Book X

1. O my soul, are you ever to be rightly good, simple, and uniform, unmasked, and made more visible to yourself than the body that hangs about you? Are you ever likely to relish good nature and general kindness as you ought? Will you ever be fully satisfied, get above want and wishing, and never desire to seek your pleasure in anything foreign, either living or inanimate? Not desiring, I say, either time for longer enjoyment nor place for elbow-room, nor climate for good air, nor the music of good company? Can you be contented with your present condition, and be pleased with all that is about you, and be persuaded that you are fully furnished, that all things are well with you; for the gods are at the head of the administration, and they will approve of nothing but what is for the best, and tends to the security and advantage of that good, righteous, beautiful, and perfect being which generates and supports and surrounds all things, and embraces those things which decay, that other resembling beings may be made out of them? In a word, are you ever likely to be so happily qualified as to converse with the gods and men in such a manner as neither to complain of them nor be condemned by them?

2. Examine what your nature requires, so far as you have no other law to govern you. And when you have looked into her inclinations never balk them, unless your animal nature is likely to be worse for it. Then you are to examine what your animal nature demands; and here you may indulge your appetite as far as you please, provided your rational nature does not suffer by the liberty. Now, your rational nature admits of nothing but what is serviceable to the rest of mankind. Keep to these rules, and you will regard nothing else.

3. Whatever happens, either you have strength to bear it, or you have not. If you have, exert your nature, and never murmur at the matter. But if the weight is too heavy for you, do not complain; it will crush you, and then destroy itself. And here you are to remember that to think a thing tolerable and endurable is the way to make it so if you do but press it strongly on the grounds of interest or duty.

4. Is anyone mistaken? Undeceive him civilly, and show him his oversight. But if you cannot convince him, blame yourself, or not even yourself.

5. Whatever happens to you was pre-ordained your lot from the first; and that chain of causes which constitutes fate, tied your person and the event together from all eternity.

6. Whether atoms or nature rule the world I lay it down in the first place, that I am part of that whole which is all under nature's government. Secondly, I am in some measure related to those beings which are of my own order and species. These points being agreed, I shall apply them. Insomuch then as I am a part of the universe, I shall never be displeased with the general appointment; for that can never be prejudicial to the part which is serviceable to the whole, since the universe contains nothing but what is serviceable to it. For the nature of no being is an enemy to itself. But the world has this advantage above other particular beings, that there is no foreign power to force it to produce anything hurtful to itself. Since, therefore, I am a member of so magnificent a body, I shall freely acquiesce in whatever happens to me. Farther, inasmuch as I have a particular relation to my own species, I will never do anything against the common interest. On the other hand, I shall make it my business to oblige mankind, direct my whole life for the advantage of the public, and avoid the contrary. And by holding to this conduct, I must be happy, as that citizen must needs be who is always working for the benefit of his fellow-citizens, and perfectly satisfied with that interest and station the government assigns him.

7. All the parts of the whole that lie within the compass of the universe must of necessity corrupt and decay; by corruption I mean only alteration. Now if this be an evil and a necessary one, by consequence the whole of nature must be in a bad condition, by having the parts so slenderly put together, and so very liable to destruction. And if the case stands thus, nature must either design unkindness to the parts of her own body, by making them subject to unavoidable evil in doing or receiving, or else have these things come about without her knowledge. But both these suppositions are highly improbable. Now if any man has a mind to drop the term Nature, and affirm that these things are naturally produced, he that affirms this does but expose himself, by granting in the first place that the parts of the universe are made for alteration, and then wondering and complaining, as if such accidents were unnatural and extraordinary, especially since things do but return whence they came, and are dissolved into their first principles. For either the elements are scattered at large, or else that which is solid turns to earth, and the particles of air join their own element; and thus they are received into the rational substance of the universe, which will either be destroyed by fire after a certain period, or else be renewed by perpetual vicissitudes. Now I would not have you think that those particles of earth or air which you have now in your constitution are the same with those you brought into the world with you. The matter which now belongs to you is as it were but of yesterday's growth or of the day before, and you have taken it all in by food, or the air you breathe, and therefore the alterations in your body do not rob you of the flesh and blood you had from your mother, but only of some later additions. But suppose the same body you were born with is so closely connected with that other, this is no objection to the former statement.

8. When you have given yourself the titles of a man of goodness and modesty, of truth and prudence, of resignation and magnanimity, take care that your practice answers to your character, and if any of these glorious names are lost in your mismanagement, recover them as soon as you can: remembering withal, that prudence implies consideration, care, and discriminating enquiry; that to be resigned signifies a cheerful compliance with the allotments of universal nature; that magnanimity imports a superiority of the reasoning part to the pleasure and pain of the body to glory and death, and all those things which people are either fond or afraid of. Now if you can deserve the honour of these names, do not desire them from other folks; you will be quite another man, and will enter into a new life, and indeed it is high time to begin; for to desire to go on at this rate, to be polluted with appetite, and harassed with passion any longer, is a senseless and a scandalous wish. It resembles the meanness of those poor wretches in the amphitheatre, who when they are half devoured, and have nothing but wounds left them, beg notwithstanding to be respited till the morrow; though they know they will only be thrown again to the same claws and teeth that tore them before. Work into the soul of you these few names of credit, and if you find you can abide by them, stand your ground, and think yourself transported to the fortunate islands. But if you perceive that you are overmatched, and begin to give way, retire cheerfully into some quiet nook, where you may manage better. And if this will not do, you may give life the slip, but do this without anger. Walk simply, gravely, and freely into the other world, and thus the last action of your life will be the only one worth the owning. And to remember those good qualities above mentioned the more effectually, you should remember the gods, and that they had much rather that all rational natures should resemble than flatter them, that trees are distinguished by their fruit, dogs and bees by the qualities proper to their kind, and men too by the appellation of mankind.

9. Plays, warfare, terror, torpor, servility, will daily wear away these holy principles of yours, which in your study of nature you hastily conceive and let go again. Upon all occasions you should look and act in such a manner as to omit neither the perfect performance of business nor the activity of thinking, to be modest in the consciousness of your improvement, but not so far as to undervalue your knowledge, and keep it out of sight. When will you relish simplicity? when gravity? When will you be able to understand everything, to pronounce upon its nature and its place in the universe; to calculate its continuance, and the ingredients it is made up of, who are likely to be affected by it, and what powers they are which can both give and take it away?

10. A spider when it has caught a fly thinks it has done some great deed, and so does a sportsman when he has run down a hare, and a fisherman too when he has caught a sprat in a net. Some others must kill boars or bears before they can grow conceited; and a fourth sort value themselves upon hunting Sarmatians; though it may be in this last; case, if you go to the definition of robbing, the one are as much thieves as the other.

11. Observe the steps, and continually study the history of nature, and trace the progress of bodies from one form and species to another; contemplate often upon this subject, for there is nothing contributes so much to greatness of mind. He that is rightly affected with this speculation has in a manner laid his body aside. He considers that this world will quickly be over with him, that he must take his leave of mankind and everything here. In consequence of these thoughts, he is all justice in his acts, and resignation in all else. And as for what people will say or think of him, or practise against him, he never minds it. He has but two points to secure—that is, to be honest in what he now does, and contented with what he now receives. As for other projects and fancies, he has done with them. His business is only to follow that straight path which law has chalked out for him, for in so doing he has the Deity for his guide.

12. Why need you be anxious about the event when you may examine the enterprise, and debate the reasonableness of it? If you find it practicable, go on contented, and let nothing divert you. But if you cannot see your way, make a halt, and take the best advice upon the case. And if you happen to be stopped by some new emergency, make the most of what is in your power with due consideration, and always stick to what appears just; for after all, that is the best thing to get. For though the grand design may not succeed, yet your failure arose from attempting this. The man who follows reason in all things is calm, and yet easily moved, cheerful, and yet grave.

13. When you are first awake you may put this question: whether another man's virtue will signify anything to you in doing your business? No, it will signify nothing. And do not forget what sort of men those are which value themselves so much upon the good or ill character they give their neighbours. How scandalously do they live? How are they overgrown with luxury and vice? How foolish are their fancies, and how unreasonable their fears? See how they steal and rob, not with hands and feet, but with their most valuable part, which, if a man pleases, can produce fidelity, modesty, truth, law, happiness.

14. He that is truly disciplined and reverent will address nature in this language: "Give me what you please, and take what you please away." And there is not the least tincture of vanity in this, but it proceeds wholly from obedience and satisfaction with her.

15. Your time is almost over, therefore live as if you were on a mountain. Place signifies nothing, if you live everywhere in the world as in a social community. Never run into a hole, and shun company. No. Let the world see and recognise in you an honest man who lives according to nature; and if they do not like him, let them kill him, for it is much better he were served so, than to live as they do.

16. Spend no more time in stating the qualifications of a man of virtue, but endeavour to get them.

17. Take the whole bulk of matter and all the extent of time frequently into your thoughts. And then consider that all particular bodies are but a grain in the proportion of substance, and but the turning a gimlet in respect of time.

18. Examine all things closely, and you will find them already decaying and changing, and, as it were, rotting or dispersing, or else things are made as it were to be unmade again.

19. Consider what an humble figure people make when they are eating or sleeping. But then when they put on lordly airs, and strut about, or grow angry, and abuse their inferiors from an altitude! And yet how many little masters did they lately cringe to, how mean was their salary, and what a sorry condition will they come to in a short time?

20. That is best for every man which universal nature sends him; and the time of sending too is also a circumstance of advantage.

21. The earth, as the poet has it, loves the refreshment of a shower, and the lofty ether loves the earth. And the world loves to execute the decrees of fate; and therefore, say I to the universe, your inclinations and mine shall always be the same. And do we not often say: This loves to be produced?

22. Either you will take the benefit of custom, and continue to live, or you cut yourself off from the world; and this, too, was your wish; or you cease to live, then death will give you your discharge. One of these cases must happen, therefore be not discouraged.

23. Take it for a rule that this piece of land is like any other, and that all things here are the same as on the top of a mountain, or by the sea-shore, or where you will. In this case, as Plato observes, the walls of a town and the inclosure of a sheepfold may be much the same thing.

24. How does my guiding principle stand affected? To what condition am I now bringing it, and to what uses do I put it? Does thought run low with me? Am I grown selfish, and broken loose from the general interest? Is my soul as it were melted and mingled with the body, and perfectly governed by it?

25. He that runs away from his master is a fugitive; now the law is every man's master, and therefore he that transgresses it is a deserter. And all those that are dissatisfied, angry, and uneasy, desire that something past, present, or future should not be, of that which was appointed by the ruler of all, which is justice, and which gives every one his due, and break through the orders of Providence. Thus he who is dissatisfied, or angry, or uneasy, is a deserter.

26. A man deposits seed in a womb, and then another cause takes it and works on it, and makes a child. What a thing from such a material! Again the child passes food down its throat, and again another cause takes it, and makes perception and motion, life and strength, and other things, both many and strange! Observe then the things that are thus produced in darkness, and recognise the power just as we perceive the power which carries things upwards and downwards, not with the eyes, but no less plainly.

27. You will do well to remember that the world is just as it was formerly, and will go on at the same rate. If you either dip into history, or recollect your own experience, you will perceive the scenes of life strangely uniform, and nothing but the old plays revived. Take a view of the courts of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, of Philip, of Alexander, or Crœsus, and you will find the entertainment the same, only the actors are different.

28. He that struggles with his fortune, and makes an affliction of it, is much like a pig that kicks and cries out when his throat is cutting; and he that, when he is sick, mourns to himself over the bonds in which we are held, is not much better. We should consider that none but rational creatures have the privilege of making necessity a choice; merely to submit is what all are compelled to do.

29. Consider the satisfactions of life singly, and examine them as they come up, and then ask yourself if death is so terrible in taking them from you.

30. When anybody's misbehaviour disturbs you, immediately turn to yourself and bethink you whether you have not been guilty of the same fault; for instance, whether you have not over-valued money, or pleasure, or fame, or the like. Such reflections will quickly make you forget your anger, especially if you consider that the offender was not altogether his own man, but under some untoward compulsion. For what else could he do? Therefore, if you can, step in to the rescue and free him from the compulsion.

31. When you consider Satyrion the Socratic, think upon Eutyches or Hymen; and when you remember Euphrates, think upon Eutychion or Sylvanus; and when Alciphon comes into your head, carry your thoughts to Tropæophorus; and when you are musing upon Xenophon, let Crito or Severus come into the contemplation; and when you make yourself the subject of your meditations, bring some of the emperors, your predecessors, into your company; and thus set the dead and the living of the same character and profession always one against another; then ask the question: Where are those men? The answer will be: They are nowhere, or at least nowhere that I know of. Thus you will be strongly convinced that men are but smoke and bubbles; and this impression will go the deeper if you consider that what is once perished and sunk will never come up again throughout the ages. As for your share of time, it is but a moment in comparison. Why then cannot you manage that little well and be satisfied? What a noble opportunity of improvement do you run away from? For what are all the revolutions of nature, and the accidents of life, but trials of skill and exercises of reason that has looked through the causes of things carefully and philosophically. Go on then till you have digested all this and conquered the difficulty, for I would have you be like a strong stomach, that masters all sort of diet, and makes nourishment of it; or if you please, like a fire well kindled, which catches at everything you throw in, and turns it into flame and brightness.

32. Put it out of the power of any one truly to report you not to be a sincere or a good man; let your practice give him the lie; this is all very feasible, for pray who can hinder you from being just and sincere? To make all sure, you should resolve to live no longer than you can live honestly; for, in earnest, reason would rather you were nothing than a knave.

33. What is it that is most proper to be said or done upon the present occasion? Let it be what it will, I am sure it is in your power to perform it, and therefore never pretend it impracticable. You will never leave grumbling till you can practise virtue with a relish, and make it your pleasure to perform those acts that are suited to the constitution of a human being; for a man ought to hold it a pleasure to do everything that is suitable to his nature, and that is in his power. Now this is in his power everywhere. The motion of a cylinder may be stopped, fire and water may be checked in their tendency, and so may any part of the vegetable and animal world. In this case a great many obstructions may interpose, but there is nothing can block up a soul, stop the course of reason, or hinder a thought from running in its natural channel as it pleases. He that considers the irresistible liberty of the mind, that she moves as easily as fire does upwards, as a stone downwards, as a cylinder on a smooth descent, seeks nothing farther; for all other impediments proceed either from the body, which is really a corpse, or else they are founded in opinion, and unless we betray ourselves, and desert our reason, can do us no manner of mischief; otherwise, ill fortune, as it is commonly called, would make a man ill, for all other productions of nature or art, when any harm happens to them, are certainly the worse for it, but here a man is, so to speak, the better for what he suffers; he improves his value and raises his character by making a right use of a rugged accident. In short, I would have you remember, that no citizen can receive any damage by that which does not affect the community, neither can the community suffer unless the laws suffer too; but these misfortunes, as they are called, do not violate the laws, therefore they do not hurt the community, nor by consequence the citizen.

34. He that is well tinctured with philosophy needs but a short receipt, a common cordial will keep up such a man's spirits and expel fear from his heart. For instance—

"As leaves on trees the race of man is found,
Now green in youth, now withering on the ground."

So your children are but leaves. Leaves, too, are the echoes of praise, and censure, and silent blame, and reproach. Leaves, too, are the continuance of fame. All these matters, like leaves, have their spring for growing, then a puff of wind sends them packing, and quickly after the wood is new furnished again. Things are strangely short-lived, and yet you fear and pursue them as if all were everlasting, but for all that, you will soon close your eyes, and then he that is your chief mourner will quickly want another for himself.

35. An eye that is strong and rightly disposed is indifferent to all colours, therefore if it calls for green, it is a sign it is weak and out of order. Thus when the hearing and smelling are in good condition, they do not pick and choose their objects, but take in all manner of scents and sounds. Thus a strong stomach despaches all that comes into it, like a mill that grinds all sorts of grain. And thus a mind that is sound and healthy is prepared to digest all sorts of accidents, and therefore when it is clamorous in such wishes as these: "O that my children may live and flourish, that I may be commended for everything I do!" when the mind, I say, is thus sickly, it is just like an eye that is all for green colours, and like a set of teeth that would touch nothing by their good will but soft things.

36. There is nobody so happy in his family and friends, but that some of them when they see him going will rejoice at his death. Let him be a person of probity and prudence, somebody or other will drop some of these sentences over his grave. "Well! our man of order and gravity is gone, we shall now be no more troubled with his discipline! I cannot say he was ill-natured to any of us, but for all that, I am sensible he condemned us in his heart." This is the best treatment a good man must expect. But alas! as for our conduct, how many reasons will people muster up to be rid of us! If you consider this when you are dying, you will quit life with the less reluctance. Say then to yourself, "I am leaving an odd sort of world, where the sharers in my fortune, and the objects of my care and kindness, those people for whom I have drudged and contrived, and wished so heartily, count my life no better than a grievance, and would fain be rid of me; now who would be fond of staying in such company any longer?" However, this thought must not go so deep as to sour your humour. You must keep your temper, and part friendly with every body, but then your good nature must not make you hang back. For as when a man has an easy death, the soul slides gently out of the body, so you must walk off handsomely, and bid the world adieu without regret. It is true, nature has twisted your interests, and tied you together, but now she loosens the knot, and makes the sign to disengage. I will part then with the world as with my friends and relations, but for all my kindness I will not be dragged from them but go of my free will. For this too is ordained by nature.

37. Let it be your constant method to look into the design of people's actions, and see what they would be at, as often as it is practicable; and to make this custom the more significant, practise it first upon yourself.

38. Remember that what pulls and hales you from one passion to another, is but your fancy within you. There lies the rhetoric that persuades you. That is the live thing, and to speak plainly, that is the man, after all. But when you talk of a man, I would not have you tack flesh and blood to the notion, nor those limbs neither which are made out of it. These are but tools for the soul to work with. Now the only difference is that nature has glued them as it were to the soul, but the use of them depends solely upon the mind. It is the will that either checks or sets them going. They have but the force of instruments, and signify no more without foreign direction, than a shuttle, a pen, or a whip, which will neither weave, nor write, nor lash the horses, without somebody to manage them.

Notes

6. "The islands of the blest." Homer (Od. iv.) speaks of the Elysian plain at the extremity of the world, "where life is easiest for men. No snow is there, nor yet great storm, nor any rain, but alway ocean sendeth forth the breeze of the shrill west to blow cool on men." (Trs. by Butcher and Lang.) Plutarch identifies the Canaries with this description. After describing their delightful climate, he says, "So that it is generally believed even among the barbarians, that these are the Elysian fields and the seats of the blessed" (Plutarch, "Sertorius").
21. There is a sort of play here on the word φιλία, which means both "loves," and "is wont." The Stoics delighted in these plays on words, and even used the names of the gods in a punning sense.
23. The quotation is from Plato's "Theaetetus," p. 174, but it is curiously applied. In the original the words are used disparagingly. Plato is describing the philosopher, and showing with what contempt he would look on the greatness of a tyrant or king. "Then again he observes that the great man is of necessity as ill-mannered and uneducated as any shepherd, for he has no leisure, and he is surrounded by a wall which is his mountain-pen." (Jowett's translation.)
31. Crito was a friend of Socrates, and gave his name to one of Plato's dialogues.
34. The quotation is from Homer, "Iliad," vi. 146