SAE and Spinoza’s EthicsSAE斯宾诺莎伦理学SAE斯賓諾莎倫理學 · 10 / 10
Difficult, and Rare
之十 · 既难又少
之十 · 既難又少
The last proposition is finished. The last word belongs to a path that can still be found.
至福不是做完功课后的奖赏；最后一页，路还在眼前。
至福不是做完功課後的獎賞；最後一頁，路還在眼前。
The 259th proposition in the book is the forty-second of Part V. Blessedness is not the reward of virtue but virtue itself. We do not enjoy it because we restrain our desires; rather, the capacity to restrain them follows from enjoying it.
The preceding scholium describes an attitude Spinoza attributes to many people. Piety, religion and strength of mind appear to them as burdens. They hope to set those burdens down after death and receive wages for the servitude.
The final demonstration begins with blessedness as love of God. Along the way it invokes the definition in Part IV identifying virtue with power. The direction of explanation is decisive: controlling the affects does not earn blessedness afterwards. The ability to control desires arises from blessedness itself.
Now we can see
The final scholium says the author has shown what he intended concerning the mind’s power over the affects and its freedom. We can now see how much a wise person is capable of, and how greatly that differs from someone driven by appetite alone.
The claim echoes the preface to Part V. There, Spinoza announced the way leading to freedom and said we would see how much stronger the wise person is than the ignorant. What was promised as something we would see is now reported as something we can see.
His contrast is severe. The ignorant person is tossed about by external causes, lacks true peace of mind, and lives almost without awareness of self, God or things. When that person ceases to be acted upon, Spinoza says, they cease to be.
The wise person, insofar as they are wise, is scarcely disturbed in spirit. Through a certain eternal necessity they understand themselves, God and things, never cease to be, and possess true peace of mind. These are the terms of the book’s closing contrast, not a casual description of who happens to feel calm.
A path that can be found
The path reappears. If the route he has pointed out seems exceedingly difficult, it can nevertheless be found.
Spinoza offers a reason for its difficulty: what is so rarely discovered must be hard. If salvation were ready to hand and available without considerable labour, how could almost everyone neglect it?
The movement goes from rarity toward difficulty. The path’s scarcity among people is made part of the explanation of the work it demands.
The loquat tree
In May, a loquat tree in the neighbourhood is covered with fruit. Few people reach any; few even stretch out a hand. Somebody watches for a while and says it must be hard to reach.
The scene lets us hear the move without pretending that it establishes every cause of the scarcity.
At the end
The last line brings the two words together: what is excellent is as difficult as it is rare.
The book has travelled from definitions of cause, substance and eternity to this sentence about finding a way. Its last word does not make the road disappear.
命题数到第二百五十九条，第五部分数到第四十二条，是这一条：至福不是德性的报酬，就是德性本身；我们享有至福，不是因为约束了欲念，倒过来，正因为享有它，我们才约束得了欲念。
它前头的附释，记的是多数人看来抱着的一种想法：虔敬，宗教，一切关乎心灵坚强的事，都是担子；他们盼着死后把担子卸下，为这份奴役领一份工钱。
命题的证明，从至福在于对神的爱说起，中间引了第四部分的一条定义：德性和力量，他理解为同一样东西。推到末一步是：没有谁是因为约束了情感才享有至福；约束欲念的能力，是从至福本身生出来的。
可以看出
附释开口就说：关于心灵对情感的力量，关于心灵的自由，我想指出的，都指出来了。由此可以看出，有智慧的人有多大能耐，比只受欲念驱使的无知的人强多少。
回到这一部分的开头。序言第一句，说的是通往自由的方式，或者说路；第二句预告：由此我们将看到，有智慧的人比无知的人强多少。预告的时候是将看到，到这里是可以看出。
无知的人，除了被外面的原因以多种方式搅动，从来得不到心灵真正的安宁，还活得像是不知道自己，不知道神，不知道事物；他一不再受动，也就不再存在。有智慧的人，就他作为有智慧的人来看，心灵几乎不为所动；他凭某种永恒的必然，知道自己，知道神，知道事物，从不停止存在，总享有心灵真正的安宁。
找得到
那条路这时又出现了：我指出的通往这些的路，要是看上去极难，它毕竟是找得到的。
道理他也给了：这么少有人找到的东西，当然该是难的；要是救赎就在手边，不费大力气就找得到，怎么会差不多人人都不理它呢。
他是从少推到难的。
枇杷
小区里有棵枇杷树，五月里结满了果子。够到的没几个，伸手去够的也没几个。有人在一边看了一会儿，说：看来不好够。
收束
难和少，他是一起说的：
可是，一切出众的东西，有多难，就有多少见。
命題數到第二百五十九條，第五部分數到第四十二條，是這一條：至福不是德性的報酬，就是德性本身；我們享有至福，不是因為約束了欲念，倒過來，正因為享有它，我們才約束得了欲念。
它前頭的附釋，記的是多數人看來抱著的一種想法：虔敬，宗教，一切關乎心靈堅強的事，都是擔子；他們盼著死後把擔子卸下，為這份奴役領一份工錢。
命題的證明，從至福在於對神的愛說起，中間引了第四部分的一條定義：德性和力量，他理解為同一樣東西。推到末一步是：沒有誰是因為約束了情感才享有至福；約束欲念的能力，是從至福本身生出來的。
可以看出
附釋開口就說：關於心靈對情感的力量，關於心靈的自由，我想指出的，都指出來了。由此可以看出，有智慧的人有多大能耐，比只受欲念驅使的無知的人強多少。
回到這一部分的開頭。序言第一句，說的是通往自由的方式，或者說路；第二句預告：由此我們將看到，有智慧的人比無知的人強多少。預告的時候是將看到，到這裡是可以看出。
無知的人，除了被外面的原因以多種方式攪動，從來得不到心靈真正的安寧，還活得像是不知道自己，不知道神，不知道事物；他一不再受動，也就不再存在。有智慧的人，就他作為有智慧的人來看，心靈幾乎不為所動；他憑某種永恆的必然，知道自己，知道神，知道事物，從不停止存在，總享有心靈真正的安寧。
找得到
那條路這時又出現了：我指出的通往這些的路，要是看上去極難，它畢竟是找得到的。
道理他也給了：這麼少有人找到的東西，當然該是難的；要是救贖就在手邊，不費大力氣就找得到，怎麼會差不多人人都不理它呢。
他是從少推到難的。
枇杷
小區裡有棵枇杷樹，五月裡結滿了果子。夠到的沒幾個，伸手去夠的也沒幾個。有人在一邊看了一會兒，說：看來不好夠。
收束
難和少，他是一起說的：
可是，一切出眾的東西，有多難，就有多少見。
Text, editions & sources文本、版本与来源文本、版本與來源
Location: V.42 and its scholium, with the preceding scholium to V.41 and the preface to Part V. Blessedness is retained as a technical term distinct from momentary pleasure.
The loquat scene makes visible the inference from rarity toward difficulty. It neither proves that rarity always implies difficulty nor resolves every reason that people do not pursue the path.
对应第五部分第四十二条命题及附释，并回看第四十一条命题附释与本部分序言。“至福”不简化成一时的愉快。
枇杷树的例子显出从少到难的推理，不替“一切稀少都因困难”作证明，也不穷尽人们为何不去追求。
對應第五部分第四十二條命題及附釋，並回看第四十一條命題附釋與本部分序言。「至福」不簡化成一時的愉快。
枇杷樹的例子顯出從少到難的推理，不替「一切稀少都因困難」作證明，也不窮盡人們為何不去追求。