Book 10 continued Marcus Aurelius Meditations

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Episode Transcript

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A man deposits seed in a womband goes away, and then another cause
takes it and labors on it andmakes a child. What a thing from
such a material? Again, thechild passes food down through the throat,
and then another cause takes it andmakes perception and motion, and in fine
life, and strength and other things. How many and how strange I observe

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then, the things which are producedin such a hidden way, and see
the power, just as we seethe power which carries things downwards and upwards,
not with the eyes, but stillno less plainly, constantly, consider
how all things such as they noware in time past also were, and
consider that they will be the sameagain, And place before thy eyes entire

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dramas and stages of the same form, whatever thou hast learned from thy experience
or from older history. For example, the whole court of Hadrian, and
the whole court of Antoninus, andthe whole court of Philip Alexander crisis,
for all those were such dramas aswe see now, only with different actors.
Imagine every man who is grieved atanything or discontented to be like a

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pig which is sacrificed in kicks andscreams like this pig. Also is he
who, on his bed, insilence, laments the bonds in which we
are held. And consider that onlyto the rational animal is it given to
follow voluntarily what happens. But simplyto follow is a necessity imposed on all,
severally on the occasion of everything thatthou doest pause and ask thyself if

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death is a dreadful thing, becauseit deprives thee of this When thou art
offended at any man's fault, forthwithturned to thyself and reflecting what like manner
thou dost eer thyself? For example, what in thinking that money is a
good thing, or pleasure, ora bit of reputation and the like.
For by attending to this thou wiltquickly forget thy anger. If this consideration

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also is added, that the manis compelled, for what else could he
do? Or if thou art ableto take away from him the compulsion.
When thou hast seen Saturn the Socratic, think of either Eutychies or Hymen,
And when thou hast seen Euphrates,think of u ti Kan or Sylvanus.
And when thou hast seen Alciphron,think of Tropiophorus, And when thou hast

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seen Xenophon, think of Crito orSeverus, And when thou hast looked on
thyself, think of any other Caesar. And in the case of everyone,
do in like manner. Then letthis thought be in thy mind. Where
then are those men nowhere or nobodyknows where? For thus continuously thou will
look at human things as smoke andnothing at all, especially if thou reflectest

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at the same time that what hasonce changed will never exist again in the
infinite duration of time. But thou, in what a brief space of time
is thy existence? And why artthou not content to pass through this short
time in an orderly way? Whatmatter and opportunity for thy activity art thou
avoiding? For what else are allthese things except exercises? For the reason,

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when it is viewed carefully and byexamination into their nature, the things
which happen in life persevere then untilthou shalt have. And it made these
things thy own, as the stomach, which is strengthened, makes all things
its own, as the blazing firemakes flame and brightness out of everything that

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is thrown into it. Let itnot be in any man's power to say
truly of THEE that thou art notsimple, or that thou art not good?
But let him be a liar,whoever shall think anything of this kind
about THEE. And this is altogetherin thy power. For who is he
that shall hinder THEE from being goodand simple? Do thou only determine to
live no longer unless thou shalt besuch, For neither does reason allow THEE

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to live if thou art not such. What is that which, as to
this material our life, can bedone or said in the way most conformable
to reason. For whatever this maybe, it is in thy power to
do it or to say it.And do not make excuses that thou art
hindered. Thou wilt not cease tolament till thy mind is in such a
condition that what luxury is to thosewho enjoy pleasure, such shall be to

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THEE. In the matter which issubjected and presented to THEE the doing of
the things which are conformable to man'sconstitution. For a man ought to consider
as an enjoyment everything which it isin his power to do, according to
his own nature, And it isin his power everywhere. Now it is
not given to a cylinder to moveeverywhere by its own motion, nor yet

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to water, nor to fire,nor to anything else which is governed by
nature or an irrational soul. Forthe things which check them and stand in
the way are many. But intelligenceand new reason are able to go through
everything that opposes them, and insuch manner as they are formed by nature,
and as they choose place before thyeyes this facility with which the reason
will be carried through all things asfire, upwards as a stone, downwards

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as a cylinder down an inclined surface, and seek for nothing further, For
all other obstacles either affect the bodyonly, which is a dead thing,
or except through opinion, in theyielding of the reason itself, they do
not crush nor do any harm ofany kind. For if they did,
he who felt it would immediately becomebad. Now, in the case of

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all things which have a certain constitution, whatever harm may happen to any of
them, that which is so affectedbecomes consequently worse. But in the like
case a man becomes both better,if one may say so, and more
worthy of praise, by making aright use of these accidents. And finally,
remember that nothing harms him who isreally a citizen which does not harm

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the state. Nor yet does anythingharm the state which does not harm law
order. And of these things,which are called misfortunes, not one harms
law. What then does not harmlaw, does not harm either state or
citizen. To him who is penetratedby true principles, even the briefest precept
is sufficient in any common precept toremind him that he should be free from

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grief and fear. For example,leaves some the wind scatters on the ground,
so is the race of men.Leaves also are thy children, and
leaves to two are they who cryout as if they were worthy of credit,
and bestow their praise, or onthe contrary, curse, or secretly
blame and sneer. And leaves inlike manner are those who shall receive and

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transmit a man's fame to after times. For all such things as these are
produced in the season of spring,as the poet says, then the wind
casts them down. Then the forestproduces other leaves in their places. But
a brief existence is common to allthings. And yet thou avoidest and pursuest
all things as if they would beeternal. A little time, and thou

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shalt close thy eyes and him whohas attended thee to thy grave, another
soon will lament. The healthy eyeought to see all visible things, and
not to say I wish for greenthings, for this is the condition of
a diseased eye. And the healthyhearing and smelling ought to be ready to
perceive all that can be heard andsmelled. And the healthy stomach ought to
be with respect to all food,just as the mill with respect to all

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things which it is formed to grind. And accordingly, the healthy understanding ought
to be prepared for everything which happens. But that which says, let my
dear children live, and let allmen praise whatever I may do, is
an eye which seeks for green things, or teeth which seek for soft things.
There is no man so fortunate thatthere shall not be by him when

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he is dying. Some who arepleased with what is going to happen,
suppose that he was a good andwise man. Will there not be at
last someone to say to himself,let us at last breathe freely being relieved
from this schoolmaster. It is truethat he was harsh to none of us,
But I perceive that he tacitly condemnsus. This is what is said

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of a good man. But inour own case, how many other things
are therefore, which there are manywho wish to get rid of us.
Thou wilt consider this then, whenthou art dying, and thou wilt depart
more contentedly by reflecting. Thus,I am going away from such a life
in which even my associates, inbehalf of whom I have striven so much,

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prayed and cared themselves, wished meto depart, hoping perchance to get
some little advantage by it. Whythen, should a man cling to a
longer stay here. Do not,however, for this reason, go away
less kindly disposed to them, butpreserving thy own character and friendly and benevolent

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and mild. And on the otherhand, not as if thou wast torn
away, but as when a mandies a quiet death, the poor soul
is easily separated from the body.Such also ought thy departure from men to
be. For Nature united thee tothem and associated thee. But does she
now dissolve the union? Well,I am separated as from kinsmen, not
however, dragged resisting, but withoutcompulsion, For this too is one of

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the things according to nature. Accustomthyself as much as possible, on the
occasion of anything being done by anyperson, to inquire with thyself, for
what object is this man doing this? But begin with thyself and examine thyself.
First, Remember that this which pullsthe strings is the thing which is
hidden within. This is the powerof persuasion, This is life. This,

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if one may so say, isman. In contemplating thyself, Never
include the vessel which surrounds thee,and these instruments which are attached about it,
For they are like to enact differingonly in this that they grow to
the body. For indeed, thereis no more use in these parts without
the cause which moves and checks them, than in the weaver's shuttle, when

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the writer's pen and the driver's whip