In
the application of your principles you must be like the pancratiast, not like
the gladiator. For the gladiator lets fall the sword which he uses and is
killed; but the other always has his hand, and needs to do nothing else than
use it.
—Marcus
Aurelius, Meditations, Book 12.9 (tr
Long)
In the
gladiatorial games, a man’s life would depend upon keeping a hold of his
weapons, but in the pancratium, a sort of no-holds-barred form of wrestling and
boxing, where only biting and gouging were prohibited, a man would depend solely
upon his own skill and strength.
There is
a similar difference in life, between those who rely on the tools given them by
circumstance, and those who rely on the tools within their own nature.
Notice
how certain people are happy to inform you that they are “self-made”, that they
built it all up from nothing, and that all their rich rewards as truly merited.
Now you
should already be suspicious when they feel the need to tell you this, somehow craving
your approval, but you should also look more closely at what they have actually
done. For all of their abilities, notice how their good fortune depends mainly
on taking advantage of specific conditions. Yes, they were quite clever or
daring, but without a certain state of affairs having conveniently unfolded as
it did, they would still be as nothing, and they would have nothing to brag
about.
Other
people, however, don’t even define themselves by how much fortune and fame they
have acquired, and they simply manage to be good people, regardless of whether
they became rich or poor, revered or rejected. Their opportunities flow from
within, not from without.
Now I
may wonder what they have actually done, since they don’t seem to have any real
spoils to show for it. There, however, is the heart of the matter. What is the
greatest victory? What does it actually require of me? Will I need something in
the world to fall into place for me, or will it be enough to merely master
myself?
One sort
of man needs to pick up a sword in order to be victorious, while the other sort
of man needs only his own hands.
Written in 7/2009
This reminds me specifically of the bible verse Ephesians 6:14-17 which I'll site the beginning, "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, . . ." The tools we should have as righteous men or those that we carry with ourselves are always prepared and at our disposal. You can find a swordsman weak without his sword, but the boxer is always ready to fight.
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