being done. And for this reason one must steer his own ship, not belying the art of piloting nor fearing the storms, and expecting everything that will turn out oppositely. For we are still flesh, and nothing good dwells in us. Therefore, the physician must be called for the treatment; for one who is so disposed will be healed and will flee the disease. But one must be careful neither to appear unlearned in discourse nor to misuse a feeble mouth; for the one shows sluggishness or faithlessness, while the other shows a pursuit of what is esteemed according to the world. And one must use foods not for enjoyment, but for the sake of wishing to live for something useful. And if ever we are overcome by want, let us be content with poverty. And if you wish to hear concisely the form of freedom from pain, be content in all things; and neither when you are rich will you fall because of boasting, nor when living in want will you be tripped up by grief, your thought always appearing single-minded according to the virtuous reason. Furthermore, one must consider the whole world as foreign, and not one's own beyond faith. Therefore, one must seek neither earthly friendship nor yet luxury which is deemed blessed by the foolish in the size of a city or in the abundance of provisions, which one must not even desire. For we are not of this age, unless we wish to be kinsmen of this world. To speak concisely, let him who wishes to live well neither see many things nor make a practice of hearing, nor, if he hears or observes, let him think that he sees or hears; for the form of tranquility takes its beginning from this. But he who is busy with many things wrongs himself, and furthermore makes his neighbor sin unwillingly because of contention with him. Therefore, one must often consider the matter at hand, and only then with difficulty separate from it the one who has been able to escape the disease neither by cauteries nor by scalpels. And one must discuss nothing worldly, but that which equips us for virtue; for if this does not happen, it produces much jesting for us, and the contentious person takes his occasion from this. At any rate, we already know of some who, by the dogma of their own choice, as far as it is in their power, make the day night, and through a hardened imagination strangely distrust the accomplishments of some, being vexed at these, and as soon as they hear something evil, believing the slanderer more. For why should I speak about those who, because of a bad conscience, draw to themselves the conversations of their neighbors, and, should someone say something else about anyone whatsoever, think that what is said is directed at themselves, inventing from these, as is likely, a drama and a scene, for whom it is enough to speak and write according to suspicion? And I would laugh also at those who in secret with one of their neighbors compose chapters of speeches and conversations leading to nothing useful, but equipping for battles and wars through whispers, treading the stage up and down.

πραττόμενον. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οἰακιστέον τὴν ἑαυτοῦ νῆα, μὴ καταψευδόμενον τῆς κυβερνητικῆς μηδὲ δεδιότα τοὺς χειμῶ νας, καὶ πᾶν τὸ ἐξ ἐναντίας ἀποβησόμενον προσδοκῶντα. Σάρκες γὰρ ἀκμήν ἐσμεν, καὶ οὐδὲν ἡμῖν ἀγαθὸν ἐνοικεῖ. Παρακλητέον οὖν τὸν ἰατρὸν πρὸς τὴν θεραπείαν· ὁ γὰρ οὕτω διακείμενος ἰαθήσεται καὶ τὴν νόσον φεύξεται. Σπουδαστέον δὲ μήτε ἰδιώτην περὶ τὸν λόγον φαίνεσθαι μήτε ἀνεῤῥω γότι τῷ στόματι καταχρῆσθαι· τὸ μὲν γὰρ ὀκνηρὸν ἢ ἄπι στον, τὸ δὲ θηρατικὸν τοῦ κατὰ τὸν κόσμον σπουδαίου δείκνυσιν. Τροφαῖς δὲ χρηστέον οὐ διὰ τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ βούλεσθαι ζῆν ἐπί τι χρήσιμον. Ἐὰν δέ ποτε καὶ ὑπὸ ἐνδείας καταληφθῶμεν, πρὸς τὴν πενίαν εὐαρεστῶμεν. Καὶ εἰ θέλετε ἀκοῦσαι τῆς ἀλυπίας κατὰ συντομίαν τὸ εἶδος, ἐν πᾶσιν εὐάρεστοι γίνεσθε· καὶ οὔτε πλουτήσαντες διὰ τὴν μεγαλαυχίαν καταπεσεῖσθε οὔτε ἐν ἐνδείᾳ διάγοντες ὑπὸ τῆς λύπης πτερνισθήσεσθε, τῆς ἐννοίας ὑμῶν ἀεὶ κατὰ τὸν ἐνά ρετον λόγον μονοπροσώπου φαινομένης. Ἔτι δὲ ὑποληπτέον πάντα τὸν κόσμον ἀλλότριον, καὶ μὴ ἴδιον πλέον πίστεως. Oὔτε οὖν φιλίαν ἐπίγειον ζητητέον οὔτε αὖ πολυτέλειαν ὑπὸ ἀνοήτων μακαριζομένην ἐν μεγέθει πόλεως ἢ δαψιλείᾳ τῶν ἐπιτηδείων, ὧν οὐδ' ἐπιθυμητέον. Oὐ γάρ ἐσμεν ἐκ τούτου τοῦ αἰῶνος, χωρὶς εἰ μὴ συγγενεῖς εἶναι τούτου τοῦ κόσμου βουλόμεθα. Συνελόντι δ' εἰπεῖν, ὁ θέλων εὖ διάγειν μήτε ὁράτω πολλὰ μήτε ἀκούειν ἐπιτηδευέτω μήτ', ἂν ἀκούῃ ἢ θεωρῇ, βλέπειν ἢ ἀκούειν νομιζέτω· τὸ γὰρ τῆς ἀταραξίας εἶδος ἐντεῦθεν λαμβάνει τὴν ἀρχήν. Ὁ δὲ πολλὰ πραγμα τευόμενος ἑαυτὸν ἀδικεῖ, καὶ τὸν πλησίον ἔτι καὶ ἀκουσίως ἁμαρτάνειν διὰ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν φιλονεικίαν ποιεῖ. Πολ λάκις οὖν διασκεπτέον τὸ ὑποπεπτωκὸς πρᾶγμα, καὶ τότε μόλις χωριστέον ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τὸν μήτε καυστῆρσι μήτε σμιλίοις τὴν νόσον φυγεῖν δεδυνημένον. Ὁμιλητέον δὲ κοσμικὸν οὐδέν, ἀλλὰ τὸ καταρτίζον ἡμᾶς πρὸς τὴν ἀρετήν· τοῦτο γὰρ ἢν μὴ γίνηται, πολλὴν ἡμῖν τὴν εὐτραπελίαν ἐργάζεται, καὶ ὁ φιλόνεικος ἐντεῦθεν λαμβάνει τὴν ἀφορμήν. Ἤδη γοῦν τινας ἴσμεν δόγματι τῆς ἑαυτῶν προαιρέ σεως, τὸ ὅσον ἐφ' ἑαυτοῖς, τὴν ἡμέραν νύκτα ποιοῦντας, καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐσκιῤῥωμένην φαντασίαν ἀλλόκοτον ἀπιστοῦντας τοῖς ἐνίων κατορθώμασιν, ἀχθομένους δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις, καὶ ἅμα τῷ πονηρόν τι ἀκοῦσαι τῷ καταψευδομένῳ μᾶλλον πιστεύοντας. Τί γάρ μοι λέγειν περὶ τῶν διὰ τὸ δυσσυνείδητον τὰς ἀπὸ τῶν πλησίον ὁμιλίας εἰς ἑαυτοὺς ἑλκόντων καί, ἵνα ἄλλο τις φθέγξηται περὶ οὑτινοσοῦν, οἰομένων πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς τείνειν τὸ λεγόμενον, ἀναπλαττόντων κατὰ τὸ εἰκὸς ἐκ τούτων δρᾶμα καὶ σκηνήν, οἷς ἀπόχρη τὸ καθ' ὑπόνοιαν λέγειν καὶ γράφειν; Γελάσαιμι δ' ἂν καὶ τοὺς ἐν παραβύστῳ μετά τινος τῶν πλη σίον συντάττοντας λόγων κεφάλαια καὶ ὁμιλίας πρὸς μηδὲν εὔθετον ἀνηκούσας, μάχας δὲ διὰ τῶν ψιθυρισμῶν καὶ πο λέμους ἐξαρτιζούσας, ἄνω τε καὶ κάτω σκηνοβατοῦντας.