Duties are universally measured by relations. Is a
certain man your father? In this are implied, taking
care of him; submitting to him in all things; patiently receiving his reproaches, his- correction. But
he is a bad father. Is your natural tie, then, to a
good father? No, but to a father. Is a brother unjust? Well, preserve your own just relation towards
him. Consider not what he does, but what you are
to do, to keep your own will in a state conformable
to nature. For another cannot hurt you, unless you
please. You will then be hurt when you consent to
be hurt. In this manner, therefore, if you accustom
yourself to contemplate the relations of neighbor,
citizen, commander, you can deduce from each the
corresponding duties.
The Works of Epictetus: His Discourses, in Four Books, the Enchiridion, and Fragments. Epictetus. Thomas Wentworth Higginson. translator. New York. Thomas Nelson and Sons. 1890.
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