THE MEDITATIONS OF MARCUS AURELIUS

Bust of Marcus Aurelius
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York

Roman emperors are seldom remembered for their qualities of humility and introspection.  There are a few exceptions to this rule, however, and the most prominent is Marcus Aurelius Antoninus — known in modern times simply as Marcus Aurelius — who was Roman Emperor from 161 to 180. Marcus Aurelius was a practitioner and proponent of  Stoic philosophy, and he is widely remembered as one of the "Five Good Emperors."

For most of the last thirteen years of his life, Marcus Aurelius remained encamped with his army in its long campaign against invading German tribes on the northern border of the empire, near what is now modern Hungary.  It was during this period that Marcus wrote a series of personal notes on the philosophical components of a virtuous life.  Among other things, he addressed the relationship of man and nature, the importance of living in the present moment, the dynamics that should govern our relationships with other people, and the way that people should encounter and deal with change, especially adversity.

Although the personal notes were never intended for public dissemination, they were preserved and ultimately published in 1559 as The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius.  Since their publication, The Meditations have had great influence on statesmen and philosophers throughout the world.  The former American President Bill Clinton was greatly inspired by Marcus Aurelius; poet Matthew Arnold once declared that Marcus was "the most beautiful figure in history;" and British historian Michael Grant claimed that The Meditations are "one of the most acute and sophisticated pieces of ancient writing that exists."  Grant also said that The Meditations is "the best book ever written by a major ruler." 

Over the years, I have acquired several different translations of the meditations of Marcus Aurelius. The most recent is a highly regarded contemporary translation, titled The Emperor's Handbook, by C. Scott Hicks and David V. Hicks.  Using that translation, I invite you to peruse through some of the thoughts of a great man who still has much to teach us.  I begin with a quote that could have well been used in my last posting, which relates to the need of mankind to always remain in harmony with the patterns and rhythms of the universe.

I am in harmony with all that is in harmony with you, O thou great Universe.  Nothing opportune for you is too early or too late for me. Anything your seasons bear, O Nature, is fruit of mine; all comes from you, abides in you, and returns to you.

First thing every morning tell yourself: I am going to meet a busybody, an ingrate, a bully, a liar, a schemer, and a boor.  Ignorance of good and evil has made them what they are. . .  . None of them can harm me, for none can force me to do wrong against my will, and I cannot be angry with a brother or resent him, for we were born into this world to work together . . .

Bear in mind that the measure of a man is the worth of the things he cares about.

Are my guiding principles healthy and robust?  On this hangs everything.

Your days are numbered.  Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun.

Purge your mind of all aimless and idle thoughts, especially those that pry into the affairs of others or wish them ill.

We live only in the present, in this fleet-footed moment.  The rest is lost and behind us, or ahead of us and may never be found.

Bronze Statue of Marcus Aurelius
Musei Capitolini
Rome
Photo by Jean-Christophe Benoist

Nowhere is there a more idyllic spot, a vacation home more private and peaceful, than in one's own mind, especially when it is furnished in such a way that the merest inward glance induces ease (and by ease I mean the effects of an orderly and well-appointed mind, neither lavish nor crude)."

Be the man happy with his fate, rejoicing in his acts or justice, and bent upon deeds of kindness.

Cherish your gifts, however humble, and take pleasure in them.

Fragment of Bronze Portrait of Marcus Aurelius
Louvre Museum
Paris

Claim your right to say or do anything that accords with nature, and pay no attention to the chatter of your critics.

Consider those you personally have known who, ignoring the good that lay at their feet, ran after some vain thing and never found happiness that was within their reach all the time.  A man's interest in an object should be no greater than its intrinsic worth.

Never forget that the universe is a single living organism possessed of one substance and one soul, holding all things suspended in a single consciousness and creating all things with a single purpose that they might work together spinning and weaving and knotting whatever comes to pass.

Everything is as natural and familiar as a spring rose or a summer grape. This includes disease, death, slander, treason, and all those things that gladden and sadden the hearts of fools.

Bad luck borne nobly is good luck.

Let the virtues you do possess shine forth: your honesty, dignity, and stamina; your indifference to pleasure and loathing of self-pity; your wanting little for yourself and giving much to others; your measured words and temperate deeds.

Detail from Column of Marcus Aurelius
Piazza Colonna
Rome

Don't become disgusted with yourself, lose patience, or give up if you sometimes fail to act as your philosophy dictates, but after each setback, return to reason and be content if most of your acts are worthy of a good man.  Love the philosophy to which you return, and go back to it . . . 

Nothing should be called good that fails to enlarge our humanity.

Your mind is colored by the thoughts it feeds upon, for the mind is dyed by ideas and imaginings.  Saturate your mind, then, with a succession of ideas like these:  Wherever life is possible, it is possible to live in the right way.

Nothing ever happens to a man he is not equipped by nature to endure.

The best revenge is not to do as they do.

Column of Marcus Aurelius
Piazza Colonna
Rome

You always have the option of having no opinion.  There is never any need to get worked up or to trouble your soul about things you can't control.  These things are not asking to be judged by you.  Leave them alone.

All things are woven together, and they make a sacred pattern.  One might almost say that no one thing is entirely at odds with any other thing. All the parts are arranged in relation to one another, and together they form one beautiful and orderly whole.  For there is one universe made out of all things, one God pervading it all, one being and one law, one reason common to all intelligent creatures, and one truth . . .

Seek refuge in yourself.  The knowledge of having acted justly is all your reasoning inner self needs to be fully content and at peace with itself.

To live each day as if it were your last without speeding up or slowing down or pretending to be other than what you are —  this is perfection of character.

Happy is the man who does the work of man.  And what is a man's work? To love his neighbor, to distrust the evidence of his senses, to distinguish false ideas from true, and to contemplate the works of nature.

If you're troubled by something outside yourself, it isn't the thing itself that bothers you, but your opinion of it, and this opinion you have the power to revoke immediately.

Fear not that life will someday end; fear instead that a life in harmony with nature may never begin. 

Portrait of Marcus Aurelius

by

Charlotte Mary Yonge

 (1823-1901)

Note on Photographs:  Except for the second photo of the Bronze Statue of Marcus Aurelius, for which attribution has been given, all photos used in this posting are in the public domain and were downloaded from Wikimedia Commons.