§8ὅθεν ἐκεῖνον αὖθις τὸν περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων λόγον ἀναλάβωμεν.
Therefore, let us take up again that discussion about affairs.
ὡς γὰρ ἐν τῷ πυρέττειν πικρὰ πάντα καὶ ἀηδῆ φαίνεται γευομένοις, ἀλλʼ ὅταν ἴδωμεν ἑτέρους ταὐτὰ προσφερομένους καὶ μὴ δυσχεραίνοντας, οὐκέτι τὸ σιτίον οὐδὲ τὸ ποτὸν ἀλλʼ αὑτοὺς αἰτιώμεθα καὶ τὴν νόσον· οὕτω καὶ τοῖς πράγμασι παυσόμεθα μεμφόμενοι καὶ δυσχεραίνοντες, ἂν ἑτέρους ταὐτὰ προσδεχομένους ἀλύπως καὶ ἱλαρῶς ὁρῶμεν.
For just as in a fever everything appears bitter and unpleasant to those who taste it, but when we see others taking the very same things and not being displeased, we no longer blame the food or the drink, but ourselves and the disease; so also we shall cease blaming and being displeased with affairs, if we see others receiving the very same things without pain and cheerfully.
ἀγαθὸν τοίνυν ἐν τοῖς ἀβουλήτοις συμπτώμασι πρὸς εὐθυμίαν καὶ τὸ μὴ παρορᾶν ὅσα προσφιλῆ καὶ ἀστεῖα πάρεστιν ἡμῖν, ἀλλὰ μιγνύντας ἐξαμαυροῦν τὰ χείρονα τοῖς βελτίοσι.
It is good, therefore, in the midst of unwanted events, for the sake of cheerfulness, not to overlook all the pleasant and agreeable things we have, but by mixing them, to obscure the worse with the better.
νῦν δὲ τὰς μὲν ὄψεις ὑπὸ τῶν ἄγαν λαμπρῶν τιτρωσκομένας ἀποστρέφοντες, ταῖς ἀνθηραῖς καὶ ποώδεσι χρόαις παρηγοροῦμεν τὴν δὲ διάνοιαν ἐντείνομεν εἰς τὰ λυπηρὰ καὶ προσβιαζόμεθα τοῖς τῶν ἀνιαρῶν ἐνδιατρίβειν ἀναλογισμοῖς, μονονοὺ βίᾳ τῶν βελτιόνων ἀποσπάσαντες.
But as it is, while we turn away our eyes when they are hurt by excessively bright lights, and soothe them with flowery and grassy colors, we stretch our intellect toward painful things and force it to dwell on the recollections of distressing matters, having torn it away from better things almost by force.
καίτοι τό γε πρὸς τὸν πολυπράγμονα λελεγμένον οὐκ ἀηδῶς δεῦρʼ ἔστι μετενεγκεῖν
"
τί τἀλλότριον, ἄνθρωπε βασκανώτατε,
κακὸν ὀξυδορκεῖς, τὸ δʼ ἴδιον παραβλέπεις; "
τί τὸ σεαυτοῦ κακόν, ὦ μακάριε, λίαν καταβλέπεις καὶ ποιεῖς ἐναργὲς ἀεὶ καὶ πρόσφατον ἀγαθοῖς δὲ παροῦσιν οὐ προσάγεις τὴν διάνοιαν, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ αἱ σικύαι τὸ χείριστον ἐκ τῆς σαρκὸς ἕλκουσιν, οὕτω τὰ κάκιστα τῶν ἰδίων συνάγεις ἐπὶ σαυτόν, οὐδὲν τι τοῦ Χίου βελτίων γενόμενος ὃς πολὺν καὶ χρηστὸν οἶνον ἑτέροις πιπράσκων ἑαυτῷ πρὸς τὸ ἄριστον ὀξίνην ἐζήτει διαγευόμενος, οἰκέτης δέ τις ἐρωτηθεὶς ὑφʼ ἑτέρου τί ποιοῦντα τὸν δεσπότην καταλέλοιπεν
ἀγαθῶν
ἔφη
παρόντων, κακὸν ζητοῦντα; καὶ γὰρ οἱ πολλοὶ τὰ χρηστὰ καὶ πότιμα τῶν ἰδίων ὑπερβαίνοντες ἐπὶ τὰ μοχθηρὰ καὶ δυσχερῆ τρέχουσιν.
And yet, what was said to the busybody can be applied here not unpleasantly: "Why, most envious man, do you look so sharply at others' evil, but overlook your own?" "Why, my good friend, do you look so closely at your own evil and make it always vivid and fresh, but do not direct your intellect to the good things present? Instead, just as cupping-glasses draw the worst out of the flesh, so you gather the worst of your own affairs upon yourself, being in no way better than that Chian, who, while selling a lot of good wine to others, sought sour wine for himself at dinner, tasting it; and a certain servant, when asked by another in what state he had left his master, said, "Seeking evil when good things are present." For indeed the majority of people, passing over the useful and pleasant things among their own, run toward the bad and difficult ones.
ὁ δʼ Ἀρίστιππος οὐ τοιοῦτος, ἀλλʼ ἀγαθὸς ὥσπερ ἐπὶ ζυγοῦ πρὸς τὰ βελτίονα τῶν ὑποκειμένων ἐξαναφέρειν καὶ ἀνακουφίζειν αὑτόν· χωρίον γοῦν ἀπολέσας καλὸν ἠρώτησεν ἕνα τῶν πάνυ προσποιουμένων συνάχθεσθαι καὶ συναγανακτεῖν
οὐχὶ σοὶ μὲν χωρίδιον ἓν ἔστιν, ἐμοὶ δὲ τρεῖς ἀγροὶ καταλείπονται; συνομολογήσαντος δʼ ἐκείνου,
τί οὖν
εἶπεν
οὐ σοὶ μᾶλλον ἡμεῖς συναχθόμεθα
μανικὸν γάρ ἐστι τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις ἀνιᾶσθαι μὴ χαίρειν δὲ τοῖς σῳζομένοις, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ τὰ μικρὰ παιδάρια, ἀπὸ πολλῶν παιγνίων ἂν ἕν τις ἀφέληταί τι, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πάντα προσρίψαντα κλαίει καὶ βοᾷ, τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ἡμᾶς περὶ ἓν ὀχληθέντας ὑπὸ τῆς τύχης, καὶ τἄλλα πάντα ποιεῖν ἀνόνητα ἑαυτοῖς ὀδυρομένους καὶ δυσφοροῦντας.
But Aristippus was not like that, but was good at raising and lightening himself, as if on a balance, toward the better of the underlying circumstances; at any rate, when he lost a fine piece of land, he asked one of those who pretended so much to grieve and be indignant with him: "Is it not true that you have only one small field, while three estates are left to me?" And when that man agreed, he said, "Why then do we not rather grieve for you?" For it is mad to be distressed over what is lost and not to rejoice in what is saved; but just like little children, who, if someone takes away one of their many toys, throw away all the rest as well and weep and cry, in the same way, when we are disturbed by fortune in one single thing, we lament and are vexed, making all other things as well useless to ourselves.
§9καὶ τί
, φήσαι τις ἄν,
ἔχομεν; τί δʼ οὐκ ἔχομεν;
"And what," someone might say, "do we have?" Nay, what do we not have?
ὁ μὲν δόξαν ὁ δʼ οἶκον ὁ δὲ γάμον τῷ δὲ φίλος ἀγαθός ἐστιν.
One has reputation, another a house, another marriage, and to another there is a good friend.
Ἀντίπατρος δʼ ὁ Ταρσεὺς πρὸς τῷ τελευτᾶν ἀναλογιζόμενος ὧν ἔτυχεν ἀγαθῶν, οὐδὲ τὴν εὔπλοιαν παρέλιπε τὴν ἐκ Κιλικίας αὐτῷ γενομένην εἰς Ἀθήνας.
And Antipater of Tarsus, when near his death, reflecting on the good things he had enjoyed, did not even omit the fair voyage he had made from Cilicia to Athens.
δεῖ δὲ καὶ τὰ κοινὰ μὴ παρορᾶν ἀλλʼ ἔν τινι λόγῳ τίθεσθαι καὶ χαίρειν, ὅτι ζῶμεν ὑγιαίνομεν τὸν ἣλιον ὁρῶμεν· οὔτε πόλεμος οὔτε στάσις ἐστίν· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡ γῆ παρέχει γεωργεῖν καὶ θάλασσα πλεῖν ἀδεῶς τοῖς βουλομένοις· καὶ λέγειν ἔξεστι καὶ πράττειν καὶ σιωπᾶν καὶ σχολάζειν.
And we must not overlook common things either, but take them into account and rejoice that we live, we are healthy, we see the sun; there is neither war nor civil strife; but even the land provides farming and the sea sailing without fear to those who wish; and it is possible to speak and to act and to keep silent and to be at leisure.
εὐθυμήσομεν δὲ τούτοις μᾶλλον παροῦσιν, ἂν μὴ παρόντων αὐτῶν φαντασίαν λαμβάνωμεν ἀναμιμνήσκοντες αὑτοὺς πολλάκις, ὡς ποθεινόν ἐστιν ὑγεία νοσοῦσι καὶ πολεμουμένοις εἰρήνη, καὶ κτήσασθαι δόξαν ἐν πόλει τηλικαύτῃ καὶ φίλους ἀγνῶτι καὶ ξένῳ· καὶ; τὸ στέρεσθαι γενομένων ὡς ἀνιαρόν.
And we shall rejoice more in these when they are present, if we form an image of them as not being present, reminding ourselves often how desirable health is to the sick, and peace to those at war, and to acquire reputation in so great a city and friends to an unknown stranger; and how painful it is to be deprived of them after they have been acquired.
οὐ γὰρ τότε γίγνεται μέγα καὶ τίμιον ἕκαστον ἡμῖν, ὅταν ἀπόληται, σῳζόμενον δὲ τὸ μηδέν ἐστιν· οὐδενὶ γὰρ ἀξίαν τὸ μὴ εἶναι προστίθησιν.
For each thing does not then become great and valuable to us when it is lost, while being saved it is nothing; for non-existence does not add value to anything.
οὐδὲ δεῖ κτᾶσθαι μὲν ὡς μεγάλα καὶ τρέμειν ἀεὶ δεδιότας ὡς ὑπὲρ μεγάλων μὴ στερηθῶμεν, ἔχοντας δὲ παρορᾶν καὶ καταφρονεῖν ὡς μηδενὸς ἀξίων ἀλλὰ χρῆσθαι μάλιστα ἐπὶ τῷ χαίρειν καὶ, ἀπολαύειν αὐτῶν, ἵνα καὶ τὰς ἀποβολάς, ἂν συντυγχάνωσι, πραότερον φέρωμεν.
Nor is it right to acquire things as if they were great, and to tremble, always fearing lest we be deprived of them as of great things, and yet, when we possess them, to overlook and despise them as if they were worth nothing; but we should use them especially for rejoicing and enjoying them, so that we may bear their loss, if it happens, more mildly.
οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ ποιήματα μέν, ὡς ἔλεγεν Ἀρκεσίλαος, ἀλλότρια καὶ γραφὰς καὶ ἀνδριάντας οἴονται δεῖν ἀκριβῶς καὶ κατά μέρος ἕκαστον ἐπιπορευόμενοι τῇ διανοίᾳ καὶ τῇ ὄψει θεωρεῖν, τὸν δʼ ἑαυτῶν βίον ἔχοντα πολλὰς οὐκ ἀτερπεῖς ἀναθεωρήσεις ἐῶσιν, ἔξω βλέποντες ἀεὶ καὶ θαυμάζοντες ἀλλοτρίας δόξας καὶ τύχας, ὥσπερ μοιχοὶ τὰς ἑτέρων γυναῖκας αὑτῶν δὲ καὶ τῶν ἰδίων καταφρονοῦντες.
But the majority of people, as Arcesilaus used to say, think they ought to examine others' poems, paintings, and statues accurately, going over each part with their intellect and sight, yet they neglect their own life, which has many not unpleasant retrospections, looking always outward and admiring others' reputations and fortunes, just as adulterers admire others' wives while despising their own and their own affairs.