T

November 19th

MAXIMS FROM THREE WISE MEN

“For any challenge we should hold three thoughts at our

command:

‘Lead on God and Destiny,

To that Goal fixed for me long ago.

I will follow and not stumble; even if my will

is weak I will soldier on.’”

—CLEANTHES

“Whoever embraces necessity count as wise,

skilled in divine matters.”

—EURIPIDES

“If it pleases the gods, so be it. They may well kill me, but they

can’t hurt me.”

—PLATO’S CRITO AND APOLOGY

—EPICTETUS, ENCHIRIDION, 53

hese three quotes compiled by Epictetus show us—in wisdom across
history—the themes of tolerance, flexibility, and, ultimately,
acceptance. Cleanthes and Euripides evoke destiny and fate as concepts that
help ease acceptance. When one has a belief in a greater or higher power
(be it God or gods), then there is no such thing as an event going contrary to
plan.
Even if you don’t believe in a deity, you can take some comfort in the
various laws of the universe or even the circle of life. What happens to us as
individuals can seem random or upsetting or cruel or inexplicable, when in