Beauty

When people see some things as beautiful, other things become ugly. When people see some things as good, other things become bad. — Lao Tzu

Small minded people blame others. Average people blame themselves. The wise see all blame as foolishness. —Epictetus, on anger

The first one puzzles me. Why must something be perceived as ugly if something else is perceived as beautiful. Is lack of perceived beauty ugliness or is it just ordinary, non-beautiful? In the same way is ugliness the lack of beauty or is it its own characteristic? If we perceive ugliness will we by necessity perceive beauty elsewhere? I'm not so sure. I'm not convinced that qualities by necessity create other qualities. Perhaps the dichotomy is good - non-good and bad - non-bad vs. good - bad.

Unlike many modern people, Epictetus didn't find anger a positive emotion. It was a Stoic vice, later one of the Christian capital sins. Anger clouds the mind and that to a Stoic is to be avoided. Rather, we must train our minds as we train our bodies.\

If, therefore, you wish not to be hot-tempered, do not feed your habit, set before it nothing on which it can grow. As the first step, keep quiet and count the days on which you have not been angry. . . . If you go as much as thirty days without a fit of anger, sacrifice to God. For the habit is first weakened and then utterly destroyed.

- Bill