"If thou suffer injustice, console thyself; the true unhappiness is in doing it"

When confronted with injustice, it is natural to feel wounded, indignant, or defeated. Yet Democritus encourages a reversal of perspective, offering consolation to those who endure unfairness. He implies that suffering at the hands of others, while painful, does not represent the deepest misfortune. Instead, the genuine tragedy lies with those who commit injustice, for their actions reveal a corruption of character and the erosion of moral substance.

To be the victim of injustice is to experience the world’s imperfections, but to perpetrate injustice is to become a source of that imperfection. The one who suffers wrong retains the chance to preserve integrity, dignity, and conscience, qualities untouched by external harm. Conversely, the individual who inflicts harm damages not only another but themselves, tethering their happiness to fleeting power, greed, or spite while undermining their own ethical foundation. In doing wrong, a person distances themselves from the potential for genuine fulfillment and peace, as wrongdoing sows discord within the soul that is often more destructive than any external punishment.

Democritus’s counsel provides comfort to those enduring wrong by suggesting that moral suffering surpasses physical or circumstantial loss. The suggestion aligns with ancient philosophical traditions that locate happiness in virtue and internal harmony rather than external advantage. This ideal urges the sufferer to look within, to draw strength from the unassailable realms of their conscience and to pity rather than envy the wrongdoer, whose real misery stems not from suffering endured, but from integrity lost.

The statement thus flips common intuition: the doer of injustice, though victorious in the moment, faces a deeper misfortune, a lasting unhappiness rooted in having violated their own humanity. Reflecting on this, those who suffer can find solace and dignity, recognizing that true happiness comes not from what is done to us, but from what we choose to do.