Meditations

by Marcus Aurelius

All that thou seest will quickly perish, and those who have been spectators of its dissolution will very soon perish too. And he who dies at the extremest old age will be brought into...

When they think that they do harm by their blame or good by their praise, what an idea!

Loss is nothing else than change.

Enough of this wretched life and murmuring and apish tricks. Why art thou disturbed? What is there new in this? What unsettles thee? Is it the form of the thing? Look at it. Or is it the matter? Look at it. But besides these there is nothing.

Whether intelligence rules all things or chance rules, a man must not be disturbed.

In my sickness my conversation was not about my bodily sufferings, nor, says he, did I talk on such subjects to those who visited me; but I continued to discourse on the nature of things as before, keeping to this main point, how the mind, while participating in such movements as go on in the poor flesh, shall be free from perturbations and maintain its proper good. Nor did I, he says, give the physicians an opportunity of putting on solemn looks, as if they were doing something great, but my life went on well and happily.

When thou art offended with any man’s shameless conduct, immediately ask thyself, Is it possible, then, that shameless men should not be in the world? It is not possible. Do not, then, require what is impossible. For this man also is one of those shameless men who must of necessity be in the world. Let the same considerations be present to thy mind in the case of the knave, and the faithless man, and of every man who does wrong in any way.

For thou wilt find that no one among those against whom thou art irritated has done anything by which thy mind could be made worse; but that which is evil to thee and harmful has its foundation only in the mind. And what harm is done or what is there strange, if the man who has not been instructed does the acts of an uninstructed man? Consider whether thou shouldst not rather blame thyself, because thou didst not expect such a man to err in such a way. For thou hadst means given thee by thy reason to suppose that it was likely that he would commit this error, and yet thou hast forgotten and art amazed that he has erred.

If a man is mistaken, instruct him kindly and show him his error. But if thou art not able, blame thyself, or blame not even thyself.

And remember that the term Rational was intended to signify a discriminating attention to every several thing, and freedom from negligence; and that Equanimity is the voluntary acceptance of the things which are assigned to thee by the common nature; and that Magnanimity is the elevation of the intelligent part above the pleasurable or painful sensations of the flesh, and above that poor thing called fame, and death, and all such things.

But as to what any man shall say or think about him or do against him, he never even thinks of it, being himself contented with these two things—with acting justly in what he now does, and being satisfied with what is now assigned to him;

Inquire of thyself as soon as thou wakest from sleep whether it will make any difference to thee if another does what is just and right. It will make no difference

No longer talk at all about the kind of man that a good man ought to be, but be such.

Constantly consider how all things such as they now are, in time past also were; and consider that they will be the same again.

And consider that only to the rational animal is it given to follow voluntarily what happens; but simply to follow is a necessity imposed on all.

When thou art offended at any man’s fault, forthwith turn to thyself and reflect in what like manner thou dost err thyself;

“Leaves, some the wind scatters on the ground— So is the race of men.”[A]

The healthy eye ought to see all visible things and not to say, I wish for green things; for this is the condition of a diseased eye. And the healthy hearing and smelling ought to be ready to perceive all that can be heard and smelled. And the healthy stomach ought to be with respect to all food just as the mill with respect to all things which it is formed to grind. And accordingly the healthy understanding ought to be prepared for everything which happens; but that which says, Let my dear children live, and let all men praise whatever I may do, is an eye which seeks for green things, or teeth which seek for soft things.

Accustom thyself as much as possible on the occasion of anything being done by any person to inquire with thyself, For what object is this man doing this? But begin with thyself, and examine thyself first.

As those who try to stand in thy way when thou art proceeding according to right reason will not be able to turn thee aside from thy proper action, so neither let them drive thee from thy benevolent feelings toward them,

Suppose any man shall despise me. Let him look to that himself. But I will look to this, that I be not discovered doing or saying anything deserving of contempt. Shall any man hate me? Let him look to it. But I will be mild and benevolent towards every man, and ready to show even him his mistake, not reproachfully, nor yet as making a display of my endurance, but nobly and honestly,

if it remembers that not one of them produces in us an opinion about itself, nor comes to us; but these things remain immovable, and it is we ourselves who produce the judgments about them,

consider that thou also doest many things wrong, and that thou art a man like others;

consider that thou dost not even understand whether men are doing wrong or not, for many things are done with a certain reference to circumstances.

a man must learn a great deal to enable him to pass a correct judgment on another man’s acts

consider when thou art much vexed or grieved, that man’s lif...

that it is not men’s acts which disturb us, for those acts have their foundation in men’s ruling principles, but it is our own opinions which disturb us.

By reflecting that no wrongful act of another brings shame on thee:

consider how much more pain is brought on us by the anger and vexation caused by such acts than by the acts themselves, at which we are angry and vexed

For what will the most violent man do to thee, if thou continuest to be of a kind disposition towards him, and if, as opportunity offers, thou gently admonishest him and calmly correctest his errors at the very time when he is trying to do thee harm,

I shall certainly not be injured, but thou art injuring thyself,

that to be moved by passion is not manly, but that mildness and gentleness, as they are more agreeable to human nature, so also are they more manly; and he who possesses these qualities possesses strength, nerves, and courage, and not the man who is subject to fits of passion and discontent.

For he who yields to pain and he who yields to anger, both are wounded and both submit.

expect bad men not to do wrong is madness, for he who expects this desires an impossibility.

Socrates used to call the opinions of the many by the name of Lamiae,—bugbears to frighten children.

No man can rob us of our free will

that thou mayest be content with the lot which is assigned to thee, for nature designed it for thee and thee for it.

thou mayst always speak the truth freely and without disguise,

let neither another man’s wickedness hinder thee, nor opinion nor voice, nor yet the sensations of the poor f...

I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others.

So much more respect have we to what our neighbors shall think of us than to what we shall think of ourselves.

How ridiculous and what a stranger he is who is surprised at anything which happens in life.

But if there is a confusion without a governor, be content that in such a tempest thou hast in thyself a certain ruling intelligence.

17. If it is not right, do not do it: if it is not true, do not say it.

Consider that everything is opinion, and opinion is in thy power. Take away then, when thou choosest, thy opinion, and like a mariner who has doubled the promontory, thou wilt find calm, everything stable, and a waveless bay.

that all things happen according to the universal nature;

a man’s wrongful act is nothing to thee;

everything which happens, always happened so and will happen so, and now ...

that everything is opinion;

every man lives the present time only, and loses only this.