Epictetus, Golden Sayings 9

If a man could be thoroughly penetrated, as he ought, with this thought, that we are all in a special manner sprung from God, and that God is the Father of men as well as of Gods, full surely he would never conceive anything ignoble or base of himself. 

Whereas if Caesar were to adopt you, your haughty looks would be intolerable. Will you not be elated at knowing that you are the son of God? 

Now however it is not so with us, but seeing that in our birth these two things are commingled—the body which we share with the animals, and the Reason and Thought which we share with the Gods—many decline towards this unhappy kinship with the dead, and few rise to the blessed kinship with the Divine. 

Since then everyone must deal with each thing according to the view which he forms about it, those few who hold that they are born for fidelity, modesty, and unerring sureness in dealing with the things of sense, never conceive anything base or ignoble of themselves.

But the multitude are the contrary. Why, what am I? A wretched human creature, with this miserable flesh of mine. Miserable indeed! but you have something better than that paltry flesh of yours. Why then cling to the one, and neglect the other?