Compare translations

The same words of Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus in every English translation on the site, side by side.

Enchiridion 4

W. A. Oldfather

1928 · default

When you are on the point of putting your hand to some undertaking, remind yourself what the nature of that undertaking is. If you are going out of the house to bathe, put before your mind what happens at a public bath—those who splash you with water, those who jostle against you, those who vilify you and rob you. And thus you will set about your undertaking more securely if at the outset you say to yourself, "I want to take a bath, and, at the same time, to keep my moral purpose in harmony with nature." And so do in every undertaking. For thus, if anything happens to hinder you in your bathing, you will be ready to say, "Oh, well, this was not the only thing that I wanted, but I wanted also to keep my moral purpose in harmony with nature; and I shall not so keep it if I am vexed at what is going on."

Read on in this translation

George Long

1877

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.

Read on in this translation

P. E. Matheson

1916

When you are about to take something in hand, remind yourself what manner of thing it is. If you are going to bathe put before your mind what happens in the bath—water pouring over some, others being jostled, some reviling, others stealing; and you will set to work more securely if you say to yourself at once: 'I want to bathe, and I want to keep my will in harmony with nature,' and so in each thing you do; for in this way, if anything turns up to hinder you in your bathing, you will be ready to say, 'I did not want only to bathe, but to keep my will in harmony with nature, and I shall not so keep it, if I lose my temper at what happens'.

Read on in this translation

Which translation of the Enchiridion?

Every translation here is complete and free to read in full on this site. They differ in age and in voice. The measurements below are taken from the whole of each translation.

Translation	Words	Words per sentence	“Thou” and “thy” per 1,000 words	In a sentence
W. A. Oldfather1928	8,272	26.2	0.1	The Loeb Classical Library edition, printed facing the Greek. Smooth, modern prose, and the translation this site uses by default.
George Long1877	8,144	26.4	0.2	The most literal of the three. Long often prints the Greek term or an alternative rendering in brackets, which makes it slow going but useful for checking the others.
P. E. Matheson1916	7,361	25.1 (shortest)	0	Published by the Clarendon Press, Oxford. The plainest and most concise of the three, and the easiest to read aloud.

Shorter sentences and fewer old forms usually make for an easier read; the older, more literal versions are better for checking what the original says. A good way to use them is to read in one and, when a sentence stops you, look at it here in the others.