Interpretations of Epictetus's Enchiridion 1--5
## **CHAPTER 1: THE CONTROL DICHOTOMY**
Of things some are in our power, and others are not. In our power are opinion, movement toward a thing, desire, aversion, and in a word, whatever are our own acts. Not in our power are the body, property, reputation, offices, and in a word, whatever are not our own acts.
The things in our power are by nature free, not subject to restraint nor hindrance. But the things not in our power are weak, slavish, subject to restraint, in the control of others.
Remember then that if you think the things which are by nature slavish to be free, and the things which are in the power of others to be your own, you will be hindered, you will lament, you will be disturbed, you will blame both gods and men. But if you think that only which is your own to be your own, and if you think that what is another's, as it really is, belongs to another, no man will ever compel you, no man will hinder you, you will never blame any man, you will accuse no man, you will do nothing involuntarily, no man will harm you, you will have no enemy, for you will not suffer any harm.
If then you desire such great things, remember that you must not attempt to lay hold of them with a small effort. You must leave alone some things entirely, and postpone others for the present. But if you wish these things also—power and wealth—perhaps you will not gain even these very things because you aim also at those former things. Certainly you will fail in those things through which alone happiness and freedom are secured.
Straightway then practice saying to every harsh appearance, "You are an appearance, and in no manner what you appear to be." Then examine it by the rules which you possess, and by this first and chiefly, whether it relates to the things which are in our power or to the things which are not in our power. And if it relates to anything which is not in our power, be ready to say, "It does not concern you."
**The Control Dichotomy:** All things fall into two exhaustive categories—those in our power and those not in our power. No exceptions exist to this fundamental division.
**The Nature of Each Domain:** Controlled things possess the nature of freedom—reliable, unhindered, truly ours. Uncontrolled things possess the nature of slavery—unreliable, hindered, belonging to others.
**The Ownership Principle:** Assign ownership only to what you actually control. False ownership claims regarding externals inevitably lead to disturbance and suffering.
**The Great Choice:** You cannot pursue both Stoic tranquility and conventional external goods with full commitment. The pursuit of externals compromises the pursuit of what alone secures happiness and freedom.
**The Practical Method:** When any appearance disturbs you, immediately classify it as controlled or uncontrolled. If uncontrolled, dismiss it as not concerning you. This practice trains correct value recognition and prevents false ownership claims.
## **CHAPTER 2: THE DESIRE PRINCIPLE**
Remember that desire contains in it the profession of obtaining that which you desire, and the profession in aversion is that you will not fall into that which you attempt to avoid. He who fails in his desire is unfortunate, and he who falls into that which he would avoid is unhappy.
If then you attempt to avoid only the things contrary to nature which are within your power, you will not be involved in any of the things which you would avoid. But if you attempt to avoid disease or death or poverty, you will be unhappy.
Take away then aversion from all things which are not in our power, and transfer it to the things contrary to nature which are in our power. But destroy desire completely for the present. For if you desire anything which is not in our power, you must be unfortunate. But of the things in our power, and which it would be good to desire, nothing yet is before you. But employ only the power of moving toward an object and retiring from it, and these powers indeed only slightly and with exceptions and with remission.
**The Desire Principle:** Desire and aversion carry implicit promises—that you will obtain what you desire and avoid what you seek to avoid. When directed toward externals, these promises cannot be kept, guaranteeing failure and unhappiness.
**The Aversion Rule:** Direct aversion only toward things contrary to nature within your power—namely, vice and foolish judgments. Aversion toward externals like disease, death, or poverty ensures unhappiness because these things will inevitably occur.
**The Desire Discipline:** Temporarily eliminate desire for externals entirely. Since externals are not in your power, desiring them guarantees misfortune. Even regarding things within your power that would be good to desire, withhold desire until your discipline is established.
**The Cautious Engagement:** Use only the basic impulses of moving toward and away from things, and even these only lightly, with exceptions, and with restraint. This prevents the strong attachment that comes with full desire and aversion.
**The Logical Foundation:** Since failure in desire creates misfortune and falling into what you avoid creates unhappiness, wisdom demands aligning desire and aversion with the control dichotomy. Only what you control can be reliably obtained or avoided, making controlled things the only proper objects of desire and aversion.
## **CHAPTER 3: THE NATURE PRINCIPLE**
In everything which pleases the soul, or supplies a want, or is loved, remember to add this to the description—what is the nature of each thing, beginning from the smallest. If you love an earthen vessel, say it is an earthen vessel which you love, for when it has been broken, you will not be disturbed. If you are kissing your child or wife, say that it is a human being whom you are kissing, for when the wife or child dies, you will not be disturbed.
**The Nature Principle:** When engaging with any external that pleases, satisfies, or attracts you, consistently remind yourself of its true nature as an external thing. This prevents false value assignments that lead to disturbance.
**The Description Practice:** Always include in your mental description of beloved externals their essential nature as externals—fragile, mortal, impermanent, and outside your control. This honest labeling prevents the illusion that they possess inherent goodness or badness.
**The Attachment Prevention:** By acknowledging the true nature of externals while engaging with them, you enjoy them without becoming dependent on them for your well-being. This allows genuine appreciation without the vulnerability that comes from false ownership.
**The Disturbance Remedy:** When externals change, break, or are lost—as their nature dictates they must—you remain undisturbed because you never assigned them value beyond their true nature as externals.
**The Progressive Application:** Begin this practice with small, replaceable items to develop the habit, then extend it to the most cherished relationships and possessions. The logic remains identical regardless of emotional attachment—all externals share the same fundamental nature of being outside your control.
**The Logical Foundation:** Since disturbance comes from false value assignments to externals, consistently recognizing their true nature prevents these false assignments. You can engage with externals appropriately while maintaining the correct understanding that only controlled things have genuine value.
## **CHAPTER 4: THE INTENTION PRINCIPLE**
When you are going to take in hand any act, remind yourself what kind of an act it is. If you are going to bathe, place before yourself what happens in the bath: some splashing the water, others pushing against one another, others abusing one another, and some stealing. And thus with more safety you will undertake the matter, if you say to yourself, "I now intend to bathe, and to maintain my will in a manner conformable to nature." And so you will do in every act. For thus if any hindrance to bathing shall happen, let this thought be ready: it was not this only that I intended, but I intended also to maintain my will in a way conformable to nature. But I shall not maintain it so, if I am vexed at what happens.
**The Intention Principle:** Before undertaking any action involving externals, form a dual intention—to pursue the external goal and to maintain your will conformable to nature regardless of obstacles or outcomes.
**The Preparation Practice:** Mentally rehearse the typical difficulties, frustrations, and impediments associated with your intended action. This realistic preparation prevents the shock and disturbance that come from unexpected obstacles.
**The Dual Goal Structure:** Your primary intention must always be maintaining virtue (keeping your will conformable to nature). The external goal remains secondary and conditional. Success is measured by virtue, not by external outcomes.
**The Obstacle Response:** When hindrances arise—as they inevitably will—remember that maintaining your virtuous response was part of your original intention. External failure does not constitute real failure if you maintain virtue.
**The Disturbance Test:** If you become vexed at obstacles or outcomes, you have failed in your primary intention. The external impediment reveals that you had secretly made the external outcome more important than virtue.
**The Universal Application:** Apply this dual intention structure to every action, from mundane activities like bathing to significant undertakings. The principle remains constant—success lies in maintaining virtue, not in achieving external results.
**The Logical Foundation:** Since externals cannot be controlled, making them the measure of success guarantees disappointment. Only by focusing on what you control—your response and character—can you achieve reliable
success and freedom from disturbance.
## **CHAPTER 5: THE OPINION PRINCIPLE**
Men are disturbed not by the things which happen, but by the opinions about the things. For example, death is nothing terrible, for if it were, it would have seemed so to Socrates. For the opinion about death, that it is terrible, is the terrible thing. When then we are impeded or disturbed or grieved, let us never blame others, but ourselves, that is, our opinions. It is the act of an ill-instructed man to blame others for his own bad condition. It is the act of one who has begun to be instructed to lay the blame on himself. And of one whose instruction is completed, neither to blame another nor himself.
**The Opinion Principle:** External events possess no inherent power to disturb us. All disturbance originates from our opinions about external events, not from the events themselves.
**The Socrates Test:** If external events were inherently terrible, they would appear terrible to all wise people. Since Socrates faced death without terror, death itself cannot be inherently terrible. Only the opinion that death is terrible creates the terror.
**The Disturbance Diagnosis:** When you experience impediment, disturbance, or grief, the cause lies not in externals or other people, but in your own opinions about what has happened. These opinions are within your control.
**The Three Stages of Instruction:** The uninstructed man blames externals and others for his condition. The partially instructed man recognizes he himself is responsible for his disturbance through his opinions. The fully instructed man neither blames externals nor himself, but simply corrects the false opinion without emotional drama.
**The Responsibility Principle:** Since opinions are controlled and externals are not, you bear complete responsibility for your emotional state. No external event or person can compel you to be disturbed without your opinion's consent.
**The Logical Foundation:** If externals could disturb us directly, our well-being would depend entirely on uncontrolled factors, making tranquility impossible to achieve. Since opinions are controlled, and opinions create disturbance, tranquility remains entirely within our power through correct opinion management.