Remedies for Sorrow or Pain

The weariness of sorrow or pain is relieved by pleasure, just as bodily fatigue is relieved by rest.

Tears and other outward expressions of sorrow give some relief to the afflicted person; these are natural manifestations; they seem to disperse sorrow, letting it escape outwardly, rather than keeping it pent up in the sufferer.

Pain is assuaged and sorrow is abated by the consolation of kindly words and deeds, the sympathy of friends.

The contemplation of truth, which is the noblest employment of the mind, gives the greatest pleasure, and therefore is a powerful relief for pain or sorrow. The greater is one’s love of wisdom, the more powerfully does contemplation of truth counteract pain.

Bodily remedies, such as sleep and baths, are valuable remedies for sorrow or pain in so far as they quiet the disturbance of nature caused by pain.