disciple

of a great man blinds himself, like a singing bird, the better to sing his praises.

“Singing birds. - The adherents of a great man are accustomed to blind themselves the better to sing his praises.”

is a zero --- you want to multiply yourself by ten, by a hundred? Look for zeros!

“You want to multiply yourself by ten, by a hundred? You are looking for disciples? - Look for zeros!”

who is blind has more power than the master; no man's influence has ever grown great without blind disciples.

“usually has for that reason more power than the master. The influence of a man and his work has never yet grown great without his blind pupils.”

must lose his teacher to find himself: "only when you have all denied me will I return to you."

“Now I bid you lose me and find yourselves; and only when you have all denied me will I return to you.”

are each a misfortune for the master: imitating him, they make his defects look disproportionately great in their tiny persons, and his virtues proportionately small.

“Every one of these loyal and grateful people is at the same time a misfortune for the master, to be sure, since they all imitate him and his defects then seem disproportionately great and exaggerated because they appear in such tiny individuals, while it is the opposite with his virtues, which are proportionately diminished when these same individuals display them.”

disciple, n.Definitions

disciple