Philosophy / StoicismMarcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius : history, poems & quotes. : 9 quote(s)

ou have seen a hand, a foot, or perhaps a head severed from its body and lying some distance away. Such is the state a man brings himself to-as far as he is able-when he refuses to accept what befalls him, breaks away from helping others, or when he pursues self-seeking action. He becomes an outcast from the unity of Nature; though born of it, his own hand has cut him from it. Yet here is the beautiful proviso: it lies within everyone's power to join Nature once again. God has not granted such favor to any other part of creation: once you have been separated, once you have been cleft asunder, He will, at any moment, allow you to return.

0 Universe, all that is in tune with you is also in tune with me. Every note of your harmony resonates in my innermost being. For me, nothing is early and nothing is late if it is timely for you. 0 Nature, all that your seasons bring is fruit for me. From thee comes all things; in thee do all things live and grow; and to thee do all things return. "Dear City of God" is our cry, even though the poets say, "Dear City of the King."

Waste no more time talking about great souls and how they should he. Be one yourself!

emember that the Hidden Power within us pulls the strings; there is the guiding force, there is the life, there, one might say, is the man himself Never think of yourself as a mere body with its various appendages; the body is like the ax of a carpenter: dare we think that the ax is the carpenter himself? Without this Inner Cause, which dictates both action and inaction, the body is of no more use than the weaver's shuttle without a weaver, the writer's pen without a writer, or the coachman's whip without a horse and carriage.

Honor the highest thing in the Universe; it is the power on which all things depend; it is the light by which all of life is guided. Honor the highest within yourself; for it, too, is the power on which all things depend, and the light by which all life is guided.

Dig within. Within is the well-spring of Good; and it is always ready to bubble up, if you just dig.

t is possible to live out your whole life in perfect contentment, even though the whole world deafens you with its roar and wild beasts tear apart your body like a lump of clay. For nothing can shake a steady mind out of its peaceful repose; nothing can bar it from correct judgment, nor defeat its readiness to see the benefit that all things bring.

s Marcus, I have Rome; as a human being, I have the Universe.

en may block your path, but never let them obstruct you from right action, never let them destroy the feeling of charity you have toward them. You must be firm in both: steadfast in judgment and action, kind to those who do you harm. To lose your temper with them is no less a sign of weakness than one cowed into abandoning his proper course of action. In both cases, the post of duty has been deserted.

onstantly remind yourself, I am a member of the whole body of conscious things." If you think of yourself as a mere "part," then love for mankind will not well up in your heart; you will look for some reward in every act of kindness and miss the boon which the act itself is offering. Then all your work will be seen as a mere duty and not as the very portal connecting you with the Universe itself.

n a man's life, his time is but a moment, his being a mere flux, his senses a dim glimpse, his body food for the worms, and his soul a restless eddy … the things of the body pass like a flowing stream; life is a brief sojourn, and one's mark in this world is soon forgotten.

t is time to realize that you are a member of the Universe, that you are born of Nature itself, and to know that a limit has been set to your time. Use every moment wisely, to perceive your inner refulgence, or it will be gone and nevermore within your reach.

t daybreak, when you loathe the idea of having to leave your bed, have this thought ready in your mind: I am rising for the work of man." Should I have misgivings about doing that for which I was born, and for the sake of which I came into this world? Is this the grand purpose of my existence-to lie here snug and warm underneath my blanket? Certainly it feels more pleasant. Was it for pleasure that you were made, and not for work, nor for effort? Look at the plants, sparrows, ants, spiders, and bees, all working busily away, each doing its part in welding an orderly Universe. So who are you to go against the bidding of Nature? Who are you to refuse man his share of the work?

To live each day as though it were your last-never flustered, never lazy, never a false word-herein lies the perfection of character.