Golden Sayings   

"Thou are the Sun! in thine orbit thou hast power to make the
year and the seasons;
to bid the fruits of the earth to grow
and increase, the winds arise and fall;
thou canst in due measure cherish with
thy warmth the frames of men; go make
thy circuit, and thus minister unto all
from the greatest to the least! . . .
"Thou canst lead a host against Troy; be Agamemnon!"
"Thou canst meet Hector in single combat; be Achilles!"

But had Thersites stepped forward and claimed the chief
command, he had been met with a refusal, or obtained it only to
his own shame and confusion of face, before a cloud of
witnesses."

CXI

Others may fence themselves with walls and houses, when they
do such deeds as these, and wrap themselves in darkness--aye,
they have many a device to hide themselves. Another may shut his
door and station one before his chamber to say, if any comes, He
has gone forth! he is not at leisure! But the true Cynic will
have none of these things; instead of them, he must wrap himself
in Modesty: else he will but bring himself to shame, naked and
under the open sky. That is his house; that is his door; that is
the slave that guards his chamber; that is his darkness!

CXII

Death? let it come when it will, whether it smite but a part
of the whole: Fly, you tell me--fly! But whither shall I fly?
Can any man cast me beyond the limits of the World? It may not
be! And whithersoever I go, there shall I still find Sun, Moon,
and Stars; there I shall find dreams, and omens, and converse
with the Gods!

CXIII

Furthermore the true Cynic must know that he is sent as a
Messenger from God to men, to show unto them that as touching
good and evil they are in error; looking for these where they are
not to be found, nor ever bethinking themselves where they are.
And like Diogenes when brought before Philip after the battle of
Chaeronea, the Cynic must remember that he is a Spy. For a Spy he
really is--to bring back word what things are on Man's side, and
what against him. And when he had diligently observed all, he
must come back with a true report, not terrified into announcing
them to be foes that are no foes, nor otherwise perturbed or