Discourses and Selected Writings
Epictetus
2008
Highlights
- In general, you will find no art or faculty that can analyse itself, therefore none that can approve or disapprove of itself. [2] The art of grammar is restricted to analysing and commenting on literature. Music is confined to the analysis of harmony. [3] Consequently neither of them analyses itself. Now, if you are writing to a friend, the art of grammar will help you decide what words to use; but it will not tell you whether it is a good idea to write to your friend in the first place. Music is no different; whether this is a good time to sing and play, or a bad one, the art of music by itself cannot decide.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Math can tell you if you are good at investing, investing shows you if you are virtuous or not
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - If the weather keeps us from travelling, we sit down, fret, and keep asking, ‘Which way is the wind blowing?’ ‘From the north.’ ‘That’s no good. When will it blow from the west?’ ‘When it wants to, or rather when Aeolus wants it to; because God put Aeolus in charge of the winds, not you.’ [17] What should we do then? Make the best use of what is in our power, and treat the rest in accordance with its nature.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - What should we have ready at hand in a situation like this? The knowledge of what is mine and what is not mine, what I can and cannot do. [22] I must die. But must I die bawling? I must be put in chains–but moaning and groaning too? I must be exiled; but is there anything to keep me from going with a smile, calm and self-composed?
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - we do not abandon any discipline for despair of ever being the best in it.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Whoever is making progress, after learning from philosophers that desire is directed toward good things and avoidance directed toward bad, and having also learned that impassivity and a good flow of life are not attained except through unerring desire and unfailing avoidance–that person will do away with desire altogether, or else defer it to another time, and exercise avoidance only on things within the moral sphere.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Don't be scared to move slowly, only be scared to stay still
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - A student should practise how to expunge from his life sighs and sorrow, grief and disappointment, exclamations like ‘poor me’ and ‘alas’; [24] he should learn what death is, as well as exile, jail and hemlock, so at the end of the day he can say, like Socrates in prison, ‘Dear Crito, if it pleases the gods, so be it,’5–instead of, ‘Poor me, an old man–is this what old age held in store for me?’
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - ‘But my nose is running!’ What do you have hands for, idiot, if not to wipe it? [31] ‘But how is it right that there be running noses in the first place?’ [32] Instead of thinking up protests, wouldn’t it be easier just to wipe your nose?
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - And you for your part would come to him saying, ‘Epictetus, we can no longer stand being tied to this hateful body, giving it food and drink, resting it and cleaning it, and having to associate with all manner of uncongenial people for its sake. [13] Such things are indifferent, are they not, and as nothing to us; and death no evil thing? Aren’t we akin to God, having come from him? [14] Let us go home, then, to be free, finally, from the shackles that restrain us and weigh us down.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - In the case of woman, in addition to mingling a softer note in her voice, nature has removed the hair from her chin.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Only some Epictetus, only some
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - We use labels like ‘thief’ and ‘robber’ in connection with them, but what do these words mean? They merely signify that people are confused about what is good and what is bad. So should we be angry with them, or should we pity them instead? [4] Show them where they go wrong and you will find that they’ll reform. But unless they see it, they are stuck with nothing better than their usual opinion as their practical guide.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - A person’s own thoughts unnerve them. If a tyrant threatens to chain our leg, whoever holds his leg in high regard will beg for mercy, whereas the person who cares more for his character will answerback, “Go ahead and chain it, if that’s what you want.”’ ‘And you don’t care?’ ‘I don’t care.’
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - When someone is properly grounded in life, they shouldn’t have to look outside themselves for approval.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - This is how conflict originates, [4] and it is the source of difference among Jews, Syrians, Egyptians and Romans.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - “Have it your way, father: my judgement is poor and I don’t know what I really should be doing. But if this can neither be learned nor taught, then don’t blame me for it. If it can, however, then either teach it to me yourself, or let me learn it from someone who professes to know; [6] since I hope you don’t suppose that if I’m doing the wrong thing it’s by choice. So what else could explain my error but ignorance? [7] And wouldn’t you rather I be cured of that? When did anger, however, ever teach someone to play music or pilot a ship? Do you imagine that your anger is going to help teach me the far more complex business of life?”
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Death and pain are not frightening, it’s the fear of pain and death we need to fear. Which is why we praise the poet who wrote, ‘Death is not fearful, but dying like a coward is.’
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - What else is freedom but the power to live our life the way we want? ‘Nothing.’ Do you want to live life doing wrong? ‘No.’ Therefore, no one doing wrong is free. [24] Do you want to live your life in fear, grief and anxiety? ‘Of course not.’ So no one in a state of constant fear is free either. By the same token, whoever has gained relief from grief, fear and anxiety has gained freedom.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Material things per se are indifferent, but the use we make of them is not indifferent. [2] The question, then, is how to strike a balance between a calm and composed attitude on the one hand, and a conscientious outlook that is neither slack nor careless on the other.13 Model yourself on card players. [3] The chips don’t matter, and the cards don’t matter; how can I know what the deal will be? But making careful and skilful use of the deal–that’s where my responsibility begins.14 [4] So in life our first job is this, to divide and distinguish things into two categories: externals I cannot control, but the choices I make with regard to them I do control.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - It’s like weaving: the weaver does not make the wool, he makes the best use of whatever wool he’s given.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - ‘Don’t bother me; don’t you realize the problems I’ve got?∗ You think I can listen to poetry in my position?’ ‘Why, what is it?’ ‘I’m sentenced to death!’ ‘And the rest of us aren’t?’
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - As for desire, suspend it completely for now. Because if you desire something outside your control, you are bound to be disappointed;
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - When giving your wife or child a kiss, repeat to yourself, ‘I am kissing a mortal.’ Then you won’t be so distraught if they are taken from you.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - If you are a sailor on board a ship that makes port, you may decide to go ashore to bring back water. Along the way you may stop to collect shellfish, or pick greens. But you always have to remember the ship and listen for the captain’s signal to return. When he calls, you have to drop everything, otherwise you could be bound and thrown on board like the livestock. So it is in life. If, instead of greens and shellfish, you have taken on a wife and child, so much the better. But when the captain calls, you must be prepared to leave them behind, and not give them another thought.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Don’t hope that events will turn out the way you want, welcome events in whichever way they happen: this is the path to peace.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Remember, it is not enough to be hit or insulted to be harmed, you must believe that you are being harmed. If someone succeeds in provoking you, realize that your mind is complicit in the provocation.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Keep the prospect of death, exile and all such apparent tragedies before you every day–especially death–and you will never have an abject thought, or desire anything to excess.
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus - Whenever anyone criticizes or wrongs you, remember that they are only doing or saying what they think is right. They cannot be guided by your views, only their own; so if their views are wrong, they are the ones who suffer insofar as they are misguided. I mean, if someone declares a true conjunctive proposition to be false, the proposition is unaffected, it is they who come off worse for having their ignorance exposed. With this in mind you will treat your critic with more compassion. Say to yourself each time, ‘He did what he believed was right.’
—Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus