What is this thing in itself, in its own constitution? What are its elements of substance and material, and of cause? What is its function in the world? What is its duration?
When you are reluctant to get up from your sleep, remind yourself that it is your constitution and man's nature to perform social acts, whereas sleep is something you share with dumb animals. Now what accords with the nature of each being is thereby the more closely related to it, the more in its essence, and indeed the more to its liking.
You should regret not having courage, integrity, or being kind to others. When you experience regret in these circumstances, it is a good sign of your recognition that you should improve at becoming a good person. Let this regret work on you and then determine not to miss the next opportunity to demonstrate courage, integrity and being kind to others. On the other side of the coin, it is worth noting that a wholly good person does not regret opportunities to experience more pleasure.
One of the key steps in the discipline of assent is to define everything by breaking it down and by stripping it of its superficial appearances. This can be done for fame, the desire to be immortal, or for riches and wealth. Describe it in plain, unpolished, bare-to-the-bones terms. You will then see its true worth. Ice cream is liquid from a cow’s teats, with fat and sugar. The fat and sugars attach themselves to your body and provide low-grade energy. A house is made of sticky dirt and rocks, with some wood, wires and plaster.
Lastly, regarding chapter 12, when you wake, remember you were born to be in the world, which means you need to get up, and start moving, doing, interacting, thinking, and changing things. Indeed, you and dumb animals share the attribute of 'sleep'. Animals, when they wake, carry on with what they were designed to do: eat, grow fat, produce wool, etc. What were you designed to do? To be social, to partake in the great effort of changing the world.
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