Epicteteus

There is not in the scale of nature a more
inseparable connection of cause and effect than in
the case of happiness and virtue: nor anything that
more naturally produces the one, or more necessarily
presupposes the other. For what is it to be happy,
but for a man to content himself with his lot, in a
quiet and cheerful resignation to the appointments of
God?

 But if you do
not read for a month together, but do somewhat else,
you will see what will be the consequence. So after
sitting still for ten days, get up and attempt to
take a long walk, and you will find how your legs are
weakened. Upon the whole, then, whatever you would
make habitual, practice it; and, if you would not
make a thing habitual, do not practice it, but
habituate yourself to something else.

Now, the very nature of every one is to pursue

good, to avoid evil, to esteem him as an enemy and

betrayer who deprives us of the one, and involves us

in the other, though he be a brother, or a son, or

father. For nothing is more nearly related to us

than good.

If you would be well spoken of, learn to speak

well of others. And, when you have learned to speak

well of them, endeavor likewise to do well to them;

and thus you will reap the fruit of being well spoken

of by them.

Of things, some are in our power and others not.

In our power are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion,

and, in one word, whatever are our own actions. Not

in our power are body, property, reputation, command,

and, in one word, whatever are not our own actions.

Remove aversion,

then, from all things that are not in our power, and

transfer it to things contrary to the nature of what

is in our power. But, for the present, totally

suppress desire: for, if you desire any of the things

not in our own power, you must necessarily be

disappointed; and of those which are, and which it

would be laudable to desire, nothing is yet in your

possession. Use only [the requisite acts] of pursuit

and avoidance; and even these lightly, and with

gentleness and reservation.

Men are disturbed, not by things, but by the

principles and notions which they form concerning

things. Death, for instance, is not terrible, else

it would have appeared so to Socrates. But the

terror consists in our notion of death that it is

terrible. When therefore we are hindered, or

disturbed, or grieved, let us never impute it to

others, but to ourselves; that is, to our own

principles. It is the action of an uninstructed

person to lay the fault of his own bad condition upon

others; of one entering upon instruction to lay the

fault on himself; and of one perfectly instructed,

neither on others nor on himself.

Require not things to happen as you wish, but

wish them to happen as they do happen, and you will

go on well.

Provide thing relating to the body no further than mere use; as meat, drink, clothing, house, family. But strike off and rejecte very things realtings to show wand delicacy.

Itisamarkofwantofgeniustospendmuch

timeinthingsrelatingtothebody,astobelongin

ourexercises,ineatinganddrinking,andinthe

dischargeofotheranimalfunctions.Theseshouldbe

doneincidentallyandslightly,andourwholeatten-tionbeengagedinthecareoftheunderstanding.