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MED. 4.26Discipline of desire
George Long · 1862EN · Long

Hast thou seen those things? Look also at these. Do not disturb thyself. Make thyself all simplicity. Does any one TERMdo wrong? DOGMAIt is to himself that he does the wrong. Has anything happened to thee? DOGMAWell; TERMout of the universe from the beginning everything which happens has been apportioned and spun out to thee. In a word, thy life is short. Thou must turn to profit TERMthe present by the aid of reason and justice. Be sober in thy relaxation.

Original · ancient Greek

Ἑώρακας ἐκεῖνα, ἴδε καὶ ταῦτα. σεαυτὸν μὴ τάρασσε· ἅπλωσον σεαυτόν. ἁμαρτάνει τις; ἑαυτῷ ἁμαρτάνει. συμβέβηκέ σοί τι; καλῶς· ἐκ τῶν ὅλων ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς σοι συγκαθείμαρτο καὶ συνεκλώθετο πᾶν τὸ συμβαῖνον. τὸ δ’ ὅλον, βραχὺς ὁ βίος· κερδαντέον τὸ παρὸν σὺν εὐλογιστίᾳ καὶ δίκῃ. νῆφε ἀνειμένως.

Leopold · Teubner 1908
Commentary

Genre and place in the book. A cluster of compressed maxims (like 04-22) — a quick run across the disciplines. "You have seen those; look at these too": a turn to a new set of rules.

Be simple; do not over-complicate. σεαυτὸν μὴ τάρασσε· ἅπλωσον σεαυτόν — do not disturb yourself, make yourself simple. Disturbance is born of complication; simplicity (ἁπλότης) is peace.

The wrongdoer wrongs himself. ἁμαρτάνει τις; ἑαυτῷ TERMἁμαρτάνει — another's TERMfault falls on the doer himself (it spoils his own ruling part), not on you. The verbatim twin is Med. 9.4: "He who does wrong does wrong against himself." This is the obverse of DOGMAinvulnerability: the harm stays with the guilty and does not reach you.

All spun for you from the Whole. συμβέβηκέ τι; καλῶς — "has it happened? good," for everything was "co-fated and spun" (συγκαθείμαρτο, συνεκλώθετο — the TERMεἱμαρ- root plus the Fates' spinning) for you from the Whole from the beginning. Acceptance of fate (DOGMAamor-fati; cf. Med. 3.4 — τὰ ἑαυτῷ ἐκ τῶν ὅλων συγκλωθόμενα, literally "what is spun for him out of the whole").

Life is short — seize the present. βραχὺς ὁ βίος → κερδαντέον TERMτὸ παρόν σὺν εὐλογιστίᾳ καὶ δίκῃ: from brevity follows the "profit" of the present, taken with sound reasoning (εὐλογιστία) and justice (δίκη). The memory of brevity + the use of the present (EXERCISEmeditatio-mortis + EXERCISEprosokhe; cf. 04-17).

Sober, yet not tense. νῆφε ἀνειμένως — an oxymoron of measure: stay awake (νῆφε, "be sober"), but without strain (ἀνειμένως, "in a slackened way"). Neither distraction nor rigidity.

The disciplines. The principal one is desire: equanimity, acceptance of fate, measure. The secondary is action: to turn the present to profit with reason and justice.

Parallels. The wrongdoer harms himself — Med. 9.4; 04-08 (cf. DOGMAno-harm-to-virtuous). All spun by fate — Med. 3.4; 5.8; 10.5 (cf. TERMheimarmene, DOGMAamor-fati). Life is short, seize the present — 04-17; 03-10 (cf. TERMparon, EXERCISEmeditatio-mortis). Sobriety without strain — the measure of an active life.

DisciplineDiscipline of desire
Record added2026-06-26
Statuspublished
Read·Book IV
Discipline of desire

Original · ancient Greek

Ἑώρακας ἐκεῖνα, ἴδε καὶ ταῦτα. σεαυτὸν μὴ τάρασσε· ἅπλωσον σεαυτόν. ἁμαρτάνει τις; ἑαυτῷ ἁμαρτάνει. συμβέβηκέ σοί τι; καλῶς· ἐκ τῶν ὅλων ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς σοι συγκαθείμαρτο καὶ συνεκλώθετο πᾶν τὸ συμβαῖνον. τὸ δ’ ὅλον, βραχὺς ὁ βίος· κερδαντέον τὸ παρὸν σὺν εὐλογιστίᾳ καὶ δίκῃ. νῆφε ἀνειμένως.

Leopold · Teubner 1908
Related7
TERMἁμαρτία (счётная форма ἁμάρτημα, глагол ἁμαρτάνω)error, fault, missing the markTERMεἱμαρμένη (глагол εἵμαρται; συγκαθείμαρτο, «со-суждено», у Марка)fate, the destinedTERMτὸ παρόνthe present, the present moment, the nowDOGMAAmor fati — accepting what happens as a rational orderDOGMANo harm can come to the virtuousEXERCISEProsochē — attention to the present actionEXERCISEMeditatio mortis — living under the sign of "as one already dying"
Commentary

Genre and place in the book. A cluster of compressed maxims (like 04-22) — a quick run across the disciplines. "You have seen those; look at these too": a turn to a new set of rules.

Be simple; do not over-complicate. σεαυτὸν μὴ τάρασσε· ἅπλωσον σεαυτόν — do not disturb yourself, make yourself simple. Disturbance is born of complication; simplicity (ἁπλότης) is peace.

The wrongdoer wrongs himself. ἁμαρτάνει τις; ἑαυτῷ TERMἁμαρτάνει — another's TERMfault falls on the doer himself (it spoils his own ruling part), not on you. The verbatim twin is Med. 9.4: "He who does wrong does wrong against himself." This is the obverse of DOGMAinvulnerability: the harm stays with the guilty and does not reach you.

All spun for you from the Whole. συμβέβηκέ τι; καλῶς — "has it happened? good," for everything was "co-fated and spun" (συγκαθείμαρτο, συνεκλώθετο — the TERMεἱμαρ- root plus the Fates' spinning) for you from the Whole from the beginning. Acceptance of fate (DOGMAamor-fati; cf. Med. 3.4 — τὰ ἑαυτῷ ἐκ τῶν ὅλων συγκλωθόμενα, literally "what is spun for him out of the whole").

Life is short — seize the present. βραχὺς ὁ βίος → κερδαντέον TERMτὸ παρόν σὺν εὐλογιστίᾳ καὶ δίκῃ: from brevity follows the "profit" of the present, taken with sound reasoning (εὐλογιστία) and justice (δίκη). The memory of brevity + the use of the present (EXERCISEmeditatio-mortis + EXERCISEprosokhe; cf. 04-17).

Sober, yet not tense. νῆφε ἀνειμένως — an oxymoron of measure: stay awake (νῆφε, "be sober"), but without strain (ἀνειμένως, "in a slackened way"). Neither distraction nor rigidity.

The disciplines. The principal one is desire: equanimity, acceptance of fate, measure. The secondary is action: to turn the present to profit with reason and justice.

Parallels. The wrongdoer harms himself — Med. 9.4; 04-08 (cf. DOGMAno-harm-to-virtuous). All spun by fate — Med. 3.4; 5.8; 10.5 (cf. TERMheimarmene, DOGMAamor-fati). Life is short, seize the present — 04-17; 03-10 (cf. TERMparon, EXERCISEmeditatio-mortis). Sobriety without strain — the measure of an active life.

DisciplineDiscipline of desire
Record added2026-06-26
Statuspublished