Stoicism - College of Stoic Philosophers

2o8STOICISM.are all things : to thee all things return. The poetsays, ' Dear city of Cecrops,' and wilt thou notsay, 'Dear city of Zeus? 'i "' The earth loves theshower,' and 'the solemn tether loves;' and theuniverse loves to make whatever is about to be. Isay then to the universe, that I love as thou lovest.And is not this too said that this or that lovesto be produced? "2 The same may be said also ofthe striking passage in which he dwells on the richvariety of natural beauty with a delicacy and refinementwhich Stoicism hitherto had done little toencourage " Even the : things which follow afterthe things which are produced according to naturecontain something pleasing and attractiveFigs, when they are quite ripe, gape open ;and in theripe olives the very circumstance of their being nearto rottenness adds a peculiar beauty to the fruit.And the ears of corn bending down, and the lion'seyebrows, and the foam which flows from the mouthof wild boars, and many other things .... help toadorn them, and they please the mind ;so that if aman should have a feeling and deeper insight withrespect to the things which are produced in theuniverse, there ishardly one of those which followby way of consequence which will not seem to himto be in a manner disposed so as to give pleasure.And so he will see even the real gaping jaws of wildbeasts with no less pleasure than those which paintersand sculptors show by imitation, and in an old womanand an old man he willbe able to see a certain ma-' " Thoughts," iv. 23.2 " Thoughts," x. 21.