Marcus Aurelius · 121–180 CE
Meditations 2.5 — Marcus Aurelius
Translation by George Long (1862)
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 2.5
Every moment think steadily as a Roman and a man to do what thou hast in hand with perfect and simple dignity, and feeling of affection, and freedom, and justice; and to give thyself relief from all other thoughts. And thou wilt give thyself relief, if thou doest every act of thy life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy, and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given to thee. Thou seest how few the things are, the which if a man lays hold of, he is able to live a life which flows in quiet, and is like the existence of the gods; for the gods on their part will require nothing more from him who observes these things.
Cite this passage
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 2.5, tr. George Long (1862)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/meditations/2.5
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, tr. George Long (1862). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesDo whatever is in front of you with dignity, warmth, freedom and fairness, as though it were the last thing you will do, dropping carelessness, pretence, selfishness and resentment of your lot. Few things are really needed for a calm life, and focusing on them lifts the weight of everything else.
Older wording
- “passionate aversion”
- — angry resistance
- “self-love”
- — selfishness, vanity
Themes and situations
- Duty and roles
- Time and the present
- Virtue and character
- Peace of mind
- Preparing for difficulty
- Feeling life is slipping by
- Procrastination
- Searching for meaning
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