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Read/Book VI/6.33
MED. 6.33Discipline of desire
George Long · 1862EN · Long

Neither the labour which the hand does nor that of the foot is contrary to TERMnature, so long as the foot does the foot's work and the hand the hand's. So then neither to a man as a man is his labour contrary to nature, so long as it does the things of a man. But if the labour is not contrary to his nature, neither is it an TERMevil to him.

Original · ancient Greek

Οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ πόνος τῇ χειρὶ οὐδὲ τῷ ποδὶ παρὰ φύσιν, μέχρις ἂν ποιῇ ὁ ποῦς τὰ τοῦ ποδὸς καὶ ἡ χεὶρ τὰ τῆς χειρός. οὕτως οὗν οὐδὲ ἀνθρώπῳ ὡς ἀνθρώπῳ παρὰ φύσιν ἐστὶν ὁ πόνος, μέχρις ἂν ποιῇ τὰ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου. εἰ δὲ παρὰ φύσιν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν, οὐδὲ κακόν ἐστιν αὐτῷ.

Leopold · Teubner 1908
Commentary

The argument from function. A short syllogism about toil (πόνος — "hardship, effort, pain"). Premise: for an organ, toil is not against nature so long as the organ does its own work — the foot walks, the hand grasps. Effort is the very carrying-out of the function, not a violence done to it. The governing discipline is desire (how to regard hardships); the sustaining one is action (to do "what belongs to a human").

Transfer to the human being. By analogy: for a human as human, toil is not against TERMnature so long as he does τὰ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου — "the things of a human" (the rational, social, just). Labour rooted in one's own function is not a distortion of nature but its working.

Conclusion: not an evil. The final step is ethical: "if not against nature, then not an TERMevil" (κακόν). Here the Stoic axiom operates: evil is only what is contrary to the nature of a rational being — that is, vice; whereas hardship, being κατὰ φύσιν, falls into the class of the indifferent — hard, but not bad. Thus the complaint about the "weight" of duty is dissolved: the fatigue of right action does not belong to evil.

Parallels. DOGMALiving according to nature as the criterion; Med. 8.46 (what is according to nature is bearable); Med. 10.33 (to do what is "according to the constitution of man"); 06-02 (cold, heat — no obstacle to "doing what is fitting"). Cf. the image of the organ doing its own work in 02-01 (but there — of social cooperation; here — of function and toil).

DisciplineDiscipline of desire
Record added2026-07-18
Statuspublished
Read·Book VI
Discipline of desire

George Long · 1862· EN · Long

Neither the labour which the hand does nor that of the foot is contrary to TERMnature, so long as the foot does the foot's work and the hand the hand's. So then neither to a man as a man is his labour contrary to nature, so long as it does the things of a man. But if the labour is not contrary to his nature, neither is it an TERMevil to him.

Original · ancient Greek

Οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ πόνος τῇ χειρὶ οὐδὲ τῷ ποδὶ παρὰ φύσιν, μέχρις ἂν ποιῇ ὁ ποῦς τὰ τοῦ ποδὸς καὶ ἡ χεὶρ τὰ τῆς χειρός. οὕτως οὗν οὐδὲ ἀνθρώπῳ ὡς ἀνθρώπῳ παρὰ φύσιν ἐστὶν ὁ πόνος, μέχρις ἂν ποιῇ τὰ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου. εἰ δὲ παρὰ φύσιν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν, οὐδὲ κακόν ἐστιν αὐτῷ.

Leopold · Teubner 1908
Related3
TERMφύσιςnatureTERMκακόνevil, the badDOGMATo live according to nature — the Stoic *telos*-formula
Commentary

The argument from function. A short syllogism about toil (πόνος — "hardship, effort, pain"). Premise: for an organ, toil is not against nature so long as the organ does its own work — the foot walks, the hand grasps. Effort is the very carrying-out of the function, not a violence done to it. The governing discipline is desire (how to regard hardships); the sustaining one is action (to do "what belongs to a human").

Transfer to the human being. By analogy: for a human as human, toil is not against TERMnature so long as he does τὰ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου — "the things of a human" (the rational, social, just). Labour rooted in one's own function is not a distortion of nature but its working.

Conclusion: not an evil. The final step is ethical: "if not against nature, then not an TERMevil" (κακόν). Here the Stoic axiom operates: evil is only what is contrary to the nature of a rational being — that is, vice; whereas hardship, being κατὰ φύσιν, falls into the class of the indifferent — hard, but not bad. Thus the complaint about the "weight" of duty is dissolved: the fatigue of right action does not belong to evil.

Parallels. DOGMALiving according to nature as the criterion; Med. 8.46 (what is according to nature is bearable); Med. 10.33 (to do what is "according to the constitution of man"); 06-02 (cold, heat — no obstacle to "doing what is fitting"). Cf. the image of the organ doing its own work in 02-01 (but there — of social cooperation; here — of function and toil).

DisciplineDiscipline of desire
Record added2026-07-18
Statuspublished