Meditations - Chapter 2
Quotes from Marcus Aurelius' Mediations, Chapter 2: Cultivating the Self
The perfection of character consists in living each day as if it were the last and being neither violently excited, nor apathetic, nor insincere.
Nature hasn’t blended your mind so completely with your body, as to deny you the power to limiting yourself and bringing under your control everything that you are. Always bear that in mind, and remember how little is needed to live a happy life.
It is quite possible to become a great sage and yet never be recognized.
Never to abandon philosophy no matter what happens to us is a principle of all the schools. Just be intent on what you are doing now and how you are doing it.
For to continue to live as you are, to be torn and soiled by your present way, shows the character of a fool who clings to life, like gladiators half-eaten by lions.
No one was ever injured by the truth, but a man injures himself if he lives with self-deception and ignorance.
The warrior spirit. . .
Don’t waste your life thinking about other people, unless it’s to help them in some way. For, by wondering what so-and-so is up to and why, you lose the chance to do something useful for yourself, and let your mind get clogged with thoughts like these.
A rational mind should be so engaged that if someone should suddenly ask, “What are you thinking about?” you could with complete freedom and spontaneity say what was on your mind.
No Time to Waste: Think about how many years you have been putting things off, and how often the gods have given you extra periods of grace, and still you don’t use them.
You have been given only a limited period of time, and if you do not use it for blowing away the clouds from your mind, it will pass away and you will go with it, never to return.
Survival by simplicity: Don’t disturb yourself by ruminating on your entire life; don’t dwell on the many troubles that may happen to you.
Remember: The past and future can’t harm you – only the present can.
Aim and Purpose: The person who does not have one steady and unvarying aim in life, cannot be the same person all through that life.
Posted by Amanda at October 05, 2003 02:10 PM
