You must not conceive, however, that he rushed into these matters with unwashen feet, as the saying goes: he was brought up on the poets and knew most of them by heart, he was a practised speaker, his acquaintance with the schools of philosophy was not secured either in a short time or (to quote the proverb) “with the tip of his finger,” he had trained his body and hardened it for endurance and in general he had made it his aim to require nothing from anyone else. Consequently, when he found out that he was no longer sufficient unto himself, he volun- tarily took his departure from life, leaving behind him a great reputation among Greeks of culture.

He did not mark out for himself a single form of philosophy but combined many of them, and never would quite reveal which one he favoured. Probably he had most in common with Socrates, although he seemed to follow the man of SinopeDiogenes. in dress and in easy-going ways. He did not, however, alter the details of his life in order to excite the wonder and attract the gaze of men he met, but led the same life as everyone else, was simple and not in the least subject to pride, and played his part in society and politics.