<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0176" id="link2H_4_0176"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXVII </h2>
<p>When a man prides himself on being able to understand and interpret the
writings of Chrysippus, say to yourself:—</p>
<p>If Chrysippus had not written obscurely, this fellow would have had
nothing to be proud of. But what is it that I desire? To understand
Nature, and to follow her! Accordingly I ask who is the Interpreter. On
hearing that it is Chrysippus, I go to him. But it seems I do not
understand what he wrote. So I seek one to interpret that. So far there is
nothing to pride myself on. But when I have found my interpreter, what
remains is to put in practice his instructions. This itself is the only
thing to be proud of. But if I admire the interpretation and that alone,
what else have I turned out but a mere commentator instead of a lover of
wisdom?—except indeed that I happen to be interpreting Chrysippus
instead of Homer. So when any one says to me, Prithee, read me Chrysippus,
I am more inclined to blush, when I cannot show my deeds to be in harmony
and accordance with his sayings.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0177" id="link2H_4_0177"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXVIII </h2>
<p>At feasts, remember that you are entertaining two guests, body and soul.
What you give to the body, you presently lose; what you give to the soul,
you keep for ever.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0178" id="link2H_4_0178"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXIX </h2>
<p>At meals, see to it that those who serve be not more in number than those
who are served. It is absurd for a crowd of persons to be dancing
attendance on half a dozen chairs.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0179" id="link2H_4_0179"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXX </h2>
<p>It is best to share with your attendants what is going forward, both in
the labour of preparation and in the enjoyment of the feast itself. If
such a thing be difficult at the time, recollect that you who are not
weary are being served by those that are; you who are eating and drinking
by those who do neither; you who are talking by those who are silent; you
who are at ease by those who are under constraint. Thus no sudden wrath
will betray you into unreasonable conduct, nor will you behave harshly by
irritating another.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0180" id="link2H_4_0180"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXI </h2>
<p>When Xanthippe was chiding Socrates for making scanty preparation for
entertaining his friends, he answered:—"If they are friends of ours
they will not care for that; if they are not, we shall care nothing for
them!"</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0181" id="link2H_4_0181"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXII </h2>
<h3> Asked, Who is the rich man? Epictetus replied, "He who is content." </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0182" id="link2H_4_0182"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXIII </h2>
<p>Favorinus tells us how Epictetus would also say that there were two faults
far graver and fouler than any others—inability to bear, and
inability to forbear, when we neither patiently bear the blows that must
be borne, nor abstain from the things and the pleasures we ought to
abstain from. "So," he went on, "if a man will only have these two words
at heart, and heed them carefully by ruling and watching over himself, he
will for the most part fall into no sin, and his life will be tranquil and
serene." He meant the words [Greek: Anechou kai apechou]—"Bear and
Forbear."</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0183" id="link2H_4_0183"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXIV </h2>
<p>On all occasions these thoughts should be at hand:—</p>
<p>Lead me, O God, and Thou, O Destiny<br/>
Be what it may the goal appointed me,<br/>
Bravely I'll follow; nay, and if I would not,<br/>
I'd prove a coward, yet must follow still!<br/></p>
<p>Again:</p>
<p>Who to Necessity doth bow aright,<br/>
Is learn'd in wisdom and the things of God.<br/></p>
<p>Once more:—</p>
<p>Crito, if this be God's will, so let it be. As for me,<br/>
Anytus and Meletus can indeed put me to death, but injure me,<br/>
never!<br/></p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0184" id="link2H_4_0184"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXV </h2>
<p>We shall then be like Socrates, when we can indite hymns of praise to the
Gods in prison.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0185" id="link2H_4_0185"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXVI </h2>
<p>It is hard to combine and unite these two qualities, the carefulness of
one who is affected by circumstances, and the intrepidity of one who heeds
them not. But it is not impossible: else were happiness also impossible.
We should act as we do in seafaring.</p>
<p>"What can I do?"—Choose the master, the crew, the day, the
opportunity. Then comes a sudden storm. What matters it to me? my part has
been fully done. The matter is in the hands of another—the Master of
the ship. The ship is foundering. What then have I to do? I do the only
thing that remains to me—to be drowned without fear, without a cry,
without upbraiding God, but knowing that what has been born must likewise
perish. For I am not Eternity, but a human being—a part of the
whole, as an hour is part of the day. I must come like the hour, and like
the hour must pass!</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0186" id="link2H_4_0186"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXVII </h2>
<p>And now we are sending you to Rome to spy out the land; but none send a
coward as such a spy, that, if he hear but a noise and see a shadow moving
anywhere, loses his wits and comes flying to say, The enemy are upon us!</p>
<p>So if you go now, and come and tell us: "Everything at Rome is terrible:
Death is terrible, Exile is terrible, Slander is terrible, Want is
terrible; fly, comrades! the enemy are upon us!" we shall reply, Get you
gone, and prophesy to yourself! we have but erred in sending such a spy as
you. Diogenes, who was sent as a spy long before you, brought us back
another report than this. He says that Death is no evil; for it need not
even bring shame with it. He says that Fame is but the empty noise of
madmen. And what report did this spy bring us of Pain, what of Pleasure,
what of Want? That to be clothed in sackcloth is better than any purple
robe; that sleeping on the bare ground is the softest couch; and in proof
of each assertion he points to his own courage, constancy, and freedom; to
his own healthy and muscular frame. "There is no enemy near," he cries,
"all is perfect peace!"</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0187" id="link2H_4_0187"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXVIII </h2>
<p>If a man has this peace—not the peace proclaimed by C�sar (how
indeed should he have it to proclaim?), nay, but the peace proclaimed by
God through reason, will not that suffice him when alone, when he beholds
and reflects:—Now can no evil happen unto me; for me there is no
robber, for me no earthquake; all things are full of peace, full of
tranquillity; neither highway nor city nor gathering of men, neither
neighbor nor comrade can do me hurt. Another supplies my food, whose care
it is; another my raiment; another hath given me perceptions of sense and
primary conceptions. And when He supplies my necessities no more, it is
that He is sounding the retreat, that He hath opened the door, and is
saying to thee, Come!—Wither? To nought that thou needest fear, but
to the friendly kindred elements whence thou didst spring. Whatsoever of
fire is in thee, unto fire shall return; whatsoever of earth, unto earth;
of spirit, unto spirit; of water, unto water. There is no Hades, no fabled
rivers of Sighs, of Lamentation, or of Fire: but all things are full of
Beings spiritual and divine. With thoughts like these, beholding the Sun,
Moon, and Stars, enjoying earth and sea, a man is neither helpless nor
alone!</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0188" id="link2H_4_0188"></SPAN></p>
<h2> CLXXXIX </h2>
<p>What wouldst thou be found doing when overtaken by Death? If I might
choose, I would be found doing some deed of true humanity, of wide import,
beneficent and noble. But if I may not be found engaged in aught so lofty,
let me hope at least for this—what none may hinder, what is surely
in my power—that I may be found raising up in myself that which had
fallen; learning to deal more wisely with the things of sense; working out
my own tranquillity, and thus rendering that which is its due to every
relation of life. . . .</p>
<p>If death surprise me thus employed, it is enough if I can stretch forth my
hands to God and say, "The faculties which I received at Thy hands for
apprehending this thine Administration, I have not neglected. As far as in
me lay, I have done Thee no dishonour. Behold how I have used the senses,
the primary conceptions which Thous gavest me. Have I ever laid anything
to Thy charge? Have I ever murmured at aught that came to pass, or wished
it otherwise? Have I in anything transgressed the relations of life? For
that Thou didst beget me, I thank Thee for that Thou hast given: for the
time during which I have used the things that were Thine, it suffices me.
Take them back and place them wherever Thou wilt! They were all Thine, and
Thou gavest them me."—If a man depart thus minded, is it not enough?
What life is fairer and more noble, what end happier than his?</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0189" id="link2H_4_0189"></SPAN></p>
<h2> (APPENDIX A) </h2>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0190" id="link2H_4_0190"></SPAN></p>
<h2> Fragments Attributed to Epictetus </h2>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0191" id="link2H_4_0191"></SPAN></p>
<h2> I </h2>
<p>A life entangled with Fortune is like a torrent. It is turbulent and
muddy; hard to pass and masterful of mood: noisy and of brief continuance.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0192" id="link2H_4_0192"></SPAN></p>
<h2> II </h2>
<p>The soul that companies with Virtue is like an ever-flowing source. It is
a pure, clear, and wholesome draught; sweet, rich, and generous of its
store; that injures not, neither destroys.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0193" id="link2H_4_0193"></SPAN></p>
<h2> III </h2>
<p>It is a shame that one who sweetens his drink with the gifts of the bee,
should embitter God's gift Reason with vice.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0194" id="link2H_4_0194"></SPAN></p>
<h2> IV </h2>
<p>Crows pick out the eyes of the dead, when the dead have no longer need of
them; but flatterers mar the soul of the living, and her eyes they blind.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0195" id="link2H_4_0195"></SPAN></p>
<h2> V </h2>
<h3> Keep neither a blunt knife nor an ill-disciplined looseness of tongue. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0196" id="link2H_4_0196"></SPAN></p>
<h2> VI </h2>
<p>Nature hath given men one tongue but two ears, that we may hear from
others twice as much as we speak.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0197" id="link2H_4_0197"></SPAN></p>
<h2> VII </h2>
<p>Do not give sentence in another tribunal till you have been yourself
judged in the tribunal of Justice.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0198" id="link2H_4_0198"></SPAN></p>
<h2> VIII </h2>
<h3> If is shameful for a Judge to be judged by others. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0199" id="link2H_4_0199"></SPAN></p>
<h2> IX </h2>
<p>Give me by all means the shorter and nobler life, instead of one that is
longer but of less account!</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0200" id="link2H_4_0200"></SPAN></p>
<h2> X </h2>
<p>Freedom is the name of virtue: Slavery, of vice. . . . None is a slave
whose acts are free.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0201" id="link2H_4_0201"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XI </h2>
<h3> Of pleasures, those which occur most rarely give the most delight. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0202" id="link2H_4_0202"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XII </h2>
<p>Exceed due measure, and the most delightful things become the least
delightful.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0203" id="link2H_4_0203"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XIII </h2>
<p>The anger of an ape—the threat of a flatterer:—these deserve
equal regard.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0204" id="link2H_4_0204"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XIV </h2>
<h3> Chastise thy passions that they avenge not themselves upon thee. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0205" id="link2H_4_0205"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XV </h2>
<h3> No man is free who is not master of himself. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0206" id="link2H_4_0206"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XVI </h2>
<h3> A ship should not ride on a single anchor, nor life on a single hope. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0207" id="link2H_4_0207"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XVII </h2>
<h3> Fortify thyself with contentment: that is an impregnable stronghold. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0208" id="link2H_4_0208"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XVIII </h2>
<p>No man who is a lover of money, of pleasure, of glory, is likewise a lover
of Men; but only he that is a lover of whatsoever things are fair and
good.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0209" id="link2H_4_0209"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XIX </h2>
<h3> Think of God more often than thou breathest. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0210" id="link2H_4_0210"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XX </h2>
<h3> Choose the life that is noblest, for custom can make it sweet to thee. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0211" id="link2H_4_0211"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XXI </h2>
<p>Let thy speech of God be renewed day by day, aye, rather than thy meat and
drink.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0212" id="link2H_4_0212"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XXII </h2>
<p>Even as the Sun doth not wait for prayers and incantations to rise, but
shines forth and is welcomed by all: so thou also wait not for clapping of
hands and shouts and praise to do thy duty; nay, do good of thine own
accord, and thou wilt be loved like the Sun.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0213" id="link2H_4_0213"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XXIII </h2>
<h3> Let no man think that he is loved by any who loveth none. </h3>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0214" id="link2H_4_0214"></SPAN></p>
<h2> XXIV </h2>
<p>If thou rememberest that God standeth by to behold and visit all that thou
doest; whether in the body or in the soul, thou surely wilt not err in any
prayer or deed; and thou shalt have God to dwell with thee.</p>
<p>Note.—Schweigh�ser's great edition collects 181 fragments attributed
to Epictetus, of which but a few are certainly genuine. Some (as xxi.,
xxiv., above) bear the stamp of Pythagorean origin; others, though changed
in form, may well be based upon Epictetean sayings. Most have been
preserved in the Anthology of John of Stobi (Stob�us), a Byzantine
collector, of whom scarcely anything is known but that he probably wrote
towards the end of the fifth century, and made his vast body of extracts
from more than five hundred authors for his son's use. The best
examination of the authenticity of the Fragments is Quaestiones Epictete�,
by R. Asmus, 1888. The above selection includes some of doubtful origin
but intrinsic interest.—Crossley.</p>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0215" id="link2H_4_0215"></SPAN></p>
<h2> (APPENDIX B) </h2>
<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0216" id="link2H_4_0216"></SPAN></p>
<h2> The Hymn of Cleanthes </h2>
<p>Chiefest glory of deathless Gods, Almighty for ever,<br/>
Sovereign of Nature that rulest by law, what Name shall we<br/>
give Thee?—<br/>
Blessed be Thou! for on Thee should call all things that are<br/>
mortal.<br/>
For that we are Thine offspring; nay, all that in myriad motion<br/>
Lives for its day on the earth bears one impress—Thy<br/>
likeness—upon it.<br/>
Wherefore my song is of Thee, and I hymn thy power for ever.<br/>
<br/>
Lo, the vast orb of the Worlds, round the Earth evermore as it<br/>
rolleth,<br/>
Feels Thee its Ruler and Guide, and owns Thy lordship rejoicing.<br/>
Aye, for Thy conquering hands have a servant of living fire—<br/>
Sharp is the bolt!—where it falls, Nature shrinks at the shock<br/>
and doth shudder.<br/>
Thus Thou directest the Word universal that pulses through all<br/>
things,<br/>
Mingling its life with Lights that are great and Lights that<br/>
are lesser,<br/>
E'en as beseemeth its birth, High King through ages unending.<br/>
<br/>
Nought is done that is done without Thee in the earth or the waters<br/>
Or in the heights of heaven, save the deed of the fool and the<br/>
sinner.<br/>
Thou canst make rough things smooth; at Thy voice, lo, jarring<br/>
disorder<br/>
Moveth to music, and Love is born where hatred abounded.<br/>
Thus hast Thou fitted alike things good and things evil together,<br/>
That over all might reign one Reason, supreme and eternal;<br/>
Though thereunto the hearts of the wicked be hardened and<br/>
heedless—<br/>
Woe unto them!—for while ever their hands are grasping at<br/>
good things,<br/>
Blind are their eyes, yea, stopped are their ears to God's Law<br/>
universal,<br/>
Calling through wise disobedience to live the life that is noble.<br/>
This they mark not, but heedless of right, turn each to his<br/>
own way,<br/>
Here, a heart fired with ambition, in strife and straining<br/>
unhallowed;<br/>
There, thrusting honour aside, fast set upon getting and gaining;<br/>
Others again given over to lusts and dissolute softness,<br/>
Working never God's Law, but that which wareth upon it.<br/>
<br/>
Nay, but, O Giver of all things good, whose home is the dark cloud,<br/>
Thou that wields Heaven's bolt, save men from their<br/>
ignorance grievous;<br/>
Scatter its night from their souls, and grant them to come to<br/>
that Wisdom<br/>
Wherewithal, sistered with Justice, Thou rulest and governest<br/>
all things;<br/>
That we, honoured by Thee, may requite Thee with worship and<br/>
honour,<br/>
Evermore praising thy works, as is meet for men that shall perish;<br/>
Seeing that none, be he mortal or God, hath privilege nobler<br/>
Than without stint, without stay, to extol Thy Law universal.<br/></p>
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