Meditations — Marcus Aurelius
p. 105books ; no longer distract thyself : it is not allowed ; but as if thou wast now dying, despise the flesh ; it is blood and bones and a network, a contexture of nerves, veins, and arteries. See the breath also, what kind of a thing it is ; air, and not always the same, but every moment sent out and again sucked in.
The third, then, is the ruling part; consider thus: Thou art an old man; no longer let this be a slave, no longer be pulled by the strings like a puppet to unsocial movements, no longer be either dissatisfied with thy present lot, or shrink from the future. 3. All that is from the gods is full of providence.
That which is from fortune is not separated from nature or without an interweaving and involution with the things which are ordered by providence. From thence all things flow; and there is besides necessity, and that which is for the advantage of the whole universe, of which thou art a part. But that is good for every part of nature which the nature of the whole brings, and what serves to maintain this nature.
Now the universe is preserved, as by the changes of the elements so by the changes of things compounded of the elements. Let these principles be enough for thee ; let them always be fixed opinions. But cast away the thirst after books, that thou mayest not die murmuring, but cheerfully, truly, and from thy heart thankful to the gods.
p. 1064. Remember how long thou hast been putting off these things, and how often thou hast received an opportunity from the gods, and yet dost not use it.
Thou must now at last perceive of what universe thou art a part, and of what administrator of the universe thy existence is an efflux, and that a limit of time is fixed for thee, which if thou dost not use for clearing away the clouds from thy mind, it will go and thou wilt go, and it will never return. 5.
Every moment think steadily as a Roman and a man to do what thou hast in hand with perfect and simple dignity, and feeling of affection, and freedom, and justice, and to give thyself relief from all other thoughts.
And thou wilt give thyself relief if thou doest every act of thy life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy, and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given to thee.
Thou seest how few the things are, the which if a man lays hold of, he is able to live a life which flows in quiet, and is like the existence of the gods ; for the gods on their part will require nothing more from him who observes these things. 6. Do wrong l to thyself, do wrong to thyself, 1 Perhaps it should be, *• thou art doing violence to thyself," vpplfra not u£W«.
MAECUS AUBELIUS ANTONINUS, 107my soul ; but thou wilt no longer have the opportunity of honoring thyself. Every man's life is sufficient-! But thine is nearly finished, though thy soul reverences not itself, but places thy felicity in the souls of others. 7. Do the things external which fall upon thee distract thee? Give thyself time to learn something new and good, and cease to be whirled around.
But then thou must also avoid being carried about the other way ; for those too are triflers who have wearied themselves in life by their activity, and yet have no object to which to direct every movement, and, in a word, all their thoughts. 8. Through not observing what is in the mind of another a man has seldom been seen to be unhappy ; but those who do not observe the movements of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy. 9.
This thou must always bear in mind, what is the nature of the whole, and what is my nature, and how this is related to that, and what kind of a part it is of what kind of a whole, and that there is no one who hinders thee from always doing and saying the things which are according to the nature of which thou art a part. 10.
Theophrastus, in his comparison of bad acts — such a comparison as one would make in accordance with the common notions of mankind —
MARCUS AUBELIUS ANTONINUS. 105 books ; no longer distract yourself : it is not allowed ; but as if you were now dying, despise the flesh ; it is blood and bones and a network, a contexture of nerves, veins, and arteries. See the breath also, what kind of a thing it is ; air, and not always the same, but every moment sent out and again sucked in. The third, then, is the ruling part; consider thus: You are an old man; no longer let this be a slave, no longer be pulled by the strings like a puppet to unsocial movements, no longer be either dissatisfied with your present lot, or shrink from the future. 3. All that is from the gods is full of providence. That which is from fortune is not separated from nature or without an interweaving and involution with the things which are ordered by providence. From thence all things flow; and there is besides necessity, and that which is for the advantage of the whole universe, of which you are a part. But that is good for every part of nature which the nature of the whole brings, and what serves to maintain this nature. Now the universe is preserved, as by the changes of the elements so by the changes of things compounded of the elements. Let these principles be enough for you ; let them always be fixed opinions. But cast away the thirst after books, that you may not die murmuring, but cheerfully, truly, and from your heart thankful to the gods.
106 MEDITATIONS. 4. Remember how long you have been putting off these things, and how often you have received an opportunity from the gods, and yet do not use it. You must now at last perceive of what universe you are a part, and of what administrator of the universe your existence is an efflux, and that a limit of time is fixed for you, which if you do not use for clearing away the clouds from your mind, it will go and you will go, and it will never return. 5. Every moment think steadily as a Roman and a man to do what you have in hand with perfect and simple dignity, and feeling of affection, and freedom, and justice, and to give yourself relief from all other thoughts. And you will give yourself relief if you do every act of your life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy, and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given to you. You seest how few the things are, the which if a man lays hold of, he is able to live a life which flows in quiet, and is like the existence of the gods ; for the gods on their part will require nothing more from him who observes these things. 6. Do wrong l to yourself, do wrong to yourself, 1 Perhaps it should be, *• you are doing violence to yourself," vpplfra not u£W«.
MAECUS AUBELIUS ANTONINUS, 107 my soul ; but you will no longer have the opportunity of honoring yourself. Every man's life is sufficient-! But your is nearly finished, though your soul reverences not itself, but places your felicity in the souls of others. 7. Do the things external which fall upon you distract you? Give yourself time to learn something new and good, and cease to be whirled around. But then you must also avoid being carried about the other way ; for those too are triflers who have wearied themselves in life by their activity, and yet have no object to which to direct every movement, and, in a word, all their thoughts. 8. Through not observing what is in the mind of another a man has seldom been seen to be unhappy ; but those who do not observe the movements of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy. 9. This you must always bear in mind, what is the nature of the whole, and what is my nature, and how this is related to that, and what kind of a part it is of what kind of a whole, and that there is no one who hinders you from always doing and saying the things which are according to the nature of which you are a part. 10. Theophrastus, in his comparison of bad acts — such a comparison as one would make in accordance with the common notions of mankind —
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