Epictetus · Complete work
Chapter 24
Chapter 24 of 53. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
Open the complete readerOriginal Ancient Greek
[24.1] οὗτοί σε οἱ διαλογισμοὶ μὴ θλιβέτωσαν ἄτιμος ἐγὼ βιώσομαι καὶ οὐδεὶς οὐδαμοῦ. εἰ γὰρ ἡ ἀτιμία ἐστὶ κακόν, οὐ δύνασαι ἐν κακῷ εἶναι διʼ ἄλλον, οὐ μᾶλλον ἢ ἐν αἰσχρῷ· μή τι οὖν σόν ἐστιν ἔργον τὸ ἀρχῆς τυχεῖν ἢ παραληφθῆναι ἐφʼ ἑστίασιν; οὐδαμῶς. πῶς οὖν ἔτι τοῦτʼ ἔστιν ἀτιμία; πῶς δὲ οὐδεὶς οὐδαμοῦ ἔσῃ, ὃν ἐν μόνοις εἶναί τινα δεῖ τοῖς ἐπὶ σοί, ἐν οἷς ἔξεστί σοι εἶναι πλείστου ἀξίῳ;
[24.2] ἀλλά σοι οἱ φίλοι ἀβοήθητοι ἔσονται. τί λέγεις τὸ ἀβοήθητοι; οὐχ ἕξουσι παρὰ σοῦ κερμάτιον· οὐδὲ πολίτας Ῥωμαίων αὐτοὺς ποιήσεις. τίς οὖν σοι εἶπεν, ὅτι ταῦτα τῶν ἐφʼ ἡμῖν ἐστιν, οὐχὶ δὲ ἀλλότρια ἔργα; τίς δὲ δοῦναι δύναται ἑτέρῳ, ἃ μὴ ἔχει αὐτός; κτῆσαι οὖν, φησίν, ἵνα ἡμεῖς ἔχωμεν.
[24.3] εἰ δύναμαι κτήσασθαι τηρῶν ἐμαυτὸν αἰδήμονα καὶ πιστὸν καὶ μεγαλόφρονα, δείκνυε τὴν ὁδὸν καὶ κτήσομαι. εἰ δʼ ἐμὲ ἀξιοῦτε τὰ ἀγαθὰ τὰ ἐμαυτοῦ ἀπολέσαι, ἵνα ὑμεῖς τὰ μὴ ἀγαθὰ περιποιήσησθε, ὁρᾶτε ὑμεῖς, πῶς ἄνισοί ἐστε καὶ ἀγνώμονες. τί δὲ καὶ βούλεσθε μᾶλλον; ἀργύριον ἢ φίλον πιστὸν καὶ αἰδήμονα; εἰς τοῦτο οὖν μοι μᾶλλον συλλαμβάνετε καὶ μή, διʼ ὧν ἀποβαλῶ αὐτὰ ταῦτα, ἐκεῖνά με πράσσειν ἀξιοῦτε.
[24.4] ἀλλʼ ἡ πατρίς, ὅσον ἐπʼ ἐμοί, φησίν, ἀβοήθητος ἔσται. πάλιν, ποίαν καὶ ταύτην βοήθειαν; στοὰς οὐχ ἕξει διὰ σὲ οὔτε βαλανεῖα. καὶ τί τοῦτο; οὐδὲ γὰρ ὑποδήματα ἔχει διὰ τὸν χαλκέα οὐδʼ ὅπλα διὰ τὸν σκυτέα· ἱκανὸν δέ, ἐὰν ἕκαστος ἐκπληρώσῃ τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ἔργον. εἰ δὲ ἄλλον τινὰ αὐτῇ κατεσκεύαζες πολίτην πιστὸν καὶ αἰδήμονα, οὐδὲν ἂν αὐτὴν ὠφέλεις; ναί. οὐκοῦν οὐδὲ σὺ αὐτὸς ἀνωφελὴς ἂν εἴης αὐτῇ. τίνα οὖν ἕξω, φησί, χώραν ἐν τῇ πόλει; ἣν ἂν δύνῃ φυλάττων ἅμα τὸν πιστὸν καὶ αἰδήμονα.
[24.5] εἰ δὲ ἐκείνην ὠφελεῖν βουλόμενος ἀποβαλεῖς ταῦτα, τί ὄφελος ἂν αὐτῇ γένοιο ἀναιδὴς καὶ ἄπιστος ἀποτελεσθείς;
Mouseia
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from all 53 Ancient Greek chapters and 105 sections for fidelity, Stoic precision, clarity, structure, and cadence.
[24.1] Do not let these reflections distress you: “I shall live without honor and be nobody anywhere.” For if lack of honor is an evil, you can no more be involved in evil through another person than in disgrace. Is it any business of yours, then, to obtain public office or to be invited to a banquet? Not at all. How, then, can this still be a lack of honor? And how will you be nobody anywhere, when you need be somebody only in those things that are up to you, in which it is possible for you to be a person of the greatest worth?
[24.2] “But your friends will be left without help.” What do you mean by “without help”? They will receive no small change from you, nor will you make them Roman citizens. But who told you that these things are among those that are up to us, rather than being the business of others? And who can give another what he does not possess himself? “Acquire them, then,” someone says, “so that we may have them.”
[24.3] If I can acquire them while preserving myself as self-respecting, trustworthy, and noble-minded, show me the way, and I will acquire them. But if you expect me to lose the good things that are my own so that you may secure things that are not good, see for yourselves how unfair and ungrateful you are. And which do you really want more: money, or a trustworthy and self-respecting friend? Help me, then, toward the latter instead, and do not expect me to act in ways that will make me cast away those very qualities.
[24.4] “But my country,” someone says, “so far as it depends on me, will be left without help.” Again, what kind of help do you mean? It will have no colonnades or baths through you. And what of it? It does not have shoes through the blacksmith, either, or weapons through the shoemaker; it is enough if each person fulfills his own function. And if you furnished your country with another citizen who was trustworthy and self-respecting, would you not benefit it at all? “Yes.” Then neither would you yourself be useless to it. “What place, then,” he says, “shall I have in the city?” Whatever place you can hold while at the same time preserving the trustworthy and self-respecting man.
[24.5] But if, in your desire to benefit your country, you cast these qualities away, what benefit could you be to it once you had become shameless and untrustworthy?
Mouseia
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from all 53 Ancient Greek chapters and 105 sections.
[24.1] Do not let these thoughts distress you: “I will live without honor and be nobody anywhere.” For if lack of honor is an evil, you cannot be in an evil condition because of someone else, any more than you can be in a shameful one. Is it your responsibility, then, to obtain public office or be invited to a dinner? Not at all. How, then, can this still be a lack of honor? And how will you be nobody anywhere, when you need to be somebody only in matters that are up to you, in which it is possible for you to be a person of the greatest worth?
[24.2] “But your friends will be left without help.” What do you mean by “without help”? They will not receive a little money from you, and you will not make them Roman citizens. But who told you that these things are among what is up to us, rather than tasks belonging to others? And who can give another person what he does not possess himself? “Then acquire them,” someone says, “so that we may have them.”
[24.3] If I can acquire them while preserving my self-respect, faithfulness, and nobility of mind, show me the way, and I will acquire them. But if you expect me to lose the good things that are truly mine so that you may obtain things that are not good, see for yourselves how unfair and ungrateful you are. Besides, which would you rather have: money, or a faithful and self-respecting friend? Then help me more toward becoming such a friend, and do not expect me to do things that will cause me to lose precisely these qualities.
[24.4] “But as far as I am concerned,” someone says, “my country will be left without help.” Again, what kind of help do you mean? It will not have colonnades or bathhouses because of you. And what of it? It does not have shoes because of the blacksmith, or weapons because of the shoemaker. It is enough if each person fulfills his own function. If you provided your country with one more faithful and self-respecting citizen, would you not benefit it at all? “Yes.” Then you yourself would not be useless to it. “What place, then,” he says, “will I have in the city?” Whatever place you can hold while at the same time preserving your faithfulness and self-respect.
[24.5] But if, in wishing to benefit your country, you lose these qualities, what benefit could you be to it after becoming shameless and unfaithful?