Satsang Saturday, 17 January 2026

According to Plato, the four qualities of a good person are:

1. Self-control
2. (Witnessing the self)
3. Justice
4. Wisdom
5. Courage

This is according to the book Be Human, Then Divine.

The four virtues serve as a guiding hand in the chaos in which we find ourselves.
When correctly understood, they lead to a state of harmony. The result is the calm,
harmonious state of mind required for contemplative practices.

Human beings are good by nature. However, we do need guidance in developing human
virtues. This is because, if we had the inner insight to see the immortal path of
our soul, we would naturally be inclined to act in a balanced and moderate way. But
because we are blind, we do not know the future and therefore cannot foresee the
consequences of our actions. Since knowledge of the future is inaccessible to us,
we employ our virtues to ensure a good outcome for our soul.

Virtue 1: Temperance

(or self-control, moderation, modesty)

Use the power of habit to master the following: first the stomach, then sleep, then
sex, and finally anger.

Internalization: Process the lessons within yourself. This means reflecting deeply
on them, absorbing them, and deciding for yourself whether they suit you. To
internalize means first to understand, then to choose.

For the ancient philosophers (such as Plato and Socrates), the lowest form of
virtue was “conventional virtue,” based on simply following rules and customs. For
these philosophers, temperance is a conscious choice: the choice for a balanced way
of life. It means distinguishing between what we need and what we merely want.
Desire knows almost no limits and extends toward infinity.

The Pythagoreans had a short saying: Choose the best way of life, and habit will
make it pleasant.

This is not about suppression, but about choosing.

In this case, choosing temperance concerns eating, sleeping, sex, and anger.

Witnessing the Self

We should commit no shameful acts, neither together with others nor alone. Above
all, have respect for yourself.

This is not fear of judgment or punishment. It is awe. It is reverence and wonder.

If we knew that we stood in the radiant presence of an awe-inspiring and divine
being, we would, out of respect, always behave in a way worthy of that witness (p.
111).
If you position yourself as your own most intimate overseer, then by turning inward
toward yourself, you will begin to turn away from all temptations.

The problem, says Procopius in Be More Human Than Divine, is that we do not know
ourselves. That self is immortal, a spark of the divine.

“Know yourself” does not mean getting to know your personality or analyzing your
flaws and feeling ashamed of them. Our self is not the body. To know yourself means
to know your soul.

Heraclitus said: All people have the capacity to know themselves and to practice
self-control (p. 113).

The Golden Verses set a lofty goal, the challenge of a lifetime, in their
instruction to revere and fear the true self. It is an invitation to open yourself
to the unknown. Most people live in what philosophers call “arrogant ignorance.”
Without knowing who they truly are, people nevertheless spew opinions and judgments
about the world around them. This arrogant ignorance creates a comfort zone, but
the search for self-knowledge requires us to leave that comfort zone. It begins
with a period of uncertainty and doubt. Am I, ultimately, that arrogant titan full
of pride, or am I a simple, divine, and humble being?

Virtue 2: Justice

Next, practice justice in word and deed.

According to Socrates, true justice is harming no one, not even someone considered
an enemy. Everything the just person does is for the benefit of all.

Socrates was known for his steadfast attitude of kindness and forgiveness, even
toward those who were aggressive toward him. When someone said to him, “Don’t you
find that person terribly offensive?”, Socrates replied, “No, because it takes two
people to quarrel.”

For justice within ourselves, we need inner stability and balance.

When love is directed upward, toward the highest current of the psyche, the
negative emotions of jealousy, envy, anger, and vindictiveness—which arise from the
middle current of the psyche—begin to dissolve and disappear. Love, kindness,
compassion, and forgiveness arise naturally. One’s perspective becomes broader,
more objective, and less egocentric.

It is the Shabd that frees people from this—that is, meditation.

Virtue 3: Wisdom

Make it a habit not to act thoughtlessly in anything you do.

Practical wisdom enables us, with self-control and without fear, to endure all the
changes of mortal nature and the fate that follows from them.

Why do we not continually pay attention to our awareness? We do everything that

comes into our minds. We follow our impulses. And in this way, we develop the habit
of not paying attention.
Practical wisdom means keeping your priorities clear.

Hierocles says that when practical wisdom is deeply rooted, it enables us to make
good decisions about all things, to bear death with courage, and to endure the loss
of possessions in a harmonious way.

Virtue 4: Courage

Instead, be fully aware that death is the fate of everyone. As for possessions—now
you have them, now you no longer do.

This also applies to relationships, including those who are dearest and most
beloved to us.

Courage gives a person the resilience to accept life as it is and to take

appropriate and positive action.

In short, the philosopher is on guard against himself, as if defending himself

against an enemy who is conspiring against him.

When it comes to guarding one’s own integrity, the philosopher has a hundred eyes
that never blink. Body, possessions, and reputation have no real value for the
philosopher. The greatest misfortune would be the loss of integrity.

The teaching of Epictetus can be summarized in three short statements:

1. Develop indifference toward what you cannot change.
2. Take positive action to change what you can.
3. Practice awareness in order to distinguish the first scenario from the
second.

We are all actors in a play; it is not up to us which role we are given.

Remember that you are an actor in a play that is as the playwright wishes—whether
it is short or long. If he wants you to play a beggar, then play that role well; or
a cripple, or an official, or an ordinary citizen. Your task is to play the
assigned role well. But the choice belongs to someone else.

Ultimately, since everyone sooner or later encounters adversity, human happiness

depends on developing a positive attitude toward adversity.

There is a kind of river of things that pass into non-being, and time is a raging
stream. For as soon as something has been seen, it is already swept away, and
something else is swept along, and that too will be swept away.

Whatever happens to you has already been prepared for you from all eternity, and
the interweaving of causes has, since time immemorial, woven your being together
with your encounter with this event.

It is a characteristic of a good person to love all events that he or she

encounters and that are bound to him or her by fate, and to welcome them with joy.

We have discussed all four cardinal virtues: self-control, justice, wisdom, and
courage. Each of them places rather strict demands on us.

Is it even reasonable to set such high demands on our own integrity as our highest
priority?
If we understand that the soul is immortal, this makes the effort to live with
integrity not only possible but meaningful. And when setbacks come, and we
understand that they arise from our own actions in previous lives, this can
strengthen our motivation in this life to remain faithful to our principles.

After thoroughly and honestly considering the causes of these events, we should
endure them without blaming our divine guardians, who give each person what he
deserves in justice. They do not consider all people worthy of the same reward if
those people did not live according to these principles in their previous lives.

Pythagoras is generally regarded as the first to make the theory of reincarnation

widely known in the Mediterranean region. Pythagoras taught not only that the soul
passes from one form to another, but also that everything that has happened before
will repeat itself according to certain cycles; there is simply nothing new under
the sun, and one should regard all living beings as relatives.