Liber I, Pars II — Quomodo reges, et principes possunt seipsos prudentes facere. Cap. IX.

Liber I, Pars II — Quomodo reges, et principes possunt seipsos prudentes facere. Cap. IX.

The soul, while sitting and resting, should be prudent, as the philosopher says. Of the Physics. Therefore, kings and princes, if they desire to be prudent, should not attend to vanities; instead, they ought to spend the greater part of their lives thinking about what can be beneficial to the kingdom. This should not be understood as meaning they should have no bodily recreations, but they should use them so moderately that they are not hindered in ruling their kingdom. Therefore, they will be able to make themselves prudent so as to rule the kingdom naturally. By thinking over past times, under which the kingdom was ruled better, they will have a memory of past events, from which they will be able to know what should be done in the future. For they should always conform their rule to the past rule, under which the kingdom was governed more safely and better. For just as in speculating and thinking about what the ancient philosophers wrote, we become wiser in speculative matters, so kings and princes, by reflecting on the deeds of their predecessors, become more prudent in practical matters. Secondly, they ought to diligently consider the good things that can be beneficial to the kingdom, and the bad things that can be harmful. For from this they had foresight of future things, so that they might be able to avoid evils more readily and obtain goods more easily. Thirdly, they ought often to reflect upon good customs and good laws; for such things are especially the principles of what can be done, just as understanding the principles is. Therefore, the king is more understanding concerning what can be done, to the extent that he has more good laws and good customs in mind; from these, he can know what ought to be done in any matter. Fourthly, he ought to devise more frequently how, through such good laws and customs, he may duly rule the kingdom, eliciting from them the necessary conclusions about what can be done. For it is not enough to be understanding, having knowledge of laws and customs, which are the principles of what can be done, unless someone is rational, eliciting the necessary conclusions from those laws and customs. We will show how this ought to be done in the third book, where we will discuss the government of the kingdom more fully. Therefore, kings, by giving attention to those eight things that are required for prudence, which we mentioned in the preceding chapter, will be able to make themselves prudent. Indeed, malice is corrupting to the principle. For just as someone with a corrupted taste judges flavors poorly, believing something bitter to be sweet and vice versa, so too does a person with a tainted and depraved will become blinded in understanding, judging poorly about what is to be done; they may think something should be done that should actually be avoided, and vice versa. Therefore, it is rightly said that what is written in Ethics 6 is true. For it is impossible for a prudent person to exist without a good. Malice corrupts judgment, so that someone may act imprudently due to a depraved will. Therefore, if kings and princes want to be prudent, they must remember to be wise, careful, alert, and teachable, along with other qualities we mentioned earlier; they must be good and not have a depraved will, so that they do not act imprudently due to the malice of desire, judging that what should be done is actually to be avoided.