صفحة 393 من 1391

Is there any better criterion than experience and knowledge? And

which of the three has the truest knowledge and the widest

experience? The experience of youth makes the philosopher

acquainted with the two kinds of desire, but the avaricious and

the ambitious man never taste the pleasures of truth and wisdom.

Honour he has equally with them; they are 'judged of him,' but he

is 'not judged of them,' for they never attain to the knowledge

of true being. And his instrument is reason, whereas their

standard is only wealth and honour; and if by reason we are to

judge, his good will be the truest. And so we arrive at the

result that the pleasure of the rational part of the soul, and a

life passed in such pleasure is the pleasantest. He who has a

right to judge judges thus. Next comes the life of ambition, and,

in the third place, that of money-making.