Stoicism - College of Stoic Philosophers

EPICTETUS, OR STOICISM IN THE COTTAGE. 185do or to suffer anything that is necessary.Is this oathUke the soldier's oath ? The soldiers swear not toprefer any man to Coesar in this oath men swear to;honour themselves before all." ^But he insists even more emphatically on theresignationwhich should spring from the abiding sense ofkinship with the "Deity. Dare to look up to Godand say, Deal with me for the future as thou wilt; I amof the same mind as thou art ;I am thine : I refusenothing that pleases thee : lead me where thou wilt :clothe me in any dress thou choosest is it thy will that:I should hold the office of a magistrate, that I shouldbe in the condition of a private man, stay here oran exile, be poor, be rich ? I will make thy defenceto men in behalf of allthese conditions."— Again: "You see that Caesar appearswith great peace, that there are no longer enemies norbeto furnish usbattles, nor great associations of robbers nor of pirates,but we can travel at every hour, and sail from east towest. But can Csesar give us security from fever, also,from shipwreck, from fire, from earthquake, or fromlightning ? Can he from love, from sorrow, from envy ?He cannot. But the doctrine of philosophers promisesto give us peace even against these things. And whatdoes it say ? Men, if you will attend to me, whereveryou are, whatever you are doing, youwill not feelsorrow nor anger, nor compulsion nor hindrance, butyou will pass your lime without perturbations and freefrom everything. When man has this peace, not pro-'Diss. i. 14.= Ibid. ii. 16.