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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 fact these events make perfect sense when our perspective is zoomed out, even just
slightly.
Let’s practice this perspective today. Pretend that each event—whether desired or unexpected—was
willed to happen, willed specifically for you. You wouldn’t fight that, would you?