On Exile 5

. . . "It is not true, moreover, that exiles lack the very necessities of life. To be sure men who are idle and unresourceful and unable to play the part of a man are generally in want and without resources even when they are in their own country, but energetic and hard working and intelligent men, no matter where they go, fare well and live without want.

"We do not feel the lack of many things unless we wish to live luxuriously:

" 'For what do mortals need beside two things only,
The bread of Demeter and a drink of the Water-carrier,
Which are at hand and have been made to nourish us?' " . . .

--Musonius Rufus, Fragment 9 (tr Lutz)

I used to misread this years ago, assuming Musonius  meant that anyone can find worldly success anywhere, since a clever mind, hard work, and dedication will always get the job done. If I just put my mind to it, I can achieve anything.

Distinguish. We are so familiar with the usual mantra, that we can be anything we want to be be, as long as we just believe in ourselves. Lawyer, doctor, astronaut, real estate tycoon, President of the United States? All are within reach.

Let us define what we mean by success. The man who craves a success of power, glory, and wealth most certainly can't do that at all, because these things are not within his power. He depends more upon the circumstances of the world than his own effort in such a case, and he becomes 'successful' in direct proportion to how much he enslaves himself.

That is, however, not the sort of success or happiness that Musonius would encourage.

Note how Musonius says that the man in exile can still find the necessities, and will not be in want. He even tells us that this has nothing to do with living luxuriously.

So what are the necessities of survival? The most basic food, clothing, and shelter will do. Nothing fancy is necessary. Anything else is extraneous. As long as I live and breathe, I can practice wisdom and virtue. That is the sort of 'success' that Musonius would encourage.

Here is the even deeper beauty of it all. Let's say you also take my food, water, or shelter, and tell me that I must now die as a failure.

No, I can, by being energetic and resourceful in the true sense, live well until my dying day, whether it be at this moment or in years to come. It all depends on what we mean by living well. That is true even if you hold a gun to my head. The 'Stoic Turn' shifts the value of life around, and replaces all things external with things internal, distinguishes the things that are means from the true ends.

Exile must not make me weaker or worse, precisely because a good man needs very little outside of himself to live with moral excellence. If even those basic means are lost, then he can also die with excellence. This is a win/win situation, because you can't take it from him.

In the larger picture, the when, where, or how will make little difference at all. The good man can be good wherever, whenever, or however he lives. Exile will not change it.

What happens when we remove all the luxuries from a morally weak man? He becomes even weaker, and demands all the more loudly to be treated rightly. What happens when we remove all the luxuries from a morally strong man? He becomes even stronger, and quietly treats others rightly all the more.

I was always suspicious when, as a child, I was told that I could be whatever I wanted to be, and only my dreams were my limits. This is not because I am a cynic, but because I think I already saw an important distinction. I can learn to rule myself, but it is vanity and foolishness to dream to rule the world.

An exile understands this, because that reality has been forced upon him. The world is not, and should not, conform to our wishes. The man who is truly energetic, hard working, and intelligent makes himself happy through estimation, not through circumstance.

Written in 8/2013

Image: Domenico Peterlini, Dante in Exile (c. 1860):