Thoughts Of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus by Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (e book free reading TXT) 📖

Alike To

Those Who Are Produced In Continuous Series And To Those Who Come After

Them By Virtue Of A Certain Original Movement Of Providence,  According

To Which It Moved From A Certain Beginning To This Ordering Of Things,

Having Conceived Certain Principles Of The Things Which Were To Be,  And

Having Determined Powers Productive Of Beings And Of Changes And Of Such

Like Successions (Vii. 75).

 

    [A] "As There Is Not Any Action Or Natural Event,  Which We Are

    Acquainted With,  So Single And Unconnected As Not To Have A

    Respect To Some Other Actions And Events,  So Possibly Each Of

    Them,  When It Has Not An Immediate,  May Yet Have A Remote,

    Natural Relation To Other Actions And Events,  Much Beyond The

    Compass Of This Present World." Again: "Things Seemingly The

    Most Insignificant Imaginable Are Perpetually Observed To Be

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    Necessary Conditions To Other Things Of The Greatest

    Importance,  So That Any One Thing Whatever May,  For Aught We

    Know To The Contrary,  Be A Necessary Condition To Any

    Other."--Butler's Analogy,  Chap. 7. See All The Chapter. Some

    Critics Take [Greek: Ta Hyparchonta] In This Passage Of

    Antoninus To Be The Same As [Greek: Ta Honta]: But If That Were

    So He Might Have Said [Greek: Pros Allêla] Instead Of [Greek:

    Pros Ta Hyparchonta]. Perhaps The Meaning Of [Greek: Pros Ta

    Hyparchonta] May Be "To All Prior Things." If So,  The

    Translation Is Still Correct. See Vi. 38.

 

2. It Would Be A Man's Happiest Lot To Depart From Mankind Without

Having Had Any Taste Of Lying And Hypocrisy And Luxury And Pride.

However,  To Breathe Out One's Life When A Man Has Had Enough Of These

Things Is The Next Best Voyage,  As The Saying Is. Hast Thou Determined

To Abide With Vice,  And Hast Not Experience Yet Induced Thee To Fly From

This Pestilence? For The Destruction Of The Understanding Is A

Pestilence,  Much More,  Indeed,  Than Any Such Corruption And Change Of

This Atmosphere Which Surrounds Us. For This Corruption Is A Pestilence

Of Animals So Far As They Are Animals; But The Other Is A Pestilence Of

Men So Far As They Are Men.

 

3. Do Not Despise Death,  But Be Well Content With It,  Since This Too Is

One Of Those Things Which Nature Wills. For Such As It Is To Be Young

And To Grow Old,  And To Increase And To Reach Maturity,  And To Have

Teeth And Beard And Gray Hairs,  And To Beget And To Be Pregnant And To

Bring Forth,  And All The Other Natural Operations Which The Seasons Of

Thy Life Bring,  Such Also Is Dissolution. This,  Then,  Is Consistent With

The Character Of A Reflecting Man--To Be Neither Careless Nor Impatient

Nor Contemptuous With Respect To Death,  But To Wait For It As One Of The

Operations Of Nature. As Thou Now Waitest For The Time When The Child

Shall Come Out Of Thy Wife's Womb,  So Be Ready For The Time When Thy

Soul Shall Fall Out Of This Envelope.[A] But If Thou Requirest Also A

Vulgar Kind Of Comfort Which Shall Reach Thy Heart,  Thou Wilt Be Made

Best Reconciled To Death By Observing The Objects From Which Thou Art

Going To Be Removed,  And The Morals Of Those With Whom Thy Soul Will No

Longer Be Mingled. For It Is No Way Right To Be Offended With Men,  But

It Is Thy Duty To Care For Them And To Bear With Them Gently; And Yet To

Remember That Thy Departure Will Not Be From Men Who Have The Same

Principles As Thyself. For This Is The Only Thing,  If There Be Any,

Which Could Draw Us The Contrary Way And Attach Us To Life,--To Be

Permitted To Live With Those Who Have The Same Principles As Ourselves.

But Now Thou Seest How Great Is The Trouble Arising From The Discordance

Of Those Who Live Together,  So That Thou Mayst Say,  Come Quick,  O Death,

Lest Perchance I,  Too,  Should Forget Myself.

 

    [A] Note 1 Of The Philosophy,  P. 76.

 

4. He Who Does Wrong Does Wrong Against Himself. He Who Acts Unjustly

Acts Unjustly To Himself,  Because He Makes Himself Bad.

 

5. He Often Acts Unjustly Who Does Not Do A Certain Thing; Not Only He

Who Does A Certain Thing.

 

6. Thy Present Opinion Founded On Understanding,  And Thy Present Conduct

Directed To Social Good,  And Thy Present Disposition Of Contentment With

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Everything Which Happens+--That Is Enough.

 

7. Wipe Out Imagination; Check Desire: Extinguish Appetite: Keep The

Ruling Faculty In Its Own Power.

 

8. Among The Animals Which Have Not Reason One Life Is Distributed; But

Among Reasonable Animals One Intelligent Soul Is Distributed: Just As

There Is One Earth Of All Things Which Are Of An Earthly Nature,  And We

See By One Light,  And Breathe One Air,  All Of Us That Have The Faculty

Of Vision And All That Have Life.

 

9. All Things Which Participate In Anything Which Is Common To Them All,

Move Towards That Which Is Of The Same Kind With Themselves. Everything

Which Is Earthy Turns Towards The Earth,  Everything Which Is Liquid

Flows Together,  And Everything Which Is Of An Aerial Kind Does The

Same,  So That They Require Something To Keep Them Asunder,  And The

Application Of Force. Fire Indeed Moves Upwards On Account Of The

Elemental Fire,  But It Is So Ready To Be Kindled Together With All The

Fire Which Is Here,  That Even Every Substance Which Is Somewhat Dry Is

Easily Ignited,  Because There Is Less Mingled With It Of That Which Is A

Hindrance To Ignition. Accordingly,  Then,  Everything Also Which

Participates In The Common Intelligent Nature Moves In Like Manner

Towards That Which Is Of The Same Kind With Itself,  Or Moves Even More.

For So Much As It Is Superior In Comparison With All Other Things,  In

The Same Degree Also Is It More Ready To Mingle With And To Be Fused

With That Which Is Akin To It. Accordingly Among Animals Devoid Of

Reason We Find Swarms Of Bees,  And Herds Of Cattle,  And The Nurture Of

Young Birds,  And In A Manner,  Loves; For Even In Animals There Are

Souls,  And That Power Which Brings Them Together Is Seen To Exert Itself

In A Superior Degree,  And In Such A Way As Never Has Been Observed In

Plants Nor In Stones Nor In Trees. But In Rational Animals There Are

Political Communities And Friendships,  And Families And Meetings Of

People; And In Wars,  Treaties,  And Armistices. But In The Things Which

Are Still Superior,  Even Though They Are Separated From One Another,

Unity In A Manner Exists,  As In The Stars. Thus The Ascent To The Higher

Degree Is Able To Produce A Sympathy Even In Things Which Are

Separated. See,  Then,  What Now Takes Place; For Only Intelligent Animals

Have Now Forgotten This Mutual Desire And Inclination,  And In Them Alone

The Property Of Flowing Together Is Not Seen. But Still,  Though Men

Strive To Avoid [This Union],  They Are Caught And Held By It,  For Their

Nature Is Too Strong For Them; And Thou Wilt See What I Say,  If Thou

Only Observest. Sooner,  Then,  Will One Find Anything Earthy Which Comes

In Contact With No Earthy Thing,  Than A Man Altogether Separated From

Other Men.

 

10. Both Man And God And The Universe Produce Fruit; At The Proper

Seasons Each Produces It. But And If Usage Has Especially Fixed These

Terms To The Vine And Like Things,  This Is Nothing. Reason Produces

Fruit Both For All And For Itself,  And There Are Produced From It Other

Things Of The Same Kind As Reason Itself.

 

11. If Thou Art Able,  Correct By Teaching Those Who Do Wrong; But If

Thou Canst Not,  Remember That Indulgence Is Given To Thee For This

Purpose. And The Gods,  Too,  Are Indulgent To Such Persons; And For Some

Purposes They Even Help Them To Get Health,  Wealth,  Reputation; So Kind

They Are. And It Is In Thy Power Also; Or Say,  Who Hinders Thee?

 

12. Labor Not As One Who Is Wretched,  Nor Yet As One Who Would Be Pitied

Or Admired; But Direct Thy Will To One Thing Only--To Put Thyself In

Motion And To Check Thyself,  As The Social Reason Requires.

 

13. To-Day I Have Got Out Of All Trouble,  Or Rather I Have Cast Out All

Trouble,  For It Was Not Outside,  But Within And In My Opinions.

 

14. All Things Are The Same,  Familiar In Experience,  And Ephemeral In

Time,  And Worthless In The Matter. Everything Now Is Just As It Was In

The Time Of Those Whom We Have Buried.

 

15. Things Stand Outside Of Us,  Themselves By Themselves,  Neither

Knowing Aught Of Themselves,  Nor Expressing Any Judgment. What Is It,

Then,  Which Does Judge About Them? The Ruling Faculty.

 

16. Not In Passivity But In Activity Lie The Evil And The Good Of The

Rational Social Animal,  Just As His Virtue And His Vice Lie Not In

Passivity But In Activity.[A]

 

    [A] Virtutis Omnis Laus In Actione Consistit.--_Cicero_,  De

    Off.,  1. 6.

 

17. For The Stone Which Has Been Thrown Up It Is No Evil To Come Down,

Nor Indeed Any Good To Have Been Carried Up (Viii. 20).

 

18. Penetrate Inwards Into Men's Leading Principles,  And Thou Wilt See

What Judges Thou Art Afraid Of,  And What Kind Of Judges They Are Of

Themselves.

 

19. All Things Are Changing: And Thou Thyself Art In Continuous Mutation

And In A Manner In Continuous Destruction,  And The Whole Universe Too.

 

20. It Is Thy Duty To Leave Another Man's Wrongful Act There Where It Is

(Vii. 29; Ix. 38).

 

21. Termination Of Activity,  Cessation From Movement And Opinion,  And

In A Sense Their Death,  Is No Evil. Turn Thy Thoughts Now To The

Consideration Of Thy Life,  Thy Life As A Child,  As A Youth,  Thy Manhood,

Thy Old Age,  For In These Also Every Change Was A Death. Is This

Anything To Fear? Turn Thy Thoughts Now To Thy Life Under Thy

Grandfather,  Then To Thy Life Under Thy Mother,  Then To Thy Life Under

Thy Father; And As Thou Findest Many Other Differences And Changes And

Terminations,  Ask Thyself,  Is This Anything To Fear? In Like Manner,

Then,  Neither Are The Termination And Cessation And Change Of Thy Whole

Life A Thing To Be Afraid Of.

 

 

22. Hasten [To Examine] Thy Own Ruling Faculty And That Of The Universe

And That Of Thy Neighbor: Thy Own,  That Thou Mayst Make It Just: And

That Of The Universe,  That Thou Mayst Remember Of What Thou Art A Part;

And That Of Thy Neighbor,  That Thou Mayst Know Whether He Has Acted

Ignorantly Or With Knowledge,  And Thou Mayst Also Consider That His

Ruling Faculty Is Akin To Thine.

 

23. As Thou Thyself Art A Component Part Of A Social System,  So Let

Every Act Of Thine Be A Component Part Of Social Life. Whatever Act Of