Kidding Ourselves to Starve our minds

April 9, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Seneca, Moral Epistles 61

“Those who want how busy they are to be an obstacle to their study of the liberal arts are kidding themselves. They imagine and exaggerate their obligations to keep themselves booked up. I have free time and I have it wherever I am because I am my own. I don’t surrender myself to business, but I merely lend myself to it and I don’t hunt reasons to waste time. And wherever I find myself, I work on my ideas and try to mull over something good for the mind.

When I spend time with my friends I don’t withdraw from myself nor do I delay with those whom some occasion or official state affair have brought to me. No, I spend my time with the best crowd–I send my mind to them wherever they are, in whatever generation they were born. I carry Demetrius, that best of men, with me. I leave behind those men draped in purple and chat with that guy, half-clothed. I admire him.

Why shouldn’t I? I think that he lacks nothing. Anyone can look down on everything but no one can possess everything. The best shortcut to wealth is by despising it. But our Demetrius lives not just as if he rejects everything, but as if he has surrendered everything for others to own. Goodbye.”

Mentiuntur, qui sibi obstare ad studia liberalia turbam negotiorum videri volunt; simulant occupationes et augent et ipsi se occupant. Vaco, Lucili, vaco et ubicumque sum, ibi meus sum. Rebus enim me non trado, sed commodo, nec consector perdendi temporis causas. Et quocumque constiti loco, ibi cogitationes meas tracto et aliquid in animo salutare converso.

Cum me amicis dedi non tamen mihi abduco, nec cum illis moror, quibus me tempus aliquod congregavit aut causa ex officio nata civili, sed cum optimo quoque sum; ad illos, in quocumque loco, in quocumque saeculo fuerunt, animum meum mitto. Demetrium, virorum optimum, mecum circumfero et relictis conchyliatis cum illo seminudo loquor, illum admiror.

Quidni admirer? Vidi nihil ei deesse. Contemnere aliquis omnia potest, omnia habere nemo potest. Brevissima ad divitias per contemptum divitiarum via est. Demetrius autem noster sic vivit, non tamquam contempserit omnia, sed tamquam aliis habenda permiserit. Vale.

Seeking One Who Explains; Or, The Difference Between Grammar and Philosophy

April 8, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ 1 Comment

Epictetus Encheiridion, 49

“Whenever someone is haughty because he understands and can explain the books of Chrysippus, say to him: “If Chrysippus hadn’t written so obscurely, you’d have nothing to be haughty about.”

But what do I desire? To understand nature and follow it. Therefore, I seek one who explains it. And because I have heard that Chrysippus does this, I go to him. But I do not understand what he has written. Therefore, I seek out someone who explains him. And within these steps there is nothing worthy of pride. Whenever I find the right interpreter, it is still up to me to practice his precepts. This alone is worthy of pride.

But if I am amazed at this act of explanation, have I done anything but transform into a grammarian instead of a philosopher? (Except, I interpret Chryippos instead of Homer.) Hence, whenever anyone says to me “Read me Chrysippus,” I turn red when I am incapable of demonstrating actions equal to and harmonious with his words

Ὅταν τις ἐπὶ τῷ νοεῖν καὶ ἐξηγεῖσθαι δύνασθαι τὰ Χρυσίππου βιβλία σεμνύνηται, λέγε αὐτὸς πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ὅτι “εἰ μὴ Χρύσιππος ἀσαφῶς ἐγεγράφει, οὐδὲν ἂν εἶχεν οὗτος, ἐφ᾿ ᾧ ἐσεμνύνετο.

Ἐγὼ δὲ τί βούλομαι; καταμαθεῖν τὴν φύσιν καὶ ταύτῃ ἕπεσθαι. ζητῶ οὖν, τίς ἐστὶν ὁ ἐξηγούμενος· καὶ ἀκούσας, ὅτι Χρύσιππος, ἔρχομαι πρὸς αὐτόν. ἀλλ᾿ οὐ νοῶ τὰ γεγραμμένα· ζητῶ οὖν τὸν ἐξηγούμενον. καὶ μέχρι τούτων οὔπω σεμνὸν οὐδέν. ὅταν δὲ εὕρω τὸν ἐξηγούμενον, ἀπολείπεται χρῆσθαι τοῖς παρηγγελμένοις· τοῦτο αὐτὸ μόνον σεμνόν ἐστιν. ἂν δὲ αὐτὸ τοῦτο τὸ ἐξηγεῖσθαι θαυμάσω, τί ἄλλο ἢ γραμματικὸς ἀπετελέσθην ἀντὶ φιλοσόφου; πλήν γε δὴ ὅτι ἀντὶ Ὁμήρου Χρύσιππον ἐξηγούμενος. μᾶλλον οὖν, ὅταν τις εἴπῃ μοι “ἐπανάγνωθί μοι Χρύσιππον,” ἐρυθριῶ, ὅταν μὴ δύνωμαι ὅμοια τὰ ἔργα καὶ σύμφωνα ἐπιδεικνύειν τοῖς λόγοις.

BERNARD Emile,1887 – Young Woman in Kimono, reading

Horses to Die For

April 8, 2023April 8, 2023 ~ lawrencebenn ~ Leave a comment

Odysseus and Diomedes have learned that King Rhesus, bivouacking with his Thracian contingent, has with him some especially large and handsome horses. The warriors want them:

Homer. Iliad.10.469-493.

“The two advanced through battle arms and black blood,
and pushing on, quickly reached the Thracian force.
The men, spent, were asleep on the ground. Their war gear,
so fine, lay beside them, neatly arranged
in three rows. Each man’s yoked horses stood by him.
Rhesus slept among his men, hard by his fast horses.
They were tied to the chariot’s upper rim.

Odysseus saw him first and pointed:
‘Diomedes, that’s him! And those are the horses
the guy we killed, Dolon, told us about!
Come on! Unleash your awesome force!
Don’t stand here armored for nothing. Untie the horses.
Better still, you kill the men. I’ll deal with the horses.’

He said this. Bright-eyed Athena then inspired Diomedes
with fury: left and right he killed. Awful moans came
from men struck by his sword. The earth flowed red with blood.

Just as a lion coming upon untended flocks
(whether goats or sheep) bears evil in his pounce,
Tydeus’s son coursed through the Thracian force
until he’d killed twelve.

As for artful Odysseus–
whenever Tydeus’s son struck a man with his sword,
Odysseus would drag him aside by the leg,
thinking: this is how the horses with handsome manes
will pass through with ease, their hearts not trembling
trampling on bodies. They aren’t used to that yet.”

τὼ δὲ βάτην προτέρω διά τʼ ἔντεα καὶ μέλαν αἷμα,
αἶψα δʼ ἐπὶ Θρῃκῶν ἀνδρῶν τέλος ἷξον ἰόντες.
οἳ δʼ εὗδον καμάτῳ ἀδηκότες, ἔντεα δέ σφιν
καλὰ παρʼ αὐτοῖσι χθονὶ κέκλιτο εὖ κατὰ κόσμον
τριστοιχί· παρὰ δέ σφιν ἑκάστῳ δίζυγες ἵπποι.
Ῥῆσος δʼ ἐν μέσῳ εὗδε, παρʼ αὐτῷ δʼ ὠκέες ἵπποι
ἐξ ἐπιδιφριάδος πυμάτης ἱμᾶσι δέδεντο.
τὸν δʼ Ὀδυσεὺς προπάροιθεν ἰδὼν Διομήδεϊ δεῖξεν·
οὗτός τοι Διόμηδες ἀνήρ, οὗτοι δέ τοι ἵπποι,
οὓς νῶϊν πίφαυσκε Δόλων ὃν ἐπέφνομεν ἡμεῖς.
ἀλλʼ ἄγε δὴ πρόφερε κρατερὸν μένος· οὐδέ τί σε χρὴ
ἑστάμεναι μέλεον σὺν τεύχεσιν, ἀλλὰ λύʼ ἵππους·
ἠὲ σύ γʼ ἄνδρας ἔναιρε, μελήσουσιν δʼ ἐμοὶ ἵπποι.
ὣς φάτο, τῷ δʼ ἔμπνευσε μένος γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη,
κτεῖνε δʼ ἐπιστροφάδην· τῶν δὲ στόνος ὄρνυτʼ ἀεικὴς
ἄορι θεινομένων, ἐρυθαίνετο δʼ αἵματι γαῖα.
ὡς δὲ λέων μήλοισιν ἀσημάντοισιν ἐπελθὼν
αἴγεσιν ἢ ὀΐεσσι κακὰ φρονέων ἐνορούσῃ,
ὣς μὲν Θρήϊκας ἄνδρας ἐπῴχετο Τυδέος υἱὸς
ὄφρα δυώδεκʼ ἔπεφνεν· ἀτὰρ πολύμητις Ὀδυσσεὺς
ὅν τινα Τυδεΐδης ἄορι πλήξειε παραστὰς
τὸν δʼ Ὀδυσεὺς μετόπισθε λαβὼν ποδὸς ἐξερύσασκε,
τὰ φρονέων κατὰ θυμὸν ὅπως καλλίτριχες ἵπποι
ῥεῖα διέλθοιεν μηδὲ τρομεοίατο θυμῷ
νεκροῖς ἀμβαίνοντες· ἀήθεσσον γὰρ ἔτʼ αὐτῶν.

black and white photograph of a horse lying on the ground with trees in the background — Alexander Gardner.
Dead Horse of a Confederate Colonel.
1862.

Larry Benn has a B.A. in English Literature from Harvard College, an M.Phil in English Literature from Oxford University, and a J.D. from Yale Law School. Making amends for a working life misspent in finance, he’s now a hobbyist in ancient languages and blogs at featsofgreek.blogspot.com.

Adjusting Your Horizon of Deathpectation

April 8, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Seneca, Moral Epistles 61

“We should stop wanting what we used to. I am surely doing that. As an old man, I stopped wanting those things I did as a boy. My days, my nights, my labor are in this alone, this thought: to bring some end to long-lasting problems. I am acting as if each day is a whole life. By Heracles, I am not “seizing the day as if it is the last”, although I suspect that it is. I am writing this letter with that in mind–as if death might call me even as I write. it. I am ready to leave and I am enjoying life because I am not worrying too much about how long in the future this will be.

Before old age, I was dedicated to living well; now that I am old, it’s about dying well. Dying well is dying freely. Put a lot of effort into never doing something unwillingly. Something that is required should you refuse it is a choice if you want it. I mean this: whoever accepts orders freely avoids the worst part of slavery: doing what you don’t want to. Someone who is ordered to do something is not unhappy, but someone who works unwillingly is miserable.

So, Let us rearrange our thoughts to want whatever a matter asks of us and foremost that we may think about our death without sadness. We should be preparing for death before life. Life is well enough equipped, but we are too greedy for its accommodations. Something seems missing; something always seems missing. Whether we have lived long enough isn’t about years or days but the mind. I have lived long enough, dearest Lucilius. I am awaiting death, full. Goodbye.

Desinamus, quod voluimus, velle. Ego certe id ago: senex ea desii velle quae puer volui. In hoc unum eunt dies, in hoc noctes, hoc opus meum est, haec cogitatio: inponere veteribus malis finem. Id ago, ut mihi instar totius vitae dies sit. Nec mehercules tamquam ultimum rapio, sed sic illum aspicio, tamquam esse vel ultimus possit. Hoc animo tibi hanc epistulam scribo, tamquam me cum maxime scribentem mors evocatura sit. Paratus exire sum et ideo fruar vita, quia quam diu futurum hoc sit, non nimis pendeo.

Ante senectutem curavi, ut bene viverem, in senectute, ut bene moriar; bene autem mori est libenter mori. Da operam, ne quid umquam invitus facias. Quicquid necesse futurum est repugnanti, volenti necessitas non est. Ita dico: qui imperia libens excipit, partem acerbissimam servitutis effugit, facere quod nolit. Non qui iussus aliquid facit, miser est, set qui invitus facit. Itaque sic animum conponamus, ut quicquid res exiget, id velimus et in primis ut finem nostri sine tristitia cogitemus. Ante ad mortem quam ad vitam praeparandi sumus. Satis instructa vita est, sed nos in instrumenta eius avidi sumus; deesse aliquid nobis videtur et semper videbitur. Ut satis vixerimus, nec anni nec dies faciunt, sed animus. Vixi, Lucili carissime, quantum satis erat; mortem plenus exspecto. Vale.

Weird Uses of Weasels

April 7, 2023April 7, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Pliny the Elder, Natural History, 39.16

“There are two kinds of weasels: one is wild and the two differ in size. The Greeks call this one ictis. The gall of both is useful against asps, but poisonous to others. The other weasel, however, wanders in our homes and, as Cicero explains, moves its young on a daily basis and changes its nest, chasing snakes. Its meat, preserved in salt is given in a weight of one denarius and mixed in three cyathi of liquid to those who have been bitten. Otherwise, its stomach is stuffed with coriander and, once dried, drunk with wine. A weasel kitten is even better for this than the weasel itself.”

XVI. Mustelarum duo genera, alterum silvestre; distant magnitudine, Graeci vocant ictidas. harum fel contra aspidas dicitur efficax, cetero venenum. haec autem quae in domibus nostris oberrat et catulos suos, ut auctor est Cicero, cottidie transfert mutatque sedem, serpentes persequitur. ex ea inveterata sale denarii pondus in cyathis tribus datur percussis aut ventriculus coriandro fartus inveteratusque et in vino potus, et catulus mustelae etiam efficacius.

Illustration from “Picture Natural History” – No 8 – The Weasel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weasel

Hungry Hungry Humans

April 7, 2023April 7, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Seneca, Moral Epistle 60

“I make a complaint, I sue, I am enraged. Do you still want what your nurse, your tutor, or your mommy have prayed for you. Don’t you know how much evil they begged? How harmful are the wishes of our loved ones! And the more successful they are, the more hostile they turn out to be. This is why I am not amazed that all these bad things plague us from youth. We’ve grown up among our parents’ curses! May they gods listen to our voice too, since it asks for nothing.

How long will we keep begging the gods as if we can’t take care of ourselves? How long will we fill the markets of our cities with goof. How long will people fill the city? How long will so many vessels carry the supplies for a single meal from many seas? The bull gets full by feeding on just a few acres; a single forest is good enough for many elephants. Yet a human being snacks on earth and sea.

What? Did nature make our gut so insatiable when we got these small bodies that we should outstrip the greed of the largest and hungriest animals? Nope. How little is enough for us naturally? Just a little bit. It is not our bellies’ hunger that costs us so much, but our envy.

So, those who, as Sallust says, “are obedient to their bellies” should be counted among the animals, not people. And some of them shouldn’t be ranked with the animals, but consigned instead to the dead. Whoever makes use of many is alive; whoever makes use of themselves, lives too. But those who hide away and grow overfull live in homes like tombs. We should inscribe their names in marble above their doors, since they’re dead before they died.”

Queror, litigo, irascor. Etiamnunc optas, quod tibi optavit nutrix tua aut paedagogus aut mater? Nondum intellegis, quantum mali optaverint? O quam inimica nobis sunt vota nostrorum! Eo quidem inimiciora quo cessere felicius. Iam non admiror, si omnia nos a prima pueritia mala secuntur; inter execrationes parentum crevimus. Exaudiant di nostram quoque¹ pro nobis vocem gratuitam.

Quousque poscemus aliquid deos ita quasi nondum ipsi alere nos possimus? Quamdiu sationibus inplebimus magnarum urbium campos? Quamdiu nobis populus metet? Quamdiu unius mensae instrumentum multa navigia et quidem non ex uno mari subvehent? Taurus paucissimorum iugerum pascuo impletur; una silva elephantis pluribus sufficit; homo et terra et mari pascitur. Quid ergo? Tam insatiabilem nobis natura alvum dedit, cum tam modica corpora dedisset, ut vastissimorum edacissimorumque animalium aviditatem vinceremus? Minime. Quantulum est enim, quod naturae datur?

Parvo illa dimittitur. Non fames nobis ventris nostri magno constat, sed ambitio. Hos itaque, ut ait Sallustius, “ventri oboedientes” animalium loco numeremus, non hominum, quosdam vero ne animalium quidem, sed mortuorum. Vivit is, qui multis usui est, vivit is, qui se utitur; qui vero latitant et torpent, sic in domo sunt, quomodo in conditivo. Horum licet in limine ipso nomen marmori inscribas, mortem suam antecesserunt. Vale.

Dreams of Food and their Meanings

April 6, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ 1 Comment

Hippocrates, Regiments 4. 93 [On Dreams]

“However many strange bodies appear in dreams and frighten a person signal an excess of uncustomary food, a secretion, bile, and a dangerous sickness. An emetic is required followed by the increase over five days of extremely light food–not too much of it or too sharp, nor too dry or hot, along with the kinds of exercises that are natural except for walking after dinner. This really asks for warm baths and relaxation and you need to guard against the sun and the cold.

Whenever someone imagines they are eating or drinking customary food or drink while sleeping, it means a lack of food and depression in the soul. Really strong meats are a sign of excess; when they are weaker, there’s less. Just as eating is good, so too is dreaming about it! So, in the case of excess, it is useful to reduce the quantity of food, since excessive consumption is indicated. The dreaming of bread made with cheese and honey means the same thing. There’s no sign of harm in dreaming of water. But drinking other things is a bad sign.

When someone dreams about everyday objects, it signals a dream of the soul. A dream of running away in fear shows that the blood is fixed by dryness. It is advantageous then to cool and moisten the body.”

XCIII. Ὁκόσα δὲ ἀλλόμορφα σώματα φαίνεται ἐν τοῖσιν ὕπνοισι καὶ φοβεῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, σιτίων ἀσυνήθων σημαίνει πλησμονὴν καὶ ἀπόκρισιν καὶ χολέραν καὶ νοῦσον κινδυνώδεα· ἀλλὰ χρὴ ἔμετον ποιήσασθαι καὶ προσάγειν ἐς ἡμέρας πέντε σίτοισιν ὡς κουφοτάτοισι, μὴ πολλοῖσι μηδὲ δριμέσι, μήτε τοῖσι ξηροῖσι μήτε τοῖσι θερμοῖσι, καὶ τῶν πόνων τοῖσι κατὰ φύσιν μάλιστα, πλὴν τῶν ἀπὸ δείπνου περιπάτων· χρῆσθαι δὲ καὶ θερμολουσίῃ καὶ ῥᾳθυμίῃσιν· ἥλιον δὲ καὶ ψῦχος φυλασσέσθω. ὁκόταν1 δὲ ἐν τῷ ὕπνῳ ἐσθίειν δοκῇ ἢ πίνειν τῶν συνήθων ποτῶν ἢ σιτίων, ἔνδειαν σημαίνει τροφῆς καὶ ψυχῆς ἀθυμίην·† κρέα δὲ τὰ μὲν ἰσχυρότατα, μεγίστης ὑπερβολῆς, τὰ δὲ ἀσθενέστερα ἧσσον· ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐσθιόμενον ἀγαθόν, οὕτω καὶ ὁρεόμενον· ἀφαιρεῖν οὖν τῶν σιτίων συμφέρει· τροφῆς γὰρ ὑπερβολὴν σημαίνει·†4 καὶ ἄρτοι τυρῷ καὶ μέλιτι πεποιημένοι ὡσαύτως σημαίνουσιν. ὕδωρ πινόμενον καθαρὸν οὐ βλάπτει· τὰ δὲ ἄλλα πάντα βλάπτει. ὁκόσα δὲ δοκεῖ ἄνθρωπος θεωρεῖν τῶν συνήθων, ψυχῆς ἐπιθυμίην σημαίνει. ὅσα δὲ φεύγει πεφοβημένος, ἐπίστασιν τοῦ αἵματος σημαίνει ὑπὸ ξηρασίης· συμφέρει δὲ ψῦξαι καὶ ὑγρῆναι τὸ σῶμα.

The Ol’ Stoic Killjoy

April 6, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Seneca, Moral Epistle 59.1-2

“I got a lot of pleasure from your letter–permit me to use words commonly, without insisting on their Stoic meaning. We believe that pleasure is a vice. It may very well be. Still, we have the habit of using that term for characterizing a joyous feeling in the mind. I know that if we measure words by our dictionary that pleasure is a matter of bad repute and joy is available only to the wise.

Joy is the elation of a mind that relies in its own goodness and truth. Still, when we use it casually, we say we get great joy from a friend’s consulate, or their marriage, or the birth of their child. These things are not really joyous as much as the seeds of future sadness. Nope. Real joy is made to never stop, to never be turned into its opposite.”

Magnam ex epistula tua percepi voluptatem; permitte enim mihi uti verbis publicis nec illa ad significationem Stoicam revoca. Vitium esse voluptatem credimus. Sit sane; ponere tamen illam solemus ad demonstrandam animi hilarem adfectionem. Scio, inquam, et voluptatem, si ad nostrum album verba derigimus, rem infamem esse et gaudium nisi sapienti non contingere. Est enim animi elatio suis bonis verisque fidentis. Vulgo tamen sic loquimur, ut dicamus magnum gaudium nos ex illius consulatu aut nuptiis aut ex partu uxoris percepisse, quae adeo non sunt gaudia, ut saepe initia futurae tristitiae sint. Gaudio autem iunctum est non desinere nec in contrarium verti.

Photograph of oil painting. bright colors in abstract composition "Joy, Collage of Life" Oil painting on canvas by artist René Cheng - Finalist of the First International Art Prize Meneghetti. Private collection — “Joy, Collage of Life” Oil painting on canvas by artist René Cheng – Finalist of the First International Art Prize Meneghetti. Private collection

No Trouble from The Trees for Sleep

April 5, 2023April 5, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Moschus Fr. 1 [=Stob. 4.17.19]

“Whenever the wind strikes the gray sea
I pluck the cowardice from my heart and the land
Is no longer dear because the great sea fills me with desire.

But when the sea groans in its dusky deep
And it churns growing waves on its back
Then I glance at the land and escape for the trees.
The soil delights me and the forest shade is a pleasure
There where the pine sings loud when the wind breathes.

A fisherman lives a terrible life: his home is a boat;
His work is the sea and the fish his wandering hunt.
I’d have a sweet slumber under a deep-leafed plane tree
And I would love to hear the echo of a spring nearby
The sound of water that soothes but does not trouble your sleep.”

Τὰν ἅλα τὰν γλαυκὰν ὅταν ὥνεμος ἀτρέμα βάλλῃ,
τὰν φρένα τὰν δειλὰν ἐρεθίζομαι, οὐδ’ ἔτι μοι γᾶ
ἐντὶ φίλα, ποθίει δὲ πολὺ πλέον ἁ μεγάλα μ’ ἅλς.

ἀλλ’ ὅταν ἀχήσῃ πολιὸς βυθὸς ἁ δὲ θάλασσα
κυρτὸν ἐπαφρίζῃ τὰ δὲ κύματα μακρὰ μεμήνῃ,
ἐς χθόνα παπταίνω καὶ δένδρεα τὰν δ’ ἅλα φεύγω,
γᾶ δέ μοι ἀσπαστά, χἀ δάσκιος εὔαδεν ὕλα
ἔνθα καὶ ἢν πνεύσῃ πολὺς ὥνεμος ἁ πίτυς ᾄδει.

ἦ κακὸν ὁ γριπεὺς ζώει βίον, ᾧ δόμος ἁ ναῦς,
καὶ πόνος ἐντὶ θάλασσα, καὶ ἰχθύες ἁ πλάνος ἄγρα.
αὐτὰρ ἐμοὶ γλυκὺς ὕπνος ὑπὸ πλατάνῳ βαθυφύλλῳ,
καὶ παγᾶς φιλέοιμι τὸν ἐγγύθεν ἆχον ἀκούειν
ἃ τέρπει ψοφέοισα τὸν ἄγρυπνον, οὐχὶ ταράσσει.

Scheduling a Time to leave

April 5, 2023 ~ sententiaeantiquae ~ Leave a comment

Seneca, Moral Epistles 58.32-34

“Frugality can bring about old age which, I suppose, shouldn’t be desired any more than it is refused. There’s pleasure in spending as much time with oneself as possible, when you’ve made yourself worthy of enjoying. The point then on which we should make our judgment is whether we should seek out the final stages and not await the end, or make it happen. Someone who waits for their fate slowly is like one who is afraid, as if a bit of a drunkard who drains a full jar and slurps up the dregs too.

But we should nevertheless still ask about this too: “Is the last part of life the dregs, or is it the clearest and purest of all, provided that the mind is free of injury and the senses give their support to the body and the body is not tired or too close to death?” Oh, there’s a big difference between someone extending their life and putting off their death.

But if the body is not useful for its tasks, why should we free its laboring spirit? Well, maybe we should do this just a bit before we must lest we lose the ability to do it. Since the danger of living poorly is greater than the danger of dying quickly, then someone who refuses to wager a small bit of time for great profit is a fool.”

Potest frugalitas producere senectutem, quam ut non puto concupiscendam, ita ne recusandam quidem. Iucundum est secum esse quam diutissime, cum quis se dignum, quo frueretur, effecit. Itaque de isto feremus sententiam, an oporteat fastidire senectutis extrema et finem non opperiri, sed manu facere. Prope est a timente, qui fatum segnis expectat, sicut ille ultra modum deditus vino est, qui amphoram exiccat et faecem quoque exorbet. De hoc tamen quaeremus, pars summa vitae utrum faex sit an liquidissimum ac purissimum quiddam, si modo mens sine iniuria est et integri sensus animum iuvant nec defectum et praemortuum corpus est.

Plurimum enim refert, vitam aliquis extendat an mortem. At si inutile ministeriis corpus est, quidni oporteat educere animum laborantem? Et fortasse paulo ante quam debet, faciendum est, ne cum fieri debebit, facere non possis. Et cum maius periculum sit male vivendi quam cito moriendi, stultus est, qui non exigua temporis mercede magnae rei aleam redimit.