All those things at which thou wishest to arrive by as acuitous road, thou
canst have now if thou dost not refuse them to thyself. And this means
if thou wilt take no notice of all the past, and trust the future
to providence, and direct the present only conformably to piety and justice conformably to
piety, that thou mayest be content with the lot which is assigned to THEE,
for Nature designed it for THEE, and THEE for it conformably to justice.
That thou mayst always speak the truth freely and without disguise, and do
the things which are agreeable to law in according to the worth of each.
And let neither another man's wickedness hinder THEE, nor opinion, nor voice,
nor yet the sensations of the poor flesh which has grown about THEE. For
the passive part will look to this. If then whatever the time may be
when thou shalt be near to thy departure, neglecting everything else, thou shalt
respect only thy ruling faculty and the divinity within THEE. And if thou shalt
be afraid, not because thou must sometimes cease to live, but if thou
shalt fear never to have begun to live according to nature, then thou wilt
be a man worthy of the universe which has produced thee. And thou wilt
cease to be a stranger in thy native land, and to wonder at things
which happened daily as if they were something unexpected, and to be dependent on
this or that. God sees the minds of all men, bared of the
material vesture and rind and impurities. For with his intellectual part alone he touches
the intelligence only which hast flowed and been derived from himself into these bodies.
And if thou also usest thyself to do this, thou wilt rid thyself of
thy much trouble. For he who regards not the poor flesh which envelops him
surely will not trouble himself by looking after raiment and dwelling, and fame,
and such like externals. And show the things are three of which thou art
composed, a little body, a little breath, intelligence. Of these the
first two are thine, so far as it is thy duty to take care
of them, but the third alone is properly thine. Therefore, if thou
shalt separate from thyself, that is, from thy understanding. Whatever others do
or say, and whatever thou hast done or said thyself, and whatever future
things trouble THEE because they may happen, And whatever in the body which envelops
THEE, or in the breath which is by nature associated with the body,
is attached to THEE independent of thy will, and whatever the external circumfluent vortex
whirls round. So that the intellectual power, exempt from the things of fate,
can live pure and free by itself, doing what is just and accepting
what happens, and saying the truth. If thou wilt separate, i say,
from this ruling faculty the things which are attached to it by the impressions
of sense, and the things of time to come and of time that is
past, and wilt make thyself like in pedoicles, a sphere all round and
in its joyous rest reposing. And if thou shalt strive to live only what
is really thy life, that is the present, then thou wilt be able
to pass that portion of life which remains for THEE up to the time of
thy death, free from perturbations, nobly and obedient to the God that is
within thee. I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself
more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his
own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others. If then, a
god or a wise teacher should present himself to a man and bid him to
think of nothing, and to design nothing, which he would not express as
soon as he conceived it, he could not endure it even for a single
day. So much more respect have we to what our neighbors shall think of
us than to what we shall think of ourselves. How can it be that
the gods, after having arranged all things well and benevolently for mankind, have
overlooked this alone, That some men, and very good men, and men,
who, as we may say, have had most communion with the Divinity,
and through pious acts and religious observances, have been most intimate with the
Divinity, when they have once died, should never exist again, but should
be completely extinguished. But if this is so, be assured that if it
ought to have been otherwise, the gods would have done it, or if
it were just, it would also be possible. And if it were according
to nature, nature would have had it so, But because it is not
so. If in fact it is not so, be thou convinced that it
ought not to have been so. For thou seest even of thyself, that
in this inquiry thou art disputing with the deity. And we should not thus
dispute with the gods unless they were most excellent and most just. But if
this is so, they would not have allowed anything in the ordering of the
universe to be neglected unjustly and irrationally. Practice thyself even in the things which
thou despasest of accomplishing. For even the left hand, which is ineffectual for
all other things, for want of practice, holds the bridle more vigorously than
the right hand, for it has been practiced in this. Consider in what
condition, both in body and soul, a man should be when he is
overtaken by death. And consider the shortness of life, the boundless abyss of
time past in future, the feebleness of all matter. Contemplate the formative principles
of things, bare of their coverings, the purposes of actions. Consider what
pain is, what pleasure is, and death and fame? Who is to
himself the cause of his uneasiness? How no man is hindered by another,
that everything is opinion. In the application of thy principles, Thou must be
like the pancraceust, not like the gladiator. For the gladiator lets fall the
sword which he uses and is killed, but the other always has his hand
and needs to do nothing else than use it. See what things are in
themselves, dividing them into matter, form, and purpose. What a power
man has to do nothing except what God will approve, and to accept all
that God may give him. With respect to that which happens conformably to nature,
we ought to blame neither gods, for they do nothing wrong, either
voluntarily or involuntarily, nor men, for they do nothing wrong except involuntarily.
Consequently, we shall would blame nobody, how ridiculous and what a stranger he
is who is surprised at anything which happens in life. Either there is a
fatal necessity and invincible order, or a kind providence, or a confusion without
a purpose and without a director. If then there is an invincible necessity,
why dost thou resist? But if there is a providence which allows itself to
be propitiated, make thyself worthy of the help of the Divinity. But if
there is a confusion without a governor. Be content to that in such a
tempest thou hast in thyself a certain ruling intelligence. And even if the tempest
carry thee away, let it carry away the poor flesh, the poor breath,
everything else, for the intelligence, at least it will not carry away.
Does the light of the lamp shine without losing its splendor until it is
extinguished? And shall the truth which is in thee, and justice and temperance
be extinguished before thy death. When a man has presented the appearance of having
done wrong, say how then do I know if this is a wrongful act?
And even if he has done wrong, how do I know that he
is not condemned himself? And so this is like tearing his own face.
Consider that he who would not have the bad man do wrong is like the
man who would not have the fig tree to bear, juice in the figs,
and infants to cry, and the horse to nigh, and whatever else
must of necessity be. For what must a man do who has such a
character, If then thou art irritable cure this man's disposition. If it is
not right, do not do it, If it is not true, do
not say it. In everything. Always observe what the thing is which produces
for THEE in appearance, and resolve it by dividing it into the formal,
the material, the purpose, and the time within which it must end.
Perceive at last that thou hast in THEE something better and more divine than the
things which cause the various effects. And, as it were, pull THEE
by the strings. What is there now in my mind? Is it fear
or suspicion, or desire or anything of the kind. First, do nothing
inconsiderately nor without a purpose. Second, make thy acts refer to nothing else
than to a social end. Consider that before long thou wilt be nobody and
nowhere, nor will any the things exist which thou now seest, nor any
of those who are now living. For all things are formed by nature to
change and be turned, and to perish in order that other things, in
continuous succession may exist. Consider that everything is opinion, and opinion is in
thy power. Take away, then, when thou choosest thy opinion, and
like a mariner who has doubled the promontory, thou wilt find calm, everything
stable, and a waveless bay. Any one activity, wherever it may be
when it has ceased at its proper time, suffers no evil because it is
ceased. Nor he who has done this act does he suffer any evil,
for this reason that the act has ceased in like manner. Then the whole
which consists of all the acts, which is our life, if it cease
at its proper time, suffers no evil for this reason that it has ceased.
Nor he who has terminated this series at the proper time has he been
ill dealt with. But the proper time and the limit nature fixes, sometimes,
as in old age, the peculiar nature of man, but always the
universal nature, by the change of whose parts the whole universe continues, ever
young and perfect, And everything which is useful to the universal is always good
and in season. Therefore, the termination of life for every man is no
evil, because neither is it shameful, since it is both in dependent to
the will and not oppose to the general interest. But it is good since
it is seasonable and profitable, too incongruent with the universal. For thus too
he is moved by the deity, who is moved in the same manner with
the Deity, and move towards the same things. In his mind. These
three principles thou must have in readiness, and the things which thou doest do
nothing either inconsiderately or otherwise, as justice herself would act. But with respect
to what may happen to THEE from without, consider that it happens either by
chance or according to providence. And thou must neither blame chance nor accuse providence.
Second, consider what every being is, from the seed to the time
of its receiving a soul, and from the reception of a soul to the
give back of the same, And of what things every being is compounded,
and into what things it is resolved. Third, if thou shouldst suddenly be
raised up above the earth, and shouldest look down on human beings and observe
the variety of them, how great it is. And at the same time
also shouldst see at a glance how great is the number of beings who dwell
all around in the air and the ether. Consider that as often as thou
shouldst be raised up, thou wouldst see the same things. Sameness of form
and shortness of duration. Are these things to be proud of? Cast away?
Opinion thou art saved? Who then hinders THEE from casting it away?
When thou art troubled about anything. Thou hast forgotten this, that all things
happen according to the universal nature, and forgotten this that a man's wrongful act
is nothing to thee. And further, thou hast forgotten this, that everything
which happens always happens so, and will happen so, and now happen so
everywhere. Forgotten this too, how close is the kinship between a man and
the whole human race, For it is a community not of a little blood
or seed, but of intelligence. And thou hast forgotten this too, that
every man's intelligence is a god, and is an efflux of the deity.
And forgotten this that nothing is a man's own, but that his child,
and his body, and his very soul came from the deity. Forgotten this
that everything is opinion. And lastly, thou hast forgotten that every man lives
the present time only and loses only. This constantly, bring to thy recollection
those who have complained greatly about anything, those who have been most conspicuous by
the greatest fame or misfortunes, or enmities, or fortunes of any kind.
Then think where are they all? Now? Smoke and ash and a tail
or, not even a tale. And let there be present to thy mind
also everything of this sort, How Fabius Catilinus lived in the country, and
Lucius Lupus in his gardens, and Certainius at by Ei, and Tiberius at
capri E, and Rufus at Velia, and in fine Think of the eager
pursuit of anything conjoined with pride, and how worthless everything is after which men
violently strain, And how much more philosophical it is for a man, and
the opportunities presented to him, to show himself just, temperate, obedient to
the gods, and to do this with all simplicity. For the pride,
which is proud of its want of pride, is the most intolerable of all.
To those who ask, where hast thou seen the gods? Or how
dost thou comprehend that they exist and so worshipest them? I answer, in
the first place, they may be seen even with the eyes. In the
second place, neither have I seen even my own soul, and yet I
honor it. Thus, then, with respect to the gods, from what
I constantly experience of their power, from this I comprehend that they exist,
and I venerate them. The safety of life is this, to examine everything
all through, what it is itself, what is its material? What the
formal part? With all thy soul, to do justice and to say the
truth. What remains except to enjoy life by joining one good thing to another,
so as not to leave even the smallest intervals between. There is one
light of the sun, though it is interrupted by walls, mountains, and
other things infinite. There is one common substance, though it is distributed among
countless bodies, which have their several qualities. There is one soul, though
it is distributed among infinite natures and individual circumscriptions. There is one intelligent soul,
though it seems to be divided now in the things which have been mentioned.
All the other parts, such as those which are air and matter,
are without sensation and have no fellowship. And yet even these parts the intelligent
principle holds together, and the gravitation towards the same. But intellect, in
a peculiar manner, tends to that which is of the same kin and combines
with it, and the feeling for communion is not interrupted. What dost thou
wish to continue to exist? Well? Dost thou wish to have sensation,
movement, growth, and then again to cease to grow, To use thy
speech to think, what is there of all these things which seems to THEE
worth desiring? But if it is easy to set little value on all these
things, turn to that which remains, which is to follow reason and God.
But it is inconsistent with honoring reason and God to be troubled, because
by death a man will be deprived of the other things. How small a
part of the boundless and unfathomable time is assigned to every man, for it
is very soon swallowed up in the eternal. And how small a part of
the whole substance, and how small a part of the universal soul, And
on what a small claw to the whole earth? Thou creepest reflecting on all
this, consider nothing to be great except to act as Thy nature leads thee,
and to endure that which the common nature brings. How does the ruling
faculty make use of itself? For all lies in this, But everything else,
whether it is in the power of Thy will or not, is only
lifeless ashes and smoke. This reflection is most adapted to move us to contempt
of death. That even those who think pleasure to be a good, and
pain and evil still have despised it. The man to whom that only is
good, which comes in due season, and to whom it is the same
thing, whether he has done more or fewer acts conformable to right reason,
and to whom it makes no difference whether he contemplates the world for a longer
or a shorter time. For this man neither as death a terrible thing.
Man, thou hast been a citizen in this great state the world. What
difference does it make to thee whether for five years or three? For that
which is conformable to the laws is just for all. Where is the hardship?
Then? If no tyrant, nor yet an unjust judge sends THEE away
from the state, but nature who brought THEE into it, the same as
if a praetor who is employed an actor dismisses him from the stage. But
I have not finished the five acts, but only three of them, thou
sayest, well, But in life the three acts are the whole drama.
For what shall be a complete drama is determined by him who was once the
cause of its composition, and now of its dissolution. But thou art the
cause of neither depart then satisfied. For he also who releases THEE, is satisfied