you doing? For my part I would be found busy with some humane task, whatever it is—something noble, beneficent, advancing the common good.”

“If, then, you wish not to be prone to anger, do not feed the angry habit, do not add fuel to the fire. To begin with, keep quiet, and count the days when you were not angry.”

“Going abroad is a slight change; death is a greater change—from what now is, not to what is not, but to what is not now.”

“Show me one who is sick and yet happy, in peril and yet happy, dying and yet happy, in exile and happy, in disgrace and happy.”

“First say to yourself, what manner of man you want to be; when you have settled this, act upon it in all you do.”

“When you relax your attention for a little, do not imagine that you will recover it wherever you wish, but bear this well in mind, that your error of today must of necessity put you in a worse position for other occasions.”

“For where else is friendship but where faith and honour are, where men give and take what is good, and nothing else?”

“Why, what good does the athlete get from the man who wrestles with him? The greatest. So the person who insults me helps to train me for the contest: he trains me to be patient, dispassionate, gentle.”

“Unhappy man, are you not content with what you see day by day? Can you set eyes on anything better or greater than the sun, the moon, the stars, the whole earth, the ocean?”

“You will chain my leg—yes, but my will—no, not even Zeus can conquer that.”

“Will you not then look at the pageant and the festive gathering as long as it is given you, and then, when God leads you forth, go away with a bow to Him and thanksgiving for what you have heard and seen?”

“Remember that it is not only desire of office and of wealth that makes men abject and subservient to others, but also desire of peace and leisure and travel and learning.”

“If you lost skill in grammar or music you would count the loss as damage; if you are going to lose honour and dignity and gentleness, do you count it as nothing?”

“The philosopher's school, sirs, is a physician's consulting-room. You must leave it in pain, not in pleasure.”

“The man who mixes with other people a good deal either for talk or for a wine-party or generally for social purposes, must either grow like them himself or convert them to his likeness.”

“Will you not lay this foundation to begin with—that is, examine your decision and see whether it is sound or unsound, and then afterwards build on it your firmness and unshaken resolve?”

“The good and noble man does not contend with anyone, and to the best of his power does not allow others to contend.”

“Is it not better to be self-respecting than to be rich?”

“Is it possible to escape error altogether? No, it is impossible: but it is possible to set one's mind continuously on avoiding error.”

“Yet we are anxious for our bit of a body, for our bit of property, for what Caesar will think, but are not anxious at all for what is within us.”

“It is easy enough in speculation to examine and refute the ignorant, but in practical life men do not submit themselves to be tested, and we hate the man who examines and exposes us.”

“But the true guide, when he finds a man wandering, leads him to the right road, instead of leaving him with a taunt or an insult.”

“Man can only meet man properly when he gets to understand his convictions and shows him his own in turn.”

“When you see another man in office, set against his office the fact that you have no need of office: when you see another rich, look what you have instead.”

“Will you not, then, let other men alone and become your own master and pupil?”

“Every art, when it is being taught, is tiresome to one who is unskilled and untried in it.”

“Why, when you are alone you ought to call it peace and freedom and consider yourself the equal of the gods; when you are in a large company you should not call it a crowd or a mob or a nuisance, but a holiday and a festival, and so accept all things in a spirit of content.”

“If it is not probable that the good of the snail is in the shell, is it probable that man's good is in his body?”

“As we pity the blind and the lame, so should we pity those who are blinded and lamed in their highest governing faculties.”

“The essence of good and of evil lies in an attitude of the will.”

“If you did not learn your lesson to display it in action, what did you learn it for?”

“For when once you allow outward things to dominate what is your own, you had better become a slave and have done with it.”

“It is difficult to unite and combine these qualities--the diligence of a man who devotes himself to material things, and the constancy of one who disregards them--yet not impossible.”

“I do only what lies in my power, drowning, if I must drown, without fear, not crying out or accusing heaven, for I know that what is born must also perish.”

“May we, then, infer that in the sphere of conduct too it is not enough merely to wish to become good, but one must learn certain things?”

“But whether it is better to speak or be silent, and to speak in this way or that, and whether it is proper or improper--in a word, to decide the occasion and the use for each discourse, all these are questions for one faculty only, that of the will.”

“Learn to bear mockery, look about you, examine yourself, that you may get to know who you are.”

“Man, consider first, what it is you are undertaking: then consider your own powers, and what you can bear.”

“Can one be sent into exile beyond the Universe? One cannot. Wherever I go, there is the sun, there is the moon, there are the stars, dreams, auguries, conversation with the gods.”

“And further, when your imagination (which is not in your control) bites deep into your soul, struggle against it with your reason, fight it down, do not allow it to grow strong or to advance to the next step, calling up whatever pictures it pleases.”

“Keep awake then and watch your impressions: what you have in your keeping is no trifle, but self-respect, honour, constancy, a quiet mind, untouched by distress, or fear, or agitation--in a word, freedom.”

“Therefore I cannot call a man industrious, if I am merely told that he reads or writes, no, not even if one adds 'he is at work all night', unless I know what he is working for.”

“You must never praise or blame men for qualities that are indifferent, but for their judgements.”

“And so the soul's impurity consists in bad judgements, and purification consists in producing in it right judgements, and the pure soul is one which has right judgements, for this alone is proof against confusion and pollution in its functions.”