| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Of The Nature of Things by Lucretius: Which through the mighty and sidereal years
Roll round in mighty orbits, may be sped
By streams of air from regions alternate.
Seest thou not also how the clouds be sped
By contrary winds to regions contrary,
The lower clouds diversely from the upper?
Then, why may yonder stars in ether there
Along their mighty orbits not be borne
By currents opposite the one to other?
But night o'erwhelms the lands with vasty murk
Either when sun, after his diurnal course,
Of The Nature of Things |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Herodias by Gustave Flaubert: were weary of his rule; and he hesitated now between adopting one of
two projects: to conciliate the Arabs and win back their allegiance,
or to conclude an alliance with the Parthians. Under the pretext of
celebrating his birthday, he had planned to bring together, at a grand
banquet, the chiefs of his troops, the stewards of his domains, and
the most important men from the region about Galilee.
Antipas threw a keen glance along all the roads leading to Machaerus.
They were deserted. Eagles were sweeping through the air high above
his head; the soldiers of the guard, placed at intervals along the
ramparts, slept or dozed, leaning against the walls; all was silent
within the castle.
Herodias |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Golden Sayings of Epictetus by Epictetus: applied, then the lust is checked, and the mind at once regains
its original authority; whereas if you have recourse to no
remedy, you can no longer look for this return--on the contrary,
the next time it is excited by the corresponding object, the
flame of desire leaps up more quickly than before. By frequent
repetition, the mind in the long run becomes callous; and thus
this mental disease produces confirmed Avarice.
One who has had fever, even when it has left him, is not in
the same condition of health as before, unless indeed his cure is
complete. Something of the same sort is true also of diseases of
the mind. Behind, there remains a legacy of traces and blisters:
The Golden Sayings of Epictetus |
