Until good beliefs are firmly planted in you, and you've built real strength to protect yourself, I advise you to be careful about spending time with ordinary people. If you don't, every day your lessons will melt away like wax in the sun. Stay away from that sun as long as your beliefs are still soft like wax. This is also why philosophers tell people to leave their home countries — old habits distract you and prevent you from building new ones. And you can't stand it when people you meet say: 'Look, that person is a philosopher now, but they used to be so-and-so.'
hupolaepseis]) are fixed in you, and you shall have acquired a certain power for your security, I advise you to be careful in your association with common persons; if you are not, every day like wax in the sun there will be melted away whatever you inscribe on your minds in the school. Withdraw then yourselves far from the sun so long as you have these waxen sentiments. For this reason also philosophers advise men to leave their native country, because ancient habits distract them and do not allow a beginning to be made of a different habit; nor can we tolerate those who meet us and say: See such a one is now a philosopher, who was once so and so.