ZENO, a celebrated Greek philosopher, was born at Citium, in the isle of Cyprus, and was the founder of the sect of the Stoics. This sect had its name from that of a portico at Athens, where this philosopher chose to hold his discourses. He was cast upon that coast by shipwreck; and he ever after regarded this as a great happiness, praising the winds for having so happily driven him into the port of Piræum. Zeno was the disciple of Crates, and had a great number of followers. He made the sovereign good consist in living in conformity to nature, guided by the dictates of right reason. He acknowledged but one God; and admitted an inevitable destiny over all events. His fervent taking advantage of this last opinion, cried, while he was beating him for his dishonesty, "I was destined to steal." To which Zeno replied, "Yes; and to be beaten." This philosopher was accustomed to say, "That if a wise man ought not to be in love, as some pretended, none would be more miserable than beautiful and virtuous women, since they would have none for their admirers but fools." He also said, "That a part of knowledge consists of being ignorant of such things as ought not to be known: that a friend is another self; that a little matter gives perfection to a work, though perfection is not a little matter." He compared those who spoke well and lived ill, to the money of Alexandria, which was beautiful, but composed of bad metal. It is said, that being hurt by a fall, he laid violent hands on himself about 264 B. C. Cleanthes, Crisippus, and the other successors of Zeno maintained, that with virtue we might be happy in the midst even of disgrace and the most dreadful torments. They admitted the existence of only one God, the soul of the world, which they considered as his body, and both together forming a perfect being. It must be confessed, that of all the sects of the ancient philosophers, this was one of those which produced the greatest men.
We ought not to confound the two Zenos already mentioned, with
ZENO a celebrated Epicurean philosopher, born at Sidon, who had Cicero and Pomponius Atticus for his disciples, and who wrote a book against the mathematics, which, as well as that of Possidonius's refutation of it, is lost; nor with several other Zenos mentioned in history.