The Golden Verses of Pythagoras · 17 of 122 · tr. Florence M. Firth
Section 9 (part 1)
p.
45 PYTHAGOREAN ETHICAL SENTENCES FROM STOBÆUS 1.
Do not even think of doing what ought not to be done.
2.
Choose rather to be strong in soul than in body.
3.
Be persuaded that things of a laborious nature contribute more than pleasures to virtue.
4.
Every passion of the soul is most hostile to its salvation.
5.
It is difficult to walk at one and the same time many paths of life.
p.
46 6.
Pythagoras said, it is requisite to choose the most excellent life; for custom will make it pleasant.
Wealth is an infirm anchor, glory is still more infirm; and in a similar manner, the body, dominion, and honour.
For all these are imbecile and powerless.
What then are powerful anchors.
Prudence, magnanimity, fortitude.
These no tempest can shake.
This is the Law of God, that virtue is the only thing that is strong; and that every thing else is a trifle.
7.
All the parts of human life, in the same manner as those of a statue, ought to be beautiful.
8.
Frankincense ought to be given to the Gods, but praise to good men.
9.
It is requisite to defend those who are unjustly accused of having acted injuriously, but to praise those who excel in a certain good.
10.
Neither will the horse be adjudged to be generous, that is sumptuously adorned, but the horse whose nature is illustrious; nor is the man worthy who possesses great wealth, but he whose soul is generous.
11.
When the wise man opens his mouth, the beauties of his soul present themselves p.
47 to the view, like the statues in a temple 12.
Remind yourself that all men assert that wisdom is the greatest good, but that there are few who strenuously endeavour to obtain this greatest good.
13.
Be sober, and remember to be disposed to believe; for these are the nerves of wisdom.
14.
It is better to live lying on the grass, confiding in Divinity and yourself, than to lie on a golden bed with perturbation.
15.
You will not be in want of anything, which it is in the power of fortune to give and take away.
1 16.
Despise all those things which when liberated from the body you will not want; invoke the Gods to become your helpers.
17.
Neither is it possible to conceal fire in a garment, nor a base deviation from rectitude in time.
18.
Wind indeed increases fire, but custom love.
19.
Those alone are dear to Divinity who are hostile to injustice.
p.
48 20.
Those things which the body necessarily requires, are easily to be procured by all men, without labour and molestation; but those things to the attainment of which labour and molestation are requisite, are objects of desire, not to the body, but to depraved opinion.
21.
Of desire also, he (Pythagoras) said as follows:--This passion is various, laborious, and very multiform.
Of desires, however, some are acquired and adventitious, but others are connascent.
But he defined desire itself to be a certain tendency and impulse of the soul, and an appetite of a plentitude or presence of sense, or an emptiness and absence of it, and of non-perception.
He also said, that there are three most known species of erroneous and depraved desire, viz., the indecorous, the incommensurate, and the unseasonable.
For desire is either immediately Indecorous, troublesome, and illiberal, or it is not absolutely so, but is more vehement and lasting than is fit.
Themes
◇Renunciation Of Wealthethics
The spiritual danger of attachment to material possessions; wealth as a spiritual obstacle.
[auto] The passage explicitly compares garments to riches as objects of desire and warns that they are dangerous and should not be embraced without caution.
All passages →Related passages · 11 parallels
◆buddhism|The Dhammapada|Chapter XII, Section 1
“p. 45 CHAPTER XII. SELF. 157. If a man hold himself dear, let him watch himself carefully; during one at least out of the three watches a wise man should be watchful. 158. Let each man direct himself first to what is proper, then let him te…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of self-discipline, virtue, and the pursuit of wisdom. They share a focus on the inner life and the idea that one's own actions and attitudes are crucial to personal and spiritual growth.
◆buddhism|The Dhammapada|Chapter XIII, Section 1a
“p.
47 CHAPTER XIII.
THE WORLD.
167.
Do not follow the evil law!
Do not live on in thoughtlessness!
Do not follow false doctrine!
Be not a friend of the world.
168.
Rouse thyself!
do not be idle!
Follow the law of virtue!
The vir…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of virtue and ethical living, with a focus on the transient nature of worldly pleasures and the superiority of a virtuous life. They share a common theme of prioritizing spiritual and moral strength over material wealth and temporary glory.
◆buddhism|The Dhammapada|Chapter XVI, Section 1
“p. 56 CHAPTER XVI. PLEASURE. 209. He who gives himself to vanity, and does not give himself to meditation, forgetting the real aim (of life) and grasping at pleasure, will in time envy him who has exerted himself in meditation. 210. Let no…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of detachment from worldly pleasures and passions, advocating for a life of virtue and self-control. They share a common theme of avoiding attachment to material desires and focusing on spiritual or ethical growth.
◆christian_mysticism|Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation)|VIa
“SANCTIFICATION 1 1 That is separation from all outward things.
St Luke x.
42 .—“One thing is needful.” I have read many writings both of heathen philosophers and inspired prophets, ancient and modern, and have sought earnestly to discover…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of inner virtues and detachment from worldly things. Meister Eckhart's passage focuses on sanctification as the highest virtue, while the Pythagorean sentences highlight virtues like prudence, magnanimity, and fortitude, all of which align with the idea of inner purity and detachment from material concerns.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 1 (part 5)
“' Not that a person should run away from his home, and desert his wife, child, or relatives, commit suicide, or throw away his property, so that he may not be therein corporeally; but he should kill and annihilate his self-will, the will th…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of surrendering self-will and personal desires to achieve a higher spiritual state. Passage A focuses on divine union with Christ through resignation of self-will, while Passage B advocates for virtue and prudence as anchors for the soul, both aiming at a state of spiritual purity and alignment with divine principles.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 13 (part 9)
“279 free will already in the beginning (of a desire) destroys the desire, so that it does not become substantial, then is the physician (for the cure of that disease) already born, and there will not be needed such great earnestness as will…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of self-control, temperance, and the avoidance of material desires. They share a common theme of the spiritual struggle against worldly temptations and the need for inner transformation.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 10: The Sermon on the Mount|Section 1d
“Spirit pervading [body] by means of veins and arteries and blood, bestows upon the living creature motion, and as it were doth bear it in a way.
For this cause some do think the soul is blood, in that they do mistake its nature, not knowin…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of virtue and the soul's connection to divinity. They share a focus on the transient nature of material wealth and the enduring value of spiritual qualities, though they come from different mystical traditions.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 24
“Section 6 6. In all this there is no sin- there is only matter of discipline- but our concern is not merely to be sinless but to be God. As long as there is any such involuntary action, the nature is twofold, God and Demi-God, or rather God…”
Both passages emphasize the pursuit of virtue and the alignment of the soul with higher principles. Plotinus discusses the contemplation of the Intellectual-Principle and the suppression of involuntary actions to achieve divine unity, while Pythagoras' ethical sentences focus on the cultivation of virtues like prudence, magnanimity, and fortitude, and the rejection of worldly pleasures in favor of a virtuous life.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 364
“Section 44 44. Contemplation alone stands untouched by magic; no man self-gathered falls to a spell; for he is one, and that unity is all he perceives, so that his reason is not beguiled but holds the due course, fashioning its own career a…”
Both passages emphasize the importance of inner virtue and the dangers of being led astray by external desires or appearances. Plotinus discusses the concept of 'magic' as being misled by false goods, while the Pythagorean sentences stress the importance of choosing the most excellent life and the dangers of depraved desires.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 659
“Section 20 20. Since we are not entitled to make desire the test by which to decide on the nature and quality of the good, we may perhaps have recourse to judgement. We would apply the opposition of things- order, disorder; symmetry, irregu…”
Both passages emphasize the pursuit of virtue and the good, with Plotinus discussing the nature of the good and the Intellectual-Principle, while Pythagoras outlines ethical sentences that promote virtue and the rejection of material desires. Both traditions value the cultivation of the soul and the pursuit of higher principles.