Baltasar Gracián y Morales, SJ (January 8, 1601 – December 6, 1658) was a Spanish Jesuit and baroque prose writer and philosopher.

He was born in Belmonte, near Calatayud (Aragon).

His proto-existentialist writings were lauded by Nietzsche and Schopenhauer.

 

        The Gracian brothers, Lorenzo and Balthasar, lived in the XVII century Spain. “The Oracle, A Manual of the Art of Discretion”, commonly known as “The Art of Worldly Wisdom”, was the first book of this Spanish author, translated into the Russian. The contemporaries of Lomonosov and the Empress Elizaveta Petrovna preferred “The Oracle” even to the “Don Quixote”. And there’s nothing to add.

                                                                                                        Dear Reader! 

“The Oracle, A Manual of the Art of Discretion” consists of 300 thoughts. We take it upon ourselves to introduce you to this unique book with the hope that the wisdom of the Gracian brothers would be of great advantage to you during your life journey. 

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* Character and Intellect… – the two poles of our capacity; one without the other is but halfway to happiness. Intellect sufficeth not, character is also needed.

* Keep Matters for a Time in Suspense – Admiration at their novelty heightens the value of your achievements. It is both useless and insipid to play with the cards on the table. If you do not declare yourself immediately, you arouse expectation, especially when the importance of your position makes you the object of general attention. Mix a little mystery with everything, and the very mystery arouses veneration.

* Knowledge and Courage are the elements of Greatness. Each is as much as he knows, and the wise can do anything. A man without knowledge, a world without light. Knowledge without courage is sterile.

* Create a Feeling of Dependence. When dependence disappears, good behaviour goes with it as well as respect. Let it be one of the chief lessons of experience to keep hope alive without entirely satisfying it, by preserving it to make oneself always needed. But let not silence be carried to excess lest you go wrong, nor let another’s failing grow incurable for the sake of your own advantage.

* We are not born perfect: every day we develop in our personality and in our calling till we reach the highest point of our completed being, to the full round of our accomplishments, of our excellences.

* Avoid Victories over Superiors. All victories breed hate, and that over your superior is foolish or fatal. The stars teach us this finesse with happy tact; though they are his children and brilliant like him, they never rival the brilliancy of the sun.

* To be without Passions. ‘Tis a privilege of the highest order of mind. Their very eminence redeems them from being affected by transient and low impulses. There is no higher rule than that over oneself, over one’s impulses: there is the triumph of free will.

* Avoid the Faults of your Nation. Water shares the good or bad qualities of the strata through which it flows, and man those of the climate in which he is born. There are also family failings as well as faults of position, of office or of age. If these all meet in one person and are not carefully guarded against, they make an intolerable monster.

* Application and Ability. There is no attaining eminence without both, and where they unite there is the greatest eminence. Even for the highest posts it is only in some cases application that is wanting, rarely the talent.

* Arouse no Exaggerated Expectations on entering. It is the usual ill-luck of all celebrities not to fulfil afterwards the expectations beforehand formed of them. This rule does not apply to the wicked, for the same exaggeration is a great aid to them; they are defeated amid general applause, and what seemed at first extreme ruin comes to be thought quite bearable.

* A Man of the Age. The rarest individuals depend on their age. Some men have been worthy of a better century, for every species of good does not always triumph. Things have their period; even excellences are subject to fashion. The sage has one advantage: he is immortal.

* The Art of being Lucky. There are rules of luck: it is not all chance with the wise: it can be assisted by care. But on a true philosophy there is no other umpire than virtue and insight; for there is no luck or ill-luck except wisdom and the reverse.

* A Man of Knowledge to the Point. Wise men arm themselves with tasteful and elegant erudition; a practical knowledge of what is going on not of a common kind but more like an expert. They possess a copious store of wise and witty sayings, and of noble deeds, and know how to employ them on fitting occasions. More is often taught by a jest than by the most serious teaching. Pat knowledge helps some more than the seven arts, be they ever so liberal.

* Be Spotless: the indispensable condition of perfection. The highest skill is to transform them into ornament. So Cæsar hid his natural defects with the laurel.

* Keep the Imagination under Control; sometimes correcting, sometimes assisting it. It can tyrannize,.. but influences and even often dominates life, causing it to be happy or burdensome according to the folly to which it leads. To others it promises happiness and adventure with blissful delusion. It can do all this unless the most prudent self-control keeps it in subjection.

* Know how to take a Hint… the art of arts to be able to discourse; we must know how to take a hint, especially in disabusing ourselves… The very truths… can only be half spoken, but with attention we can grasp the whole meaning.

* Find out each Man’s Thumbscrew… the art of setting their wills in action… All men are idolaters, some of fame, others of self-interest, most of pleasure. Skill consists in knowing these idols in order to bring them into play… First guess a man’s ruling passion, appeal to it by a word, set it in motion by temptation, and you will infallibly give checkmate to his freedom of will.

* Prize Intensity more than Extent. Excellence resides in quality not in quantity… it is the misfortune of universal geniuses that in attempting to be at home everywhere, are so nowhere.

* Common in Nothing… Take no pleasure in the wonder of the mob, for ignorance never gets beyond wonder. While vulgar folly wonders wisdom watches for the trick.

* A Man of Rectitude clings to the sect of right… Such are always to be found on the side of truth, and if they desert a party, they do not change from fickleness, but because the others have first deserted truth.

* Sympathy with great Minds. It is an heroic quality to agree with heroes… Esteem established, goodwill follows, which at times reaches affection. ’Tis a great art to recognize, to distinguish and to utilize this gift. No amount of energy suffices without that favour of nature.

* Use, but do not abuse, Cunning. One ought less to boast of it. Deceit is much in use; therefore our caution has to be redoubled, but not so as to show itself, for it arouses distrust, causes much annoy, awakens revenge, and gives rise to more ills than you would imagine. The greatest skill in any deed consists in the sure mastery with which it is executed.

* Master your Antipathies. We often allow ourselves to take dislikes… At times this innate yet vulgar aversion attaches itself to eminent personalities. As sympathy with great men en-nobles us, so dislike to them degrades us.

* Avoid “Affairs of Honour” – one of the chiefest aims of prudence. There is more valour needed not to take up the affair than to conquer in it. When there is one fool ready for the occasion, one may excuse oneself from being the second.

* Be Thorough. How much depends on the person. The interior must be at least as much as the exterior… for the flow of words soon ceases where there is no spring of thoughts.

* Observation and Judgment. A man with these rules things, not they him… Keen observation, subtile insight, judicious inference: with these he discovers, notices, grasps, and comprehends everything.

* Never lose Self-respect, or be too familiar with oneself. Let your own right feeling be the true standard of your rectitude… Leave off anything unseemly more from regard for your own self-respect…

* Know how to Choose well. Most of life depends thereon. It needs good taste and correct judgment, for which neither intellect nor study suffices… Thus this is one of the greatest gifts from above.

* Never be put out… It is the sign of a real man, of a noble heart, for magnanimity is not easily put out

* Diligent and Intelligent… Hurry is the failing of fools… the wise more often fail from procrastination. Celerity is the mother of good fortune… Festina lente is a royal motto.

* Know how to show your Teeth… Moral courage exceeds physical;.. moral cowardice lowers one more than physical… Wise Nature has thoughtfully combined in the bee the sweetness of its honey with the sharpness of its sting.

* Wait… First be master over yourself if you would be master over others… A wise reserve seasons the aims and matures the means.

* Have Presence of Mind. The child of a happy promptitude of spirit… There are natures of Antiperistasis who work best in an emergency… Celerity wins applause because it proves remarkable capacity; subtlety of judgment, prudence in action.

* Sympathy with great Minds. It is an heroic quality to agree with heroes… Esteem established, goodwill follows, which at times reaches affection. ’Tis a great art to recognize, to distinguish and to utilize this gift. No amount of energy suffices without that favour of nature.

* Use, but do not abuse, Cunning. One ought less to boast of it. Deceit is much in use; therefore our caution has to be redoubled, but not so as to show itself, for it arouses distrust, causes much annoy, awakens revenge, and gives rise to more ills than you would imagine. The greatest skill in any deed consists in the sure mastery with which it is executed.

* Master your Antipathies. We often allow ourselves to take dislikes… At times this innate yet vulgar aversion attaches itself to eminent personalities. As sympathy with great men en-nobles us, so dislike to them degrades us.

* Avoid “Affairs of Honour” – one of the chiefest aims of prudence. There is more valour needed not to take up the affair than to conquer in it. When there is one fool ready for the occasion, one may excuse oneself from being the second.

* Be Thorough. How much depends on the person. The interior must be at least as much as the exterior… for the flow of words soon ceases where there is no spring of thoughts.

* Observation and Judgment. A man with these rules things, not they him… Keen observation, subtile insight, judicious inference: with these he discovers, notices, grasps, and comprehends everything.

* Never lose Self-respect, or be too familiar with oneself. Let your own right feeling be the true standard of your rectitude… Leave off anything unseemly more from regard for your own self-respect…

* Have naught to do with Occupations of Ill-repute… There are bizarre tastes that always take to their heart all that wise men repudiate… This may make them well known indeed, but more as objects of ridicule than of repute. A cautious man does not even make profession of his wisdom, still less of those matters that make their followers ridiculous.

* Select the Lucky and avoid the Unlucky. Ill-luck is generally the penalty of folly, and there is no disease so contagious to those who share in it… When in doubt, follow the suit of the wise and prudent; sooner or later they will win the odd trick.

* Have the Reputation of being Gracious. ‘Tis the chief glory of the high and mighty to be gracious, a prerogative of kings to conquer universal goodwill. That is the great advantage of a commanding position—to be able to do more good than others… There are some who lay themselves out for not being gracious, not on account of the difficulty, but from a bad disposition. In all things they are the opposite of Divine grace.

* Know how to Withdraw… know how to deny oneself as regards both affairs and persons. There are extraneous occupations which eat away precious time. To be occupied in what does not concern you is worse than doing nothing. So with friends, their help should not be abused or more demanded from them than they themselves will grant… A wise moderation in this best preserves the goodwill and esteem of all.

* Know your strongest Point – your pre-eminent gift; cultivate that and you will assist the rest. Most do violence to their natural aptitude, and thus attain superiority in nothing.

* Think over Things, most over the most Important. The wise man thinks over everything, but with a difference, most profoundly where there is some profound difficulty, and thinks that perhaps there is more in it than he thinks. Thus his comprehension extends as far as his apprehension.

* In Acting or Refraining, weigh your Luck. More depends on that than on noticing your temperament. When you find Fortune favourable, stride boldly forward, for she favours the bold…

* Keep a Store of Sarcasms, and know how to use them… sarcasms are malicious, insolent, poisoned by envy or envenomed by passion, unexpected flashes which destroy at once all favour and esteem. Struck by the slightest word of this kind, many fall away from the closest intimacy with superiors… For here a knowledge of the evil is in itself a means of defence, and a shot foreseen always misses its mark.

* Leave your Luck while Winning. All the best players do it… Bring your exploits under cover when there are enough… The higher the heap of luck, the greater the risk of a slip, and down comes all. Fortune pays you sometimes for the intensity of her favours by the shortness of their duration. She soon tires of carrying any one long on her shoulders.

* Recognise when Things are ripe, and then enjoy them… It is an especial privilege of good taste to enjoy everything at its ripest. There is a ripening point too for fruits of intellect; it is well to know this both for their value in use and for their value in exchange.

* The Goodwill of People. ’Tis much to gain universal admiration; more, universal love. Something depends on natural disposition, more on practice: the first founds, the second then builds on that foundation. Brilliant parts suffice not, though they are presupposed; win good opinion and ’tis easy to win goodwill. Kindly acts besides are required to produce kindly feelings, doing good with both hands, good words and better deeds, loving so as to be loved. Courtesy is the politic witchery of great personages. First lay hand on deeds and then on pens; words follow swords; for there is goodwill to be won among writers, and it is eternal.

* Never Exaggerate. It is an important object of attention not to talk in superlatives, so as neither to offend against truth nor to give a mean idea of one’s understanding… Extraordinary things are rare, therefore moderate ordinary valuation. Exaggeration is a branch of lying, and you lose by it the credit of good taste, which is much, and of good sense, which is more.

* Born to Command. All submit to it without knowing why, recognizing the secret vigour of connatural authority. Such magisterial spirits are kings by merit and lions by innate privilege… If their other qualities permit, such men are born to be the prime motors of the state.

* Think with the Few and speak with the Many. By swimming against the stream it is impossible to remove error, easy to fall into danger; only a Socrates can undertake it. To dissent from others’ views is regarded as an insult… The wise man therefore retires into silence, and if he allows himself to come out of it, he does so in the shade and before few and fit persons.

* Fortune and Fame. Where the one is fickle the other is enduring. The first for life, the second afterwards; the one against envy, the other against oblivion. Fortune is desired, at times assisted: fame is earned. The desire for fame springs from man’s best part. It was and is the sister of the giants; it always goes to extremes—horrible monsters or brilliant prodigies.

* Cultivate those who can teach you. Let friendly intercourse be a school of knowledge, and culture be taught through conversation: thus you make your friends your teachers and mingle the pleasures of conversation with the advantages of instruction. Sensible persons thus enjoy alternating pleasures: they reap applause for what they say, and gain instruction from what they hear.

* Nature and Art: material and workmanship. There is no beauty unadorned and no excellence that would not become barbaric if it were not supported by artifice: this remedies the evil and improves the good. Nature scarcely ever gives us the very best; for that we must have recourse to art. Without this the best of natural dispositions is uncultured, and half is lacking to any excellence if training is absent. Every one has something unpolished without artificial training, and every kind of excellence needs some polish.

*Act sometimes on Second Thoughts, sometimes on First Impulse. Man’s life is a warfare against the malice of men. Sagacity fights with strategic changes of intention: it never does what it threatens, it aims only at escaping notice. It aims in the air with dexterity and strikes home in an unexpected direction, always seeking to conceal its game. It lets a purpose appear in order to attract the opponent’s attention, but then turns round and conquers by the unexpected.

*The Thing Itself and the Way it is done. “Substance” is not enough: “accident” is also required, as the scholastics say. A bad manner spoils everything… even reason and justice; a good one supplies everything…

*Keep Ministering Spirits. It is a privilege of the mighty to surround themselves with the champions of intellect… There is remarkable cleverness in studying without study, in getting much by means of many, and through them all to become wise… Such ministering spirits distil the best books and serve up the quintessence of wisdom.

*Knowledge and Good Intentions together ensure continuance of success… A fine intellect wedded to a wicked will was always an unnatural monster. Knowledge without sense is double folly.

*Vary the Mode of Action; not always the same way, so as to distract attention, especially if there be a rival… It is easy to kill a bird on the wing that flies straight… The gamester never plays the card the opponent expects, still less that which he wants.

* Do not play Manille. It is a fault of excellence that being so much in use it is liable to abuse. Because all covet it, all are vexed by it… People who reach this stage lose by gaining, and at last bore those who desired them before. The remedy against this extreme is to moderate your brilliance. Be extraordinary in your excellence, if you like, but be ordinary in your display of it. The more light a torch gives, the more it burns away…

*Prevent Scandal. Many heads go to make the mob, and in each of them are eyes for malice to use and a tongue for detraction to wag… It is easy to get into bad repute, because it is easy to believe evil of any one: it is not easy to clear yourself… It is far easier to prevent than to rectify.

*Culture and Elegance. Man is born a barbarian, and only raises himself above the beast by culture. Culture therefore makes the man… nothing contributes so much to culture as knowledge. But even knowledge is coarse if without elegance. Not alone must our intelligence be elegant, but our desires, and above all our conversation…

*Let your Behaviour be Fine and Noble… A great man ought not to be little in his behaviour. He ought never to pry too minutely into things, least of all in unpleasant matters. For though it is important to know all, it is not necessary to know all about all… To overlook forms a large part of the work of ruling. All superfluity is annoying, especially in things that annoy…

*Know Yourself… in talents and capacity, in judgment and inclination. You cannot master yourself unless you know yourself. There are mirrors for the face but none for the mind. Let careful thought about yourself serve as a substitute… Learn the force of your intellect and capacity for affairs, test the force of your courage in order to apply it, and keep your foundations secure and your head clear for everything.

* Do not give way to every common Impulse. He is a great man who never allows himself to be influenced by the impressions of others. Self-reflection is the school of wisdom. Self-knowledge is the beginning of self-improvement. There be some whose humours are so monstrous that they are always under the influence of one or other of them, and put them in place of their real inclinations. They… get involved in contradictory obligations. Such excesses not only destroy firmness of will; all power of judgment gets lost, desire and knowledge pulling in opposite directions.

* Know how to Refuse. One ought not to give way in everything nor to everybody. This is especially the case with men of position. All depends on the how… Your refusal need not be point-blank: let the disappointment come by degrees. Nor let the refusal be final; that would be to destroy dependence; let some spice of hope remain to soften the rejection. Let politeness compensate and fine words supply the place of deeds. Yes and No are soon said, but give much to think over.

*Do not Vacillate. Let not your actions be abnormal either from disposition or affectation. An able man is always the same in his best qualities; he gets the credit of trustworthiness… In matters of conduct change is hateful. There are some who are different every day; their intelligence varies, still more their will, and with this their fortune. Yesterday’s white is to-day’s black: to-day’s No was yesterday’s Yes. They always give the lie to their own credit and destroy their credit with others.

* Be Resolute. Bad execution of your designs does less harm than irresolution in forming them… It needs some skill to find out difficulties, but more to find a way out of them. There are… [those] who are never in straits – their clear judgment and determined character hit them for the highest callings… Affianced to Fortune, they make themselves sure of success.

* Utilise Slips. That is how smart people get out of difficulties… They get out of a serious contention by an airy nothing or by raising a smile… Sometimes it proves the highest understanding not to understand.

* Do not be Unsociable. To be inaccessible is the fault of those who distrust themselves, whose honours change their manners. It is no way of earning people’s goodwill by being ill-tempered with them.

* Choose an Heroic Ideal but rather to emulate than to imitate… Let every one have before his mind the chief of his calling… Nothing arouses ambition so much in the heart as the trumpet-clang of another’s fame. The same thing that sharpens envy, nourishes a generous spirit.

*Do not always be Jesting. Wisdom is shown in serious matters, and is more appreciated than mere wit… Many get the repute of being witty, but thereby lose the credit of being sensible. Jest has its little hour, seriousness should have all the rest.

*Be all Things to all Men …It is the great art to gain every one’s suffrages; their goodwill gains general agreement. Notice men’s moods and adapt yourself to each… This is an indispensable art for dependent persons. But this savoir faire calls for great cleverness. He only will find no difficulty who has a universal genius in his knowledge and universal ingenuity in his wit.

* The Art of undertaking Things. …for folly are always bold… they advance and discover whether you can also advance without danger. Every rush forward is freed from danger by caution, while fortune some-times helps in such cases. Step cautiously where you suspect depth. Sagacity goes cautiously forward while precaution covers the ground.

* Every competition damages the credit: our rivals seize occasion to obscure us so as to out-shine us. Few wage honourable war. Rivalry discloses faults which courtesy would hide. Many have lived in good repute while they had no rivals… Competition begins with belittling, and seeks aid wherever it can, not only where it ought… Men of good-will are always at peace; men of good repute and dignity are men of good-will.

* Never Compete. Get used to the Failings of your Familiars as you do to ugly faces… There are wretched characters with whom one cannot live, nor yet without them. Therefore clever folk get used to them, as to ugly faces, so that they are not obliged to do so suddenly under the pressure of necessity. At first they arouse disgust, but gradually they lose this influence, and reflection provides for disgust or puts up with it.

* Only act with Honourable Men. You can trust them and they you… Hence ’tis better to have a dispute with honourable people than to have a victory over dishonourable ones… Never have to do with such men, for if honour does not restrain a man, virtue will not, since honour is the throne of rectitude.

* Never talk of Yourself. You must either praise yourself, which is vain, or blame yourself, which is little-minded… And if you should avoid this in ordinary conversation, how much more in official matters, and above all, in public speaking, where every appearance of unwisdom really is unwise… The same want of tact lies in speaking of a man in his presence, owing to the danger of going to one of two extremes: flattery or censure.

* Acquire the Reputation of Courtesy Politeness is the main ingredient of culture,—a kind of witchery that wins the regard of all as surely as discourtesy gains their disfavour and opposition…

* Avoid becoming Disliked. There are many who hate of their own accord without knowing the why or the how… Wise men are feared, the malevolent are abhorred, the arrogant are regarded with disdain, buffoons with contempt, eccentrics with neglect. Therefore pay respect that you may be respected, and know that to be esteemed you must show esteem.

* Live Practically. …Thought and taste change with the times. Do not be old-fashioned in your ways of thinking, and let your taste be in the modern style… But this rule does not apply to kindness, for goodness is for all time. It is neglected nowadays and seems out of date… What a misfortune for our age that it regards virtue as a stranger and vice as a matter of course! If you are wise, live as you can, if you cannot live as you would.

* Do not make a Business of what is no Business. As some make gossip out of everything, so others business… At the outset things can be easily settled, but not afterwards. Often the remedy causes the disease. ’Tis by no means the least of life’s rules: to let things alone.

* Distinction in Speech and Action. By this you gain a position in many places and carry esteem beforehand. It shows itself in everything, in talk, in look, even in gait. It is a great victory to conquer men’s hearts: it does not arise from any foolish presumption or pompous talk, but in a becoming tone of authority born of superior talent combined with true merit.

* Avoid Affectation. The more merit, the less affectation… The more pains you take with a thing, the more should you conceal them… Do not, however, in avoiding affectation fall into it by affecting to be unaffected. The sage never seems to know his own merits, for only by not noticing them can you call others’ attention to them. He is twice great who has all the perfections in the opinion of all except of himself; he attains applause by two opposite paths.

*Get Yourself missed. …The sure way is to excel in your office and talents: add to this agreeable manner and you reach the point where you become necessary to your office, not your office to you. Some do honour to their post, with others ’tis the other way. It is no great gain if a poor successor makes the predecessor seem good, for this does not imply that the one is missed, but that the other is wished away.

* Do not be a Black List. It is a sign of having a tarnished name to concern oneself with the ill-fame of others. Some wish to hide their own stains with those of others, or at least wash them away: or they seek consolation therein—’tis the consolation of fools. They must have bad breath who form the sewers of scandal for the whole town… There are few without stain somewhere or other, but it is of little known people that the failings are little known. Be careful then to avoid being a registrar of faults. That is to be an abominable thing, a man that lives without a heart.

* Folly consists not in committing Folly, but in not hiding it when committed. You should keep your desires sealed up, still more your defects. All go wrong sometimes, but the wise try to hide the errors, but fools boast of them… The errors of great men are like the eclipses of the greater lights… But here one can help with that other great rule of life: learn to forget.

* Grace in Everything.’Tis the life of talents, the breath of speech, the soul of action, and the ornament of ornament. Perfections are the adornment of our nature, but this is the adornment of perfection itself. It shows itself even in the thoughts. ’Tis most a gift of nature and owes least to education; it even triumphs over training… Without it beauty is lifeless, graciousness ungraceful: it surpasses valour, discretion, prudence, even majesty it-self. ’Tis a short way to dispatch and an easy escape from embarrassment.

* Highmindedness… spurs on to all kinds of nobility. It improves the taste, ennobles the heart, elevates the mind, refines the feelings, and intensifies dignity… Magnanimity, generosity, and all heroic qualities recognize in it their source.

* Never complain. To complain always brings discredit. Better be a model of self-reliance opposed to the passion of others than an object of their compassion… It is much more politic to praise one man’s favours, so that others may feel obliged to follow suit… The shrewd will therefore never publish to the world his failures or his defects, but only those marks of consideration which serve to keep friendship alive and enmity silent.

* Do and be seen Doing. To be of use and to know how to show yourself of use, is to be twice as useful. What is not seen is as if it was not… Deceit rules the roast, and things are judged by their jackets… A good exterior is the best recommendation of the inner perfection…

* Nobility of Feeling. There is a certain distinction of the soul, a highmindedness prompting to gallant acts, that gives an air of grace to the whole character. It is not found often… Its chief characteristic is to speak well of an enemy, and to act even better to-wards him. It shines brightest when a chance comes of revenge: not alone does it let the occasion pass… but it improves it by using a complete victory in order to display unexpected generosity. ’Tis a fine stroke of policy, nay, the very acme of statecraft… It makes no pretence to victory, for it pretends to nothing, and while obtaining its deserts it conceals its merits.

* Revise your Judgments. To appeal to an inner Court of Revision makes things safe. Especially when the course of action is not clear… And if it is a matter of giving, the gift is the more valued from its being evidently well considered than for being promptly bestowed: long expected is highest prized. And if you have to deny, you gain time to decide how and when to mature the No that it may be made palatable. Besides, after the first heat of desire is passed the repulse of refusal is felt less keenly in cold blood.

* Better Mad with the rest of the World than Wise alone. So say politicians… whereas solitary wisdom passes for folly. So important is it to sail with the stream… The greatest wisdom often consists in ignorance, or the pretence of it… Better be wise with the many than a fool all alone. There be some too who seek to be original by seeking chimeras.

* Double your Resources.You thereby double your life. One must not depend on one thing or trust to only one resource, however pre-eminent. Everything should be kept double, especially the causes of success, of favour, or of esteem… Thus as Nature gives us in duplicate the most important of our limbs and those most exposed to risk, so Art should deal with the qualities on which we depend for success.

* Do not nourish the Spirit of Contradiction.It only proves you foolish or peevish… To find difficulties in everything may prove you clever, but such wrangling writes you down a fool… They are both foolish and cruel who yoke together the wild beast and the tame.

*Try your hand at Office. It requires varied qualities, and to know which is needed taxes attention and calls for masterly discernment… Those that merely require rectitude are the easiest, the most difficult those requiring cleverness… ’Tis a troublesome business to rule men, still more fools or blockheads… The most in repute are those that have least or most distant dependence on others; the worst is that which worries us both here and hereafter.

* Don’t be a Bore. The man of one business or of one topic is apt to be heavy. Brevity flatters and does better business…Good things, when short, are twice as good… The wise avoid being bores, especially to the great, who are fully occupied…Well said is soon said.

* Do not parade your Position. To outshine in dignity is more offensive than in personal attractions… Great positions require an amount of authority sufficient to make them efficient: without it they cannot be adequately filled… Do not enforce respect, but try and create it… Even kings prefer to be honoured for their personal qualifications rather than for their station.

* Show no Self-satisfaction. You must neither be discontented with yourself—and that were poor-spirited—nor self-satisfied—and that is folly… Distrust is wise, and even useful, either to evade mishaps or to afford consolation when they come, for a misfortune cannot surprise a man who has already feared it… Things depend on many circumstances: what constitutes triumph in one set may cause a defeat in another.

* The Path to Greatness is along with Others. Intercourse works well: manners and taste are shared: good sense and even talent grow insensibly… The alternation of contraries beautifies and sustains the world: if it can cause harmony…

* Be not Censorious. There are men of gloomy character who regard everything as faulty…They condemn all…This indicates a nature worse than cruel, vile indeed…They are always taskmasters who could turn a paradise into a prison; if passion intervenes they drive matters to the extreme…

* Do not wait till you are a Sinking Sun. `Tis a maxim of the wise to leave things before things leave them. One should be able to snatch a triumph at the end… Wisely withdraw from the chance of mishaps, lest you have to do so from the reality Do not wait till they turn you the cold shoulder and carry you to the grave, alive in feeling but dead in esteem…

* Have Friends.’Tis a second existence… Every one is as others wish him…There is no magic like a good turn… we have to live either among friends or among enemies. Seek some one every day to be a well-wisher if not a friend; by and by after trial some of these will become intimate.

* Gain Good-will. By gaining their good-will you gain men’s good opinion… Good-will facilitates and supplies everything: is supposes gifts or even supplies them, as courage, zeal, knowledge, or even discretion; whereas defects it will not see because it does not search for them… It arises from some common interest, either material, as disposition, nationality, relationship, fatherland, office…The whole difficulty is to gain good-will; to keep it is easy. It has, however, to be sought for, and, when found, to be utilised.

* In Prosperity prepare for Adversity. …Retain a store of friendly and obliged persons; the day may come when their price will go up. Low minds never have friends; in luck they will not recognise them: in misfortune they will not be recognised by them.

* The Secret of Long Life. Lead a good life. Two things bring life speedily to an end: folly and immorality… A virtuous life never dies. The firmness of the soul is communicated to the body, and a good life is long not only in intention but also in extension.

* Never set to work at anything if you have any doubts of its Prudence. Action is dangerous where prudence is in doubt: better leave such things alone. Wisdom does not trust to probabilities; it always marches in the mid-day light of reason… what can we expect of those undertaken by a doubting reason and a vacillating judgment?

* Transcendant Wisdom. …an ounce of wisdom is worth more than tons of cleverness. It is the only sure way, though it may not gain so much applause. The reputation of wisdom is the last triumph of fame.

* Versatility. A man of many excellences equals many men. By imparting his own enjoyment of life to his circle he enriches their life… and since Nature has made man in his highest development an abstract of herself, so let Art create in him a true microcosm by training his taste and intellect.

* Keep the extent of your Abilities unknown. …No one must know the extent of his abilities, lest he be disappointed. No one ever has an opportunity of fathoming him entirely…

* Keep Expectation alive. Keep stirring it up. Let much promise more, and great deeds herald greater. Do not rest your whole fortune on a single cast of the die. It requires great skill to moderate your forces so as to keep expectation from being dissipated.

* Obtain and preserve a Reputation. …It is expensive to obtain a reputation… Once obtained, it is easily preserved. It confers many an obligation, but it does more…But it is only a well-founded reputation that lasts permanently.

* Write your Intentions in Cypher. …The most practical knowledge consists in disguising them. He that plays with cards exposed runs a risk of losing the stakes…Do not even let your tastes be known, lest others utilise them either by running counter to them or by flattering them.

* Reality and Appearance. Things pass for what they seem, not for what they are. Few see inside; many take to the outside. It is not enough to be right, if right seem false and ill.

*A Man without Illusions, a wise Christian, a philosophic Courtier. Be all these, not merely seem to be them, still less affect to be them… Philosophy is nowadays discredited, but yet it was always the chiefest concern of the wise… true nourishment of a thoughtful mind, the true delight of a virtuous soul.

* One half of the World laughs at the other, and Fools are they all. Everything is good or everything is bad according to the votes they gain… So many men, so many tastes, all different… The real test of praise is the approbation of famous men and of experts in the matter…

*Let each keep up his Dignity. Let each deed of a man in its degree, though he be not a king, be worthy of a prince, and let his action be princely within due limits. Sublime in action, lofty in thought, in all things like a king, at least in merit if not in might… prefer to share the true qualities of royalty rather than take parts in its mere ceremonies, yet without affecting its imperfections but sharing in its true dignity.

* Do not be Inaccessible. None is so perfect that he does not need at times the advice of others… Even the most surpassing intellect should find a place for friendly counsel…The highest should have the door open for friendship; it may prove the gate of help…One need not pay respect or give credit to every one…

* Have the Art of Conversation. That is where the real personality shows itself. No act in life requires more attention… The talk held with persons to whom one would show respect… should be more dignified to answer to the dignity of the person addressed… adapt…to the mind and tone of the interlocutor…in conversation discretion is more important than eloquence.

* Know how to put off Ills on Others. To have a shield against ill-will is a great piece of skill in a ruler…Everything cannot turn out well, nor can every one be satisfied: it is well therefore, even at the cost of our pride, to have such a scapegoat, such a target for unlucky undertakings.

*Know to get your Price for Things. …It is a great stroke of art to bring things into repute; at times by praising them… by giving them a striking name…Never call things easy or common: that makes them depreciated rather than made accessible. All rush after the unusual, which is more appetising both for the taste and for the intelligence.

*Think beforehand. To-day for to-morrow, and even for many days hence…For the provident there are no mischances and for the careful no narrow escapes… Rumination and foresight enable one to determine the line of life.

* Never have a Companion who casts you in the Shade. The more he does so, the less desirable a companion he is. The more he excels in quality the more in repute: he will always play first fiddle and you second… But one should as little imperil oneself by an evil companion as pay honour to another at the cost of one’s own credit. When you are on the way to fortune associate with the eminent; when arrived, with the mediocre.

* Beware of entering where there is a great Gap to be filled. But if you do it be sure to surpass your predecessor; merely to equal him requires twice his worth. As it is a fine stroke to arrange that our successor shall cause us to be wished back, so it is policy to see that our predecessor does not eclipse us. To fill a great gap is difficult, for the past always seems best, and to equal the predecessor is not enough, since he has the right of first possession. You must therefore possess additional claims to oust the other from his hold on public opinion.

* Do not Believe, or Like, lightly. Maturity of mind is best shown in slow belief…there is no necessity to betray your doubts in the good faith of others, for this adds insult to discourtesy…Suspension of judgment is prudent in a hearer: the speaker can appeal to his original source of in-formation. There is a similar kind of imprudence in liking too easily, for lies may be told by deeds as well as in words, and this deceit is more dangerous for practical life.

* The Art of getting into a Passion. …The first step towards getting into a passion is to announce that you are in a passion. This is the art of arts in falling into and getting out of a rage. You should know how and when best to come to a stop: it is most difficult to halt while running at the double…To keep control of passion one must hold firm the reins of attention: he who can do so will be the first man “wise on horseback,” and probably the last.

*Do not listen to Yourself. …general contempt is the punishment for self-satisfaction. So too the pompous speak with an echo, and as their talk can only totter on with the aid of stilts, at every word they need the support of a stupid “bravo!”

* A Solid Man. One who is finds no satisfaction in those that are not. ’Tis a pitiable eminence that is not well founded… Only Truth can give true reputation: only reality can be of real profit. One deceit needs many others, and so the whole house is built in the air and must soon come to the ground…

* Have Knowledge, or know those that have Knowledge. Without intelligence,.. true life is impossible. But many do not know that they do not know, and many think they know when they know nothing…To seek advice does not lessen greatness or argue incapacity. On the contrary, to ask advice proves you well advised…

* Avoid Familiarities in Intercourse. Neither use them nor permit them…The stars keep their brilliance by not making themselves common… Familiarity is never desirable; with superiors because it is dangerous, with inferiors because it is unbecoming… Familiarity trenches on vulgarity.

* Trust your Heart, especially when it has been proved. Never deny it a hearing. It is a kind of house oracle that often foretells the most important… Many are endowed by Nature with a heart so true that it always warns…It is unwise to seek evils, unless you seek to conquer them.

*Reticence is the Seal of Capacity. A breast without a secret is an open letter… Reticence springs from self-control… The risk that reticence runs lies in the cross-questioning of others, in the use of contradiction to worm out secrets, in the darts of irony: to avoid these the prudent become more reticent than before. What must be done need not be said…

* Never guide the Enemy to what he has to do. The fool never does what the wise judge wise…One has to discuss matters from both points of view—turn it over on both sides. Judgments vary; let him that has not decided attend rather to what is possible than what is probable.

* The Truth, but not the whole Truth. Nothing demands more caution than the truth: ’tis the lancet of the heart…The deceit is regarded as treason and the deceiver as a traitor, which is worse. Yet not all truths can be spoken: some for our own sake, others for the sake of others.

* A Grain of Boldness in Everything. ’Tis an important piece of prudence. You must moderate your opinion of others so that you may not think so high of them as to fear them. The imagination should never yield to the heart… The imagination always jumps too soon, and paints things in brighter colours than the real…And if self-reliance helps the ignorant, how much more the brave and wise?

* Do not hold your Views too firmly. Every fool is fully convinced, and every one fully persuaded is a fool: the more erroneous his judgment the more firmly he holds it… Steadfastness should be for the will, not for the mind. Yet there are exceptions where one would fail twice, owning oneself wrong both in judgment and in the execution of it.

* Do not be Ceremonious. Even in a king affectation in this was renowned for its eccentricity…The garb of folly is woven out of such things…It is right to demand respect, but not to be considered a master of ceremonies. Yet it is true that a man to do without ceremonies must possess supreme qualities. Neither affect nor despise etiquette…

* Never stake your Credit on a single Cast; for if it miscarries the damage is irreparable. It may easy happen that a man should fail once, especially at first: circumstances are not always favourable…Always have resort to better means and appeal to more resources. Things depend on all sorts of chances. That is why the satisfaction of success is so rare.

* Be Moderate… A moment of wrath or of pleasure carries you on farther than many hours of calm, the cunning of others uses such moments of temptation to search the recesses of the mind… Moderation serves as a counterplot, especially in sudden emergencies. Much thought is needed to prevent a passion taking the bit in the teeth, and he is doubly wise who is wise on horseback. He who knows the danger may with care pursue his journey…

* Never take Things against the Grain, no matter how they come… There is a favourable and an unfavourable side to everything, the cleverness consists in finding out the favourable… look at it therefore on its best side… This remark is a great protection against the frowns of fortune, and a weighty rule of life for all times and all conditions.

* Know your chief Fault. There lives none that has not in himself a counterbalance to his most conspicuous merit… Commence war against it, summoning prudence as your ally… To be master of oneself one should know oneself. If the chief imperfection surrender, the rest will come to an end.

* Take care to be Obliging. Most talk and act, not as they are, but as they are obliged… The best we have depends on the opinion of others… To oblige persons often costs little and helps much. With words you may purchase deeds…

* Do not be the Slave of First Impressions. Some marry the very first account they hear: all others must live with them as concubines. But as a lie has swift legs, the truth with them can find no lodging. We should neither satisfy our will with the first object nor our mind with the first proposition: for that were superficial…

* Do not be a Scandal-monger. Still less pass for one, for that means to be considered a slanderer. Do not be witty at the cost of others: it is easy but hateful… He that speaks ill will always hear worse.

* Plan out your Life wisely, not as chance will have it, but with prudence and foresight. Without amusements it is wearisome… manifold knowledge gives manifold pleasure. The first day’s journey of a noble life should be passed in… true books… The second day should be spent with the living, seeing and noticing all the good in the world… The third day is entirely for oneself. The last felicity is to be a philosopher.

* Never contend with a Man who has nothing to Lose;.. The other enters without anxiety; having lost everything, including shame, he has no further loss to fear…One should never expose a valuable reputation to so terrible a risk, lest what has cost years to gain…For even by victory he cannot gain what he has lost by exposing himself to the chances of loss.

* Do not be Glass in Intercourse, still less in Friendship. Some break very easily…They attribute to themselves imaginary offences and to others oppressive intentions… Motes offend them: they need not wait for beams. Those who consort with them must treat them with the greatest delicacy, have regard to their sensitiveness, and watch their demeanour, since the slightest slight arouses their annoyance…the Arrant is half adamant.

* Do not live in a Hurry. To know how to separate things is to know how to enjoy them. Many finish their fortune sooner than their life: they run through pleasures without enjoying them…They devour more in one day than they can digest in a whole life-time…Even in the search for knowledge there should be moderation, lest we learn things better left unknown…Be slow in enjoyment, quick at work

*Do not indulge in the Eccentricities of Folly. Like vain, presumptuous, egotistical, untrustworthy, capricious, obstinate, fanciful, theatrical, whimsical, inquisitive, paradoxical…people and all kinds of one-sided persons…Where self-control is wanting, there is no room for others’ guidance… men of this kind blind themselves with the unfounded assumption of their imaginary applause.

*Be more careful not to Miss once than to Hit a hundred times. No one looks at the blazing sun; all gaze when he is eclipsed… Avoid therefore falling into error, seeing that ill-will notices every error and no success.

* In all Things keep Something in Reserve… One must always have something to resort to when there is fear of a defeat. The reserve is of more importance than the attacking force: for it is distinguished for valour and reputation. Prudence always sets to work with assurance of safety: in this matter the piquant paradox holds good that the half is more than the whole.

* Waste not Influence…One should not make use of great confidence for little things: for that is to waste a favour. The sheet anchor should be reserved for the last extremity…It can even give sense and take it away…It is therefore more important to keep the favour of the mighty than goods and chattels.

* Never contend with a Man who has nothing to Lose;.. The other enters without anxiety; having lost everything, including shame, he has no further loss to fear…One should never expose a valuable reputation to so terrible a risk, lest what has cost years to gain…For even by victory he cannot gain what he has lost by exposing himself to the chances of loss.

* Do not be Glass in Intercourse, still less in Friendship. Some break very easily…They attribute to themselves imaginary offences and to others oppressive intentions… Motes offend them: they need not wait for beams. Those who consort with them must treat them with the greatest delicacy, have regard to their sensitiveness, and watch their demeanour, since the slightest slight arouses their annoyance…the Arrant is half adamant.

* Do not live in a Hurry. To know how to separate things is to know how to enjoy them. Many finish their fortune sooner than their life: they run through pleasures without enjoying them…They devour more in one day than they can digest in a whole life-time…Even in the search for knowledge there should be moderation, lest we learn things better left unknown…Be slow in enjoyment, quick at
work…

* Put up with Fools…according to Epictetus, put up with things: he makes that the moiety of wisdom. To put up with all the varieties of folly would need much patience… Out of patience comes forth peace, the priceless boon which is the happiness of the world…

* Be careful in Speaking. With your rivals from prudence; with others for the sake of appearance…Talk as if you were making your will: the fewer words the less litigation. In trivial matters exercise yourself for the more weighty matters of speech… He who speaks lightly soon falls or fails.

* Know your pet Faults. The most perfect of men has them…’Tis a gallant thing to get clear of them, and so give play to one’s other qualities. For all men hit upon such a failing, and on going over your qualifications they make a long stay at this blot, and blacken it as deeply as possible in order to cast your other talents into the shade.

* How to triumph over Rivals and Detractors… One cannot praise a man too much who speaks well of them who speak ill of him. There is no more heroic vengeance than that of talents and services which at once conquer and torment the envious. Every success is a further twist of the cord round the neck of the ill-affected, and an enemy’s glory is the rival’s hell. The envious die not once, but as oft as the envied wins applause.

* Never, from Sympathy with the Unfortunate, involve Yourself in his Fate. One man’s misfortune is another man’s luck, for one cannot be lucky without many being unlucky…Yet ’tis to be noticed how fate shuffles the cards.

* Throw Straws in the Air, to find how things will be received… By trying men’s intentions in this way, the wise man knows on what ground he stands.

* Wage War Honourably…Gallantry in the battle of life wins all men’s praise… A mean victory brings no glory, but rather disgrace. Honour always has the upper hand…In men of honour the smallest trace of meanness repels: the noble and the ignoble should be miles apart…

* Distinguish the Man of Words from the Man of Deeds. Discrimination here is as important as in the case of friends, persons, and employments…Words should be the pledges of work, and, like pawn-tickets, have their market price.

* Know how to take your own Part. In great crises there is no better companion than a bold heart, and if it becomes weak it must be strengthened from the neighbouring parts…He that knows himself knows how to strengthen his weakness, and the wise man conquers everything, even the stars in their courses.

* Recognise Faults, however high placed… Slavery does not lose its vileness, however it vaunt the nobility of its lord and master. Vices may stand in high place, but are low for all that… The example of the great is so specious that it even glosses over viciousness, till it may so affect those who flatter it that they do not notice that what they gloss over in the great they abominate in the lower classes.

* Do pleasant Things Yourself, unpleasant Things through Others. By the one course you gain goodwill, by the other you avoid hatred. A great man takes more pleasure in doing a favour than in receiving one: it is the privilege of his generous nature. One cannot easily cause pain to another without suffering pain either from sympathy or from remorse.

*Be the Bearer of Praise. This increases our credit for good taste, since it shows that we have learnt elsewhere to know what is excellent… It gives material for conversation and for imitation, and encourages praiseworthy exertions. Many pursue the plan of valuing more highly the mediocrities of the day than the most distinguished exploits of the past. Let the cautious penetrate through these subtleties, and let him not be dismayed by the exaggerations of the one or made over-confident by the flatteries of the other; knowing that both act in the same way by different methods, adapting their talk to the company they are in.

* Utilise Another’s Wants. The greater his wants the greater the turn of the screw… The energy of desire promises more than the inertia of possession. The passion of desire increases with every increase of opposition. It is a subtle point to satisfy the desire and yet preserve the dependence.

* Do not take Payment in Politeness; for it is a kind of fraud. Some… can enchant fools by the grace of their salute…To promise everything is to promise nothing…The true courtesy is performance of duty… It is not respect but rather a means to power. Obeisance is paid not to the man but to his means, and compliments are offered not to the qualities that are recognised but to the advantages that are desired.

*Do not turn one Blunder into two. It is quite usual to commit four others in order to remedy one… A wise man may make one slip but never two, and that only in running, not while standing still.

*Watch him that acts on Second Thoughts. It is a device of business men to put the opponent off his guard before attacking him, and thus to conquer by being defeated…Let therefore the attention never sleep when the intention is so wide awake…Prudence can discern the artifices which such a man uses…It is well to know what you grant him, and at times it is desirable to give him to understand that you understand.

* Peaceful Life, a long Life… Peacemakers not only live: they rule life… A day without dispute brings sleep without dreams… There is no greater perversity than to take everything to heart. There is equal folly in troubling our heart about what does not concern us and in not taking to heart what does.

* Watch him that begins with Another’s to end with his own. Watchfulness is the only guard against cunning. Be intent on his intentions. Many succeed in making others do their own affairs, and unless you possess the key to their motives you may at any moment be forced to take their chestnuts out of the fire to the damage of your own fingers.

* Have reasonable Views of Yourself and of your Affairs, especially in the beginning of life…Hope gives rise to extravagant promises which experience does not fulfil… It is wise to aim high so as to hit your mark, but not so high that you miss your mission at the very beginning of life…The best panacea against folly is prudence…

* Know how to Appreciate…To know how to make use of every one is useful knowledge. Wise men appreciate all men, for they see the good in each and know how hard it is to make anything good. Fools depreciate all men, not recognising the good and selecting the bad.

*Know your ruling Star… Luck shuffles the cards how and when she will. Let each man know his luck as well as his talents, for on this depends whether he loses or wins…

*Do not carry Fools on your Back. He that does not know a fool when he sees him is one himself: still more he that knows him but will not keep clear of him. They are dangerous company…They cannot help another’s credit who have none of their own. They are most unlucky…though they can be of no use to the wise, they can be of much use to them as signposts or as warnings.

*Know that there are vulgar Natures everywhere,.. But there is also such a thing as vulgar opposition to vulgarity, which is worse…is a disciple of ignorance, a patron of folly, and past master of scandal… It is important to know vulgarity in order to avoid it, whether it is subjective or objective. For all folly is vulgarity, and the vulgar consist of fools.

* Be Moderate…A moment of wrath or of pleasure carries you on farther than many hours of calm, and often a short diversion may put a whole life to shame… Moderation serves as a counterplot, especially in sudden emergencies. Much thought is needed…and he is doubly wise who is wise on horseback. He who knows the danger may with care pursue his journey.

* Reserve is proof of Prudence. The tongue is a wild beast;..it is the pulse of the soul by which wise men judge of its health: by this pulse a careful observer feels every movement of the heart. The worst is that he who should be most reserved is the least. The sage saves himself from worries and embarrassments…

*Be not Eccentric, neither from affectation nor carelessness. Many have some remarkable and individual quality leading to eccentric actions. These are more defects than excellent differences… Such eccentricities simply serve as trademarks through their atrocious singularity: they cause either derision or ill-will.

* The Art of letting Things alone… There are hurricanes in human affairs… it is wise to retire to a harbour and ride at anchor…to give way now is to conquer by and by… The best remedy for disturbances is to let them run their course, for so they quiet down.

* Recognise unlucky Days. They exist: nothing goes well on them…Two tries should be enough to tell if one is in luck to-day or not… But a shrewd person will not decide on the day’s luck by a single piece of good or bad fortune, for the one may be only a lucky chance…

*Find the Good in a Thing at once. ’Tis the advantage of good taste. The bee goes to the honey for her comb, the serpent to the gall for its venom. So with taste…They have the luckier taste who midst a thousand defects seize upon a single beauty they may have hit upon by chance.

*Do not listen to Yourself… General contempt is the punishment for self-satisfaction. The attention you pay to yourself you probably owe to others.

*Never from Obstinacy take the Wrong Side because your Opponent has anticipated you in taking the Right One… Such obstinacy is more dangerous in actions than in words, for action encounters more risk than talk… The sage never places himself on the side of passion, but espouses the cause of right, either discovering it first or improving it later…

*Never become Paradoxical in order to avoid the Trite. Both extremes damage our reputation… and in matters political would be the ruin of states. Those who cannot or dare not reach great deeds on the direct road of excellence go round by way of Paradox, admired by fools but making wise men true prophets…

*Begin with Another’s to end with your Own. ’Tis a politic means to your end…One should never advance unless under cover, especially where the ground is dangerous. Likewise with persons who always say No at first, it is useful to ward off this blow, because the difficulty of conceding much more does not occur to them when your version is presented to them…

*Do not show your wounded Finger, for everything will knock up against it; nor complain about it, for malice always aims where weakness can be injured…The wise never own to being hit… Never therefore disclose the source of mortification or of joy, if you wish the one to cease, the other to endure.

*Look into the Interior of Things. Things are generally other than they seem… Deceit is very superficial, and the superficial therefore easily fall into it. Prudence lives retired within its recesses, visited only by sages and wise men.

* Select your Friends…Yet a man is judged by his friends, for there was never agreement between wise men and fools… The insight of a true friend is more useful than the goodwill of others: therefore gain them by choice, not by chance. A wise… wards off worries, a foolish one brings them about. But do not wish them too much luck, or you may lose them.

* Do not make Mistakes about Character. That is the worst and yet easiest error…To know men is different from knowing things. It is profound philosophy to sound the depths of feeling and distinguish traits of character…

* Make use of your Friends… Few are worthy to be good friends, and even these become fewer because men do not know how to pick them out. To keep is more important than to make friends. Select those that will wear well…Absolutely the best are those well salted…Friendship multiplies the good of life and divides the evil.

*To find a proper Place by Merit, not by Presumption. The true road to respect is through merit…Integrity alone is not sufficient… the discredit destroys reputation. The true way is the middle one, half-way between de-serving a place and pushing oneself into it.

*Leave Something to wish for, so as not to be miserable from very happiness… Even in knowledge there should be always something left to know in order to arouse curiosity and excite hope… If there is nothing left to desire, there is everything to fear, an unhappy state of happiness. When desire dies, fear is born.

*Words and Deeds make the Perfect Man. One should speak well and act honourably…Eminent deeds endure, striking words pass away.

*Attempt easy Tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy. In the one case that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other that it may not be dismayed…patient industry overcomes impossibilities. Great undertakings are not to be brooded over, lest their difficulty when seen causes despair.

*Know how to play the Card of Contempt. It is a shrewd way of getting things you want… Contempt is besides the most subtle form of revenge…There is no revenge like oblivion, through which they are buried in the dust of their unworthiness…The art of reproving scandal is to take no notice of it…A shadow of a stain dulls the lustre of our fame even if it cannot altogether deaden it.

*Keep Yourself free from common Follies… Among these are to be counted the common prejudice that any one is satisfied with his fortune, however great, or unsatisfied with his intellect, however poor it is. Or again, that each, being discontented with his own lot, envies that of others; or further, that persons of to-day praise the things of yesterday…He is as great a fool that laughs at all as he that weeps at all.

* Know how to play the Card of Truth. ’Tis dangerous, yet a good man cannot avoid speaking it. But great skill is needed here… of sweetening the pill of truth…A pleasant manner has here an opportunity for a display of skill: with the same truth it can flatter one and fell another to the ground… For those who can understand a word is sufficient, and if it does not suffice, it is a case for silence…

*Keep to Yourself the final Touches of your Art…One must teach an art artfully. The source of knowledge need not be pointed out no more than that of giving. By this means a man preserves the respect and the dependence of others…To keep a reserve is a great rule for life and for success, especially for those in high place.

* Open your Eyes betimes… Not all that see have their eyes open…To come up to things too late is more worry than help… It is difficult to give sense to those who have no power of will, still more difficult to give energy to those who have no sense. Those who surround them play with them a game…

*Have a Touch of the Trader… Very wise folk are generally easily deceived, for while they know out-of-the-way things they do not know the ordinary things of life, which are much more needful…Of what use is knowledge if it is not practical, and to know how to live is nowadays the true knowledge.

*Know how to Contradict. A chief means of finding things out—to embarrass others without being embarrassed…Tepid incredulity acts as an emetic on secrets… An affected doubt is the subtlest picklock that curiosity can use to find out what it wants to know. Also in learning it is a subtle plan of the pupil to contradict the master, who thereupon takes pains to explain the truth more thoroughly and with more force, so that a moderate contradiction produces complete instruction.

*Let not the proffered Morsel be distasteful; otherwise it gives more discomfort than pleasure…What is flattery to one is an offence to another, and in attempting to be useful one may become insulting…Others desire to charm by their conversation, and only succeed in boring by their loquacity.

* Never trust your Honour to another, unless you have his in Pledge… Where honour is at stake you must act with a partner, so that each must be careful of the other’s honour for the sake of his own…Let the danger be in common and the risk mutual, so that your partner cannot turn king’s evidence.

* Know how to Ask. With some nothing easier: with others nothing so difficult. For there are men who cannot refuse: with them no skill is required. But with others their first word at all times is No; with them great art is required…It is no use applying when another has been refused, since the objection to a No has just been overcome. Nor is it a good time after sorrow. To oblige a person beforehand is a sure way, unless he is mean.

* Make an Obligation beforehand of what would have to be a Reward afterwards. This is a stroke of subtle policy; to grant favours before they are deserved is a proof of being obliging… This is a subtle means of transforming obligations, since that which would have forced the superior to reward is changed into one that obliges the one obliged to satisfy the obligation… But this is only suitable for men who have the feeling of obligation, since with men of lower stamp the honorarium paid beforehand acts rather as a bit than as a spur

* Never share the Secrets of your Superiors. You may think you will share pears, but you will only share parings… None ought to be too much beholden to us, least of all one of the great, unless it be for benefits done him rather than for such favours received from him. Especially dangerous are secrets entrusted to friends. He that communicates his secret to another makes himself that other’s slave. With a prince this is an intolerable position which cannot last. He will desire to recover his lost liberty, and to gain it will overturn everything, including right and reason…

* Know what is wanting in Yourself… It is remarkable with some that they could be much better if they could he better in something… Some are without organising ability, others lack moderation. In all such cases a careful man may make of habit a second nature.

* Do not be Captious. It is much more important to be sensible… It is well to know but not to niggle. Lengthy comment leads to disputes. It is much better to have sound sense, which does not wander from the matter in hand.

* Make use of Folly… You need not be unwise, but merely affect unwisdom. To be wise with fools and foolish with the wise were of little use… He is no fool who affects folly, but he is who suffers from it… To be well liked one must dress in the skin of the simplest of animals.

* Put up with Raillery, but do not practise it.
…Audacious raillery is delightful: to stand it proves power…Nothing requires more tact and attention. Before you begin to joke know how far the subject of your joke is able to bear it.

* Make an Obligation beforehand of what would have to be a Reward afterwards.
This is a stroke of subtle policy; to grant favours before they are deserved is a proof of being obliging. Favours thus granted beforehand have two great advantages: the promptness of the gift obliges the recipient…But this is only suitable for men who have the feeling of obligation, since with men of lower stamp the honorarium paid beforehand acts rather as a bit than as a spur.

* Never share the Secrets of your Superiors.
You may think you will share pears, but you will only share parings…It is no favour in a prince to share a secret: it is only a relief…Especially dangerous are secrets entrusted to friends…With a prince this is an intolerable position which cannot last. He will desire to recover his lost liberty, and to gain it will overturn everything, including right and reason.

* Know what is wanting in Yourself.
…It is remarkable with some that they could be much better if they could he better in something…Some are without organising ability, others lack moderation. In all such cases a careful man may make of habit a second nature.

*Do not be Captious.
It is much more important to be sensible…Common-sense truth is the surest. It is well to know but not to niggle. Lengthy comment leads to disputes. It is much better to have sound sense, which does not wander from the matter in hand.

* Make use of Folly.
…there are times when the greatest wisdom lies in seeming not to be wise. You need not be unwise, but merely affect unwisdom…Speak to each in his own language. He is no fool who affects folly, but he is who suffers from it…To be well liked one must dress in the skin of the simplest of animals.

* Put up with Raillery, but do not practise it.
…Audacious raillery is delightful: to stand it proves power…Nothing requires more tact and attention. Before you begin to joke know how far the subject of your joke is able to bear it.

* When to change the Conversation. When they talk scandal…If they speak ill of a thing it is the highest praise…To praise a thing is not always to speak well of it, for some, to avoid praising what’s good, praise what’s bad, and nothing is good for him for whom nothing is bad.

* Neither belong entirely to Yourself nor entirely to Others. Both are mean forms of tyranny…It is convenient at times to belong to others, that others may belong to us… On the other hand, others are all for others, which is folly, that always flies to extremes, in this case in a most unfortunate manner…A shrewd man knows that others when they seek him do not seek him, but their advantage in him and by him.

* Do not Explain overmuch…To be valued things should cost dear…You have to appear wiser and more prudent than he requires with whom you deal, if you desire to give him a high opinion of you: yet in this there should be moderation and no excess…

* Never despise an Evil, however small, for they never come alone: they are linked together like pieces of good fortune…One slip is a little thing: yet some fatal loss may follow it till you do not know where it will end… Patience serves with what comes from above; prudence with that from below.

* Do Good a little at a time, but often…Who gives much does not give but sells…for when the recipient sees all return is impossible he breaks off correspondence…There is a great subtlety in giving what costs little yet is much desired, so that it is esteemed the more.

* Go armed against Discourtesy, and against perfidy, presumption, and all other kinds of folly… prudence lies in avoiding a meeting with it…Be prepared for the occasion, and do not expose your reputation to vulgar contingencies…The road of human intercourse is difficult, for it is full of ruts which may jolt our credit. Best to take a byway…Feigned misunderstanding is of great value in such matters…and is often the only way out of difficulties.

* We belong to none and none to us, entirely. Neither relationship nor friendship nor the most intimate connection is sufficient to effect this… In this way one reveals all and conceals all, by making a distinction among the persons with whom we are connected.

* Do not follow up a Folly… At the beginning of their mistake they were regarded as inattentive, in the end as fools. Neither an unconsidered promise nor a mistaken resolution are really binding. Yet some continue in their folly and prefer to be constant fools.

* Silken Words, sugared Manners. Arrows pierce the body, insults the soul… Always have your mouth full of sugar to sweeten your words, so that even your ill-wishers enjoy them. To please one must be peaceful.

* The Wise do at once what the Fool does at last. Both do the same thing; the only difference lies in the time they do it: the one at the right time, the other at the wrong…The wise man, on the other hand, sees at once what must be done sooner or later, so he does it willingly and gains honour thereby.

* Make use of the Novelty of your Position; for men are valued while they are new. Novelty pleases all because it is uncommon… Ability wears away by use and becomes old. However, know that the glory of novelty is short-lived: after four days respect is gone. Accordingly, learn to utilise the first fruits of appreciation, and seize during the rapid passage of applause all that can be put to use…believe that all has its season, which soon passes.

* Do not condemn alone that which pleases all…Singularity is always hated, and, when in the wrong, laughed at. You simply destroy respect for your taste rather than do harm to the object of your blame, and are left alone, you and your bad taste. If you cannot find the good in a thing, hide your incapacity…What all say, is so, or will be so.

* In every Occupation if you know little stick to the safest. If you are not respected as subtle, you will be regarded as sure…To know little and yet seek danger is nothing else than to seek ruin. In such a case take stand on the right hand…Let little knowledge keep to the king’s highway, and in every case, knowing or unknowing, security is shrewder than singularity.

* Sell Things by the Tariff of Courtesy. You oblige people most that way… Courtesy does not really make presents, but really lays men under obligation, and generosity is the great obligation. To a right-minded man nothing costs more dear that what is given him: you sell it him twice and for two prices: one for the value, one for the politeness. At the same time it is true that with vulgar souls generosity is gibberish, for they do not understand the language of good breeding.

* Be able to Forget…Very often the only remedy for the ill is to forget it, and all we forget is the remedy. Nevertheless one should cultivate good habits of memory, for it is capable of making existence a Paradise or an Inferno. The happy are an exception who enjoy innocently their simple happiness.

* Have no careless Days. Fate loves to play tricks…Our intelligence, prudence, and courage, even our beauty, must always be ready for trial. For their day of careless trust will be that of their discredit. Care always fails just when it was most wanted… the day is chosen when least expected so as to put valour to the severest test.

* Set those under you difficult Task, many have proved themselves able at once when they had to deal with a difficulty, just as fear of drowning makes a swimmer of a man. In this way many have discovered their own courage, knowledge, or tact, which but for the opportunity would have been for ever buried beneath their want of enterprise…

* Do not become Bad from sheer Goodness. That is, by never getting into a temper. Such men without feeling are scarcely to be considered men. It does not always arise from laziness, but from sheer inability. To feel strongly on occasion is something personal…

* You should know the nature of those you have to deal with – to understand their intentions…You should learn to discover the expression, to read the soul by the appearance…that one who always laughs – for stupidity; who never laughs – for anger. One should shun the society of an inquisitive person – escape irresponsibility, insolence…

* You should be engaging – the charm of wise courtesy is in that…Your merits won’t do, if you aren’t charming – only charm will make you dearly loved, it is the most effective instrument in the hands of rulers.

* Showing condescension to the ordinary, you shouldn’t behave improperly. Don’t be prim and bad-tempered – it isn’t polite…Don’t think you are an exception: defiant conduct shows your disrespect to other people. You mustn’t afford to be whimsy… The best part for the man is to be a man; as to the woman – she can imitate a man, but not vice versa.

* Nature and art will refresh your character… Let a new perfection in later on… At that, a lot of people are used to change their behaviour only if their position or status have changed, it shows in character when it leaps to the eye…

* A personality can show oneself. Brilliance of merits is in it. Each gift will show itself when it is time. A person showing his outstanding talents is said to be a wonder. When showing off, retain a sense of proportion, you shouldn’t be a shallow person and must remember that lack of moderation is blamed by reasonable people. Sometimes it is the art of mute eloquence… a wise self-control is the most pleasant kind of praise: if you deny your own talents, you only spur curiosity on… And let one gift be followed by others…

* One shouldn’t be too conspicuous. As soon as you happen to be in the focus of attention, your merits will turn into your faults. The reason is that everything out of the usual order is often blamed;…But some people are flattered even when their crimes resound throughout the world…Even extensive knowledge degenerates to garrulous stupidity.

* Sometimes try not to raise objections to retorts. You should tell apart contradictions by ignorance and by archness; sometimes it’s obstinacy, but it may be a trick. So, beware of sinking into the first and falling a prey to the second.

* A man of honour. The time of good manners and customs has come to an end, obligations are not recognized, gratitude is rare to come across; the more zealous is the service, the poorer is the reward – this is the latest fashion everywhere. There are whole nations inclined to wicked actions… But the man of honour will never forget his origin.

* Approval by reasonable people. A cold “Yes” pronounced by an outstanding person is more complimentary that the praises by crowds. Wise people judge with competence, only their praise gives inexhaustible joy.

* It is effective to be absent from time to time – it wins the respect, rises your value…Merits are fading at a short distance… Disappearing out of sight at the height of your fame – you will remain famous. Even phoenix dies in the flames to arise brighter from the ashes, to stir up passion, to refresh admiration.

* Reasonably inventive…Inventiveness is the quality of talanted; selection is characteristic of reasonable people. A lot of people succeeded in selection, but only few invented with success. Everybody likes what is new; and if it has happened in good time – it’s double dear.

* You shouldn’t t be importunate and you won’t be disgraced this way… You should come only there, where you’re welcomed hospitably and greeted gladly; you shouldn’t  come until you’re invited  and you should leave before you are asked to…A tiresome person is always a target for curses…

* You mustn’t ruin yourself because of other peole’s grief. You should remember, if somebody is sinking in a bog, the poor thing would make you go too, to console together in common misfortune… You should be especially careful with drowning man – watch out to save him and don’t get drowned yourself.

* You shouldn’t let everybody entangle you with obligations – you are next to become the all men’s slave…Liberty is the dearest gift, but the easiest to get lost. It’s better when everyone depends on you than you’re dependent on anyone…

* You shouldn’t take actions when piping hot – you’ll do everything the wrong way…You must reasonably beat a retreat at the moment you feel out of  mind: lest your blood should kindle and you would do something awful, blamed by people, that you would have to confess about for many days to come…

* You should conform to circumstances. When guiding or making decisions – everything should be to the point; you should have desires when you are able to;…you shouldn’t vow not to do anything – nobody knows if  next day you would  have to drink the water that you won’t look at today…

* Nothing depreciates a Man more than to show he is a Man like other Men… Frivolity is the exact opposite of reputation… For frivolity is the exact opposite of solid seriousness… Although this blemish is so common it is none the less despised.

*Nothing depreciates a Man more than to show he is a Man like other Men… Frivolity is the exact opposite of reputation… For frivolity is the exact opposite of solid seriousness… Although this blemish is so common it is none the less despised.

* How-ever high the post, the person should be higher. An extensive capacity expands and dilates more and more as his office becomes higher… Here a lofty mind finds fit place, and well-grounded confidence finds its opportunity.

* Maturity. It is shown in the costume, still more in the customs… Maturity gives finish to his capacity and arouses respect. A composed bearing in a man forms a façade to his soul… Maturity finishes a man off, for each is so far a complete man according as he possesses maturity. On ceasing to be a child a man begins to gain seriousness and authority.

* Be moderate in your Views. Every one holds views according to his interest, and imagines he has abundant grounds for them. For with most men judgment has to give way to inclination…Place yourself in such a case in the other man’s place and then investigate the reasons for his opinion. You will not then condemn him or justify yourself in such a confusing way.

* Do not affect what you have not effected… Chameleons of applause they afford others a surfeit of laughter. Vanity is always objectionable, here it is despicable… The greater your exploits the less you need affect them: content yourself with doing, leave the talking to others… Aspire rather to be a hero than merely to appear one.