"Discourses" - читать интересную книгу автора (Epictetus)

men, and became Caesar's shoemaker. You should have seen what
respect Epaphroditus paid to him: "How does the good Felicion do, I
pray?" Then if any of us asked, "What is master doing?" the answer "He
is consulting about something with Felicion." Had he not sold the
man as good for nothing? Who then made him wise all at once? This is
an instance of valuing something else than the things which depend
on the will.

Has a man been exalted to the tribuneship? All who meet him offer
their congratulations; one kisses his eyes, another the neck, and
the slaves kiss his hands. He goes to his house, he finds torches
lighted. He ascends the Capitol: he offers a sacrifice of the
occasion. Now who ever sacrificed for having had good desires? for
having acted conformably to nature? For in fact we thank the gods
for those things in which we place our good.

A person was talking to me to-day about the priesthood of
Augustus. I say to him: "Man, let the thing alone: you will spend much
for no purpose." But he replies, "Those who draw up agreements will
write any name." Do you then stand by those who read them, and say
to such persons, "It is I whose name is written there;" And if you can
now be present on all such occasions, what will you do when you are
dead? "My name will remain." Write it on a stone, and it will
remain. But come, what remembrance of you will there be beyond
Nicopolis? "But I shall wear a crown of gold." If you desire a crown
at all, take a crown of roses and put it on, for it will be more
elegant in appearance.

CHAPTER 20

About reason, how it contemplates itself

Every art and faculty contemplates certain things especially. When
then it is itself of the same kind with the objects which it
contemplates, it must of necessity contemplate itself also: but when
it is of an unlike kind, it cannot contemplate itself. For instance,
the shoemaker's art is employed on skins, but itself is entirely
distinct from the material of skins: for this reason it does not
contemplate itself. Again, the grammarian's art is employed about
articulate speech; is then the art also articulate speech? By no
means. For this reason it is not able to contemplate itself. Now
reason, for what purpose has it been given by nature? For the right
use of appearances. What is it then itself? A system of certain
appearances. So by its nature it has the faculty of contemplating
itself so. Again, sound sense, for the contemplation of what things
does it belong to us? Good and evil, and things which are neither.
What is it then itself? Good. And want of sense, what is it? Evil.
Do you see then that good sense necessarily contemplates both itself
and the opposite? For this reason it is the chief and the first work
of a philosopher to examine appearances, and to distinguish them,