Quotation
Last reviewed:
“Some things are up to us and some are not. Up to us are judgement, impulse, desire, aversion — in a word, whatever is our own doing. Not up to us are our body, our property, reputation, office — in a word, whatever is not our own doing.”
Epictetus · Stoicism · Ancient · c. 108 CE
Part of:Stoicism in 5 steps →
What does it mean?
The mainstream reading is that freedom lies in treating as yours only judgement, impulse, desire, and aversion, and in classing body, property, reputation, and office as not up to us. A competing reading warns that the modern word 'control' is wider than his list, so people use the line to shrug at things they could still influence. The passage opens the Enchiridion, which Arrian condensed from Epictetus's teaching. Every later exercise in the Handbook assumes it.
Did Epictetus really say this?
The library’s label is Paraphrase or translation. Epictetus did not write the Handbook. Arrian did, from the teaching. This is a close translation of the opening, which every later Stoic exercise assumes.
Where it comes from
Enchiridion 1, from Arrian's notes
Approximate date: c. 108 CE.
How to use it
When a delayed train wrecks a connection at Birmingham New Street, split the page into what is yours in the next hour and what you cannot guarantee. The next train and a calm message home sit on the first list; the earlier departure does not. Put the effort on the first list, without pretending the missed meeting does not matter.
A mindset reading
This is a discipline, not a shrug, and 'not up to us' does not mean 'not worth caring about'. It means that the outcome is the wrong place to locate your freedom. The habit is to redraw the line every time you are suffering over a result you cannot secure.
Understand the philosophy
Epictetus is answering where peace can actually be secured. 'Up to us', eph' hēmin, means what is our own doing: the use of impressions, not the impressions' arrival and not the world's reply. The Handbook is a set of exercises for students who are still progressing. It is not a description of how an ordinary day feels before the practice.
- freedom
- mind
- self
FAQ
What does it mean?
The mainstream reading is that freedom lies in treating as yours only judgement, impulse, desire, and aversion, and in classing body, property, reputation, and office as not up to us. A competing reading warns that the modern word 'control' is wider than his list, so people use the line to shrug at things they could still influence. The passage opens the Enchiridion, which Arrian condensed from Epictetus's teaching. Every later exercise in the Handbook assumes it.
Did Epictetus really say this?
Paraphrase or translation. Epictetus did not write the Handbook. Arrian did, from the teaching. This is a close translation of the opening, which every later Stoic exercise assumes.
Which work is it in?
Enchiridion 1, from Arrian's notes Approximate date: c. 108 CE.