Commentary on Meditations: B4:51

Always run on the short road: and nature's road is short. Go then for the healthiest in all you say and do. Such a purpose releases a man from the labours of service, from all need to manage or impress.

When I read this passage, to me it says, "be genuine, as it takes the need for all superfluity and gratuitous, exhausting pride out of your life."  It also says to me, "being an honest representation of yourself is what others expect of you - what they assume about you.  This is nothing more than simple integrity - your actions and thoughts are aligned."

Commentary on Meditations: B4:50

An unphilosophic but nonetheless effective help to putting death in its place is to run over the list of those who have clung long to life. What did they gain over the untimely dead? At any rate they are all in their graves by now - Caedicianus, Fabius, Julianus, Lepidus, and all others like them who took part in many funerals and then their own. In truth, the distance we have to travel is small: and we drag it out with such labour, in such poor company, in such a feeble body. No great thing, then. Look behind you at the huge gulf of time, and another infinity ahead. In this perspective what is the difference between an infant of three days and a Nestor of three generations?

Marcus performs the same spiritual exercise he did in B4:48 (see this link).

Remember, eternity is now; we are already living it.  Don't wait for it; live it.

(see also Citadel p. 48, 292)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:49

Be like the rocky headland on which the waves constantly break. It stands firm, and round it the seething waters are laid to rest. 

'It is my bad luck that this has happened to me.' No, you should rather say: 'It is my good luck that, although this has happened to me, I can bear it without pain, neither crushed by the present nor fearful of the future.' Because such a thing could have happened to any man, but not every man could have borne it without pain. So why see more misfortune in the event than good fortune in your ability to bear it? Or in general would you call anything a misfortune for a man which is not a deviation from man's nature? Or anything a deviation from man's nature which is not contrary to the purpose of his nature? Well, then. You have learnt what that purpose is. Can there be anything, then, in this happening which prevents you being just, high-minded, self-controlled, intelligent, judicious, truthful, honourable and free - or any other of those attributes whose combination is the fulfilment of man's proper nature? So in all future events which might induce sadness remember to call on this principle: 'this is no misfortune, but to bear it true to yourself is good fortune.'

One of my absolute favorite passages of Meditations.  I have a pinned tweet with this quote (link).

Life is opinion. If you want to be resilient and tough-minded, this passage is the key to getting there.

Ryan Holiday's book The Obstacle is the Way is based on this idea that we should not view events as unfortunate, but that we should view ourselves as being able to live up to the challenge of whatever life and Nature throws our way.

I also love that Marcus calls out the true nature of humans, which is to be virtuous and more specifically, just, disciplined and temperate and wise and intelligent.

Also note how Marcus teaches himself to pivot his perspective at crucial moments. We might similarly find ourselves saying how unfortunate we are that we experienced a flat tire, a death in the family, or a poor performance assessment at work. However, in that precise moment, we should immediately pivot to tell ourselves that is it not our bad luck that this event has happened, but how fortunate we are that this has happened, because we have been taught by the masters to master our fate. Marcus, Seneca, Epictetus and others have shown us the way to turn any obstacle into an advance and how to turn any misfortune into our good fortune. These event didn't just happen to any person; it happened to me.  I am a person who can demonstrate excellence of character in the face of any challenge. In brief, we would do well to recall Seneca's words, from "On Providence," that just as fire proves gold, so too do hardships prove good humans.

(see also Citadel p. 36, 68, 122)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:48

Think constantly how many doctors have died, after knitting their brows over their own patients; how many astrologers, after predicting the deaths of others, as if death were something important; how many philosophers, after endless deliberation on death or immortality; how many heroes, after the many others they killed; how many tyrants, after using their power over men's lives with monstrous insolence, as if they themselves were immortal. Think too how many whole cities have 'died' Helice, Pompeii, Herculaneum, innumerable others. Go over now all those you have known yourself, one after the other: one man follows a friend's funeral and is then laid out himself, then another follows him - and all in a brief space of time. The conclusion of this? You should always look on human life as short and cheap. Yesterday sperm: tomorrow a mummy or ashes.

So one should pass through this tiny fragment of time in tune with nature, and leave it gladly, as an olive might fall when ripe, blessing the earth which bore it and grateful to the tree which gave it growth.

Marcus lays out, so well, the entire summation of life.  We get so worked up over something that is simply not up to us.  We ought to think of all those who have preceded us in death.  We ought to look at history and see the utter fragility of human life, homes, cities, states, countries.  All passes in time.  Think no great thing of it.  Accept it and embrace it.  Be grateful for the life you have now rather than worry about the life you will lose.

(see also Citadel p. 166, 276)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:47

Just as if a god told you that you would die tomorrow or at least the day after tomorrow, you would attach no importance to the difference of one day, unless you are a complete coward (such is the tiny gap of time): so you should think there no great difference between life to the umpteenth year and life to tomorrow.

Many people are preoccupied with dying.  Upon truly dissecting one's death, one will come to know that they don't have control over when they will die.  Indeed, we may eat healthy, exercise and live well and we may live a long, healthy life.  And we ought to do all that we can to preserve and extend our life.  But at the end of the day; after all analysis has been done, we are forced to the conclusion that the date and time of our death and the manner of our death is largely out of our hands - we have no control over these things.  And in the grand scheme of things, especially in the context of time, there really is not much difference if you live 3 months, 3 years or 30 years or 90 years. On a timeline of eternity, the difference between 3 months and 90 years is infinitesimally small; "such is the tiny gap of time."

Commentary on Meditations: B4:46

Always remember Heraclitus: 'The death of earth is the birth of water; the death of water is the birth of air; the death of air is fire, and back again.' Remember too his image of the man who forgets his way home; his saying that men are at odds with their most constant companion, the Reason which governs all things; that their everyday experience takes them by surprise; that we must not act or speak as if asleep, and sleep brings the illusion of speech and action; and that we should not be like children with their parents, simply accepting what we are told.

Life is change. The sooner you realize this, the better off you will be.

Don't be like those foolish people who are philosophically asleep all the time and are like children who simply mimic their parents' philosophy. Rather, we should tap into our god-given reason. We should not take this gift for granted, but use it to discern how the universe loves to change.

Found this link, which I think does a good job summarizing Heraclitus' philosophy on change.

(see also Citadel p. 54-55, 268)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:40-45

Think always of the universe as one living creature, comprising one substance and one soul: how all is absorbed into this one consciousness; how a single impulse governs all its actions; how all things collaborate in all that happens; the very web and mesh of it all.

You are a soul carrying a corpse, as Epictetus used to say.

Change: nothing inherently bad in the process, nothing inherently good in the result.

There is a river of creation, and time is a violent stream. As soon as one thing comes into sight, it is swept past and another is carried down: it too will be taken on its way.

All that happens is as habitual and familiar as roses in spring and fruit in the summer. True too of disease, death, defamation, and conspiracy - and all that delights or gives pain to fools.

What comes after is always in affinity to what went before. Not some simple enumeration of disparate things and a merely necessary sequence, but a rational connection: and just as existing things are harmoniously interconnected, so the processes of becoming exhibit no mere succession, but a wonderfully inherent affinity.

Returning to one of the fundamental principals of Stoicism: some things are up to us, while other things are not up to us. The things that are not up to us should not drive our perception of the world; they should not affect us or our attitude or judgement.

Therefore, one of the exercises of the discipline of assent is to delineate those things that should not affect our attitude and perception of life.

In 40, Marcus recognizes we are part of the vast, complex universe and we are subject to the impulse of that magnificent body. Our attitude ought to embrace the impulse of the universe.

In 41, Marcus recognizes that our mind and soul are far more important and precious than a corpse.

In 42, Marcus reminds us that there is nothing good or bad about change; it just is.

In 43, Marcus returns to the universal theme. Creation, time - they flow like a river. No need to lament. Instead, we should embrace the change.

In 44, Marcus continues by reflecting on the flow of time and change. Embrace the change and even love it.

In 45, Marcus loves the fate and the change of the universe. It is all connected and rational.

(see also Citadel p. 66, 116-117, 141, 253)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:39

Harm to you cannot subsist in another's directing mind, nor indeed in any turn or change of circumstance. Where, then? In that part of you which judges harm. So no such judgement, and all is well. Even if what is closest to it, your own body, is subjected to knife or cautery, or left to suppurate or mortify, even so that faculty in you which judges these things should stay untroubled. That is, it should assess nothing either bad or good which can happen equally to the bad man or the good: because what can happen to a man irrespective of his life's conformity to nature is not of itself either in accordance with nature or contrary to it.

Imagine yourself and another person. Both of you possess your mind and both of you would agree that you cannot reach into the other person's mind and cause harm and vice versa.  If you agree with this, then you agree that the other person cannot harm you with their mind.

Here's another example.  A person says to you, "you are worthless; you suck; you're a loser."  Is your mind harmed?  I would argue, no, it is not harmed.  Perhaps you still disagree.  What if the other person who told you those things were a complete stranger off the street?  Would you "feel bad?"  Most likely not.  But if the other person were a close relative, it might sting a bit, but only because in your mind, that other person is important to you and at some level you want their respect and love.  In this case, you have added the importance of the words of the other person.  The words and thoughts from the other person's mind did not cause you harm, but your judgement about the person is what determined the weight of those words and thoughts.  This whole exercise of not adding what ought not to be added, is the discipline of assent.  In a more succinct description, it is simply an attitude adjustment.

Marcus applies the same concept to harm of the body.  If your body goes under the knife or is cauterized, then the pain from the knife and cauterization is what it is.  You don't need to add mental anguish to the physical pain, such as saying or thinking "why is this happening to me?"  In my estimation, this is easier said than done.  But the concept helps.  Two personal examples from my life are me being bit by a venomous snake and undergoing a catheter ablation.  In both events, physical pain was applied, but I tried my best not to apply the pain of added self-mental-anguish.

(see also Citadel p. 41)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:37-38

Your death will soon be on you: and you are not yet clearminded, or untroubled, or free from the fear of external harm, or kindly to all people, or convinced that justice of action is the only wisdom.

Look into their directing minds: observe what even the wise will avoid or pursue.

The goal of life, before you die, is to become what a human should become: living a life of reason; focusing on what you can control and accepting what the universe sends your way.

The sage is the ideal in Stoicism.  To look into their minds and see what they adhere to and what they ignore, provides a map for the rest of us.

(see Citadel p. 76 for description of a sage)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:36

Constantly observe all that comes about through change, and habituate yourself to the thought that the nature of the Whole loves nothing so much as to change one form of existence into another, similar but new. All that exists is in a sense the seed of its successor: but your concept of 'seed' is simply what is put into the earth or the womb - that is very unphilosophic thinking.

Change is constant.  I used to really hate it when people would say, "the one thing that never changes is change."  But it is so true and the more quickly we embrace the idea, the better off we are mentally.  We are born, live our infancy, start school, graduate from elementary to middle to high school to college.  We work, play, get married, have a family, go to funerals, see our own children grow, see them have children and before we know it, we die.  Grass, leaves, trees, mountains, buildings, cities - all go through a similar metamorphosis.  Some change we embrace, other changes we lament.  We ought to embrace all change and be prepared for it.

Our attitude and our striving to attain arete and living the virtuous life should be the constant.  While all else changes before us, we can be un-movable in our resolve to live a life of virtue.

Commentary on Meditations: B4:33-35

Words in common use long ago are obsolete now. So too the names of those once famed are in a sense obsolete - Camillus, Caeso, Volesus, Dentatus; a little later Scipio and Cato, then Augustus too, then Hadrian and Antoninus. All things fade and quickly turn to myth: quickly too utter oblivion drowns them. And I am talking of those who shone with some wonderful brilliance: the rest, once they have breathed their last, are immediately 'beyond sight, beyond knowledge'. But what in any case is everlasting memory? Utter emptiness.

So where should a man direct his endeavour? Here only - a right mind, action for the common good, speech incapable of lies, a disposition to welcome all that happens as necessary, intelligible, flowing from an equally intelligible spring of origin.

Gladly surrender yourself to Clotho: let her spin your thread into whatever web she wills.

All is ephemeral, both memory and the object of memory.

The march of time never ceases.  Time wipes out and eventually engulfs everything.  Marcus notes famous people; people of authority and power.  And at the time Marcus wrote this passage, those famous and powerful people were all but forgotten.  Then he points out that even the famous and powerful are driven to "utter oblivion."  Now, moving on to "the rest"; well, even more obscure and forgotten.

This whole passage, in verse 33, is supposed to humble the reader.  Our individual life is a drop of water in the universe of time and space.  A speck of sand in a never-ending beach.

The action this thought should spur us to, is to fulfill your duty.  Have a clear and right mind.  Whenever you act, do so in view of the common good (don't be selfish).  Let your words be good (don't lie); and have a good attitude all the time.  Accept and even love your fate.

Who is Clotho?  She was one of the three goddesses of fate in Greek mythology.  Clotho was responsible for weaving and linking things together.  So, if she chose your fate, love it - accept it as part of a greater scheme.  This was Marcus' way of saying "amor fati".

Accepting your fate can be a hard thing to hear.  I contend, at some point in everyone's life, people will simply have to accept whatever it is that happens to them.  Indeed, they may ascribe certain events to their hard work or foresight, but eventually, those stories fail and all that is left is acceptance.  Those who actively accept daily fate will be better off, when the big event happens, than those who tend to make up stories about their fate.

Case in point.  Two mothers: both are about the same age.  One mother lost her daughter to a sudden onset of cancer.  The cancer came on quickly and was extremely aggressive.  The daughter died before she could even graduate high school.  The other mother had the unfortunate event happen that her two-year old daughter fell into a pool and nearly drowned.  The girl was admitted to a hospital and for a time, it would seem she was going to die; but she did not.  Why was she spared and the other not?  No one will ever know.  To question why one lived and the other not is an exercise of madness.  Both mothers simply have to accept the fate and be grateful for what they do have.

Regardless of all our lives, the great equalizer is death and eventually oblivion.  Let this thought humble you and let it make you appreciate the air you breathe now and the life you are able to have now at this moment in time.  Be virtuous (courageous, wise, temperate and just) and love your fate.

(see also Citadel p.139-140)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:32

Consider, for example, the time of Vespasian. You will see everything the same. People marrying, having children, falling ill, dying, fighting, feasting, trading, farming, flattering, pushing, suspecting, plotting, praying for the death of others, grumbling at their lot, falling in love, storing up wealth, longing for consulships and kingships. And now that life of theirs is gone, vanished

Pass on again to the time of Trajan. Again, everything the same. That life too is dead.

Similarly, look at the histories of other eras and indeed whole nations, and see how many lives of striving met with a quick fall and resolution into the elements. Above all, review in your mind those you have seen yourself in empty struggles, refusing to act in accord with their own natural constitution, to hold tight to it and find it sufficient. And in this context you must remember that there is proportionate value in our attention to each action - so you will not lose heart if you devote no more time than they warrant to matters of less importance.

The more I study history, the more I realize how tiny my life is in the grand scheme of things in both scope and time.  The more I study history, the less sway the persuasive arguments have over me.

I do not require perfect health or a perfect body; I do not require immortality or fame or piles of cash.  I do not have the need to see and travel the world over.

Rather, all I need to reason and to be able to calmly interact and help those whose daily circles I cross.  All I really need is to aim for courage, temperance, justice and wisdom.

(see also Citadel p, 47-48, 188)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:31

Love the art which you have learnt, and take comfort in it. Go through the remainder of your life in sincere commitment of all your being to the gods, and never making yourself tyrant or slave to any man.

Sometimes, I may go a few days without reading a little Marcus Aurelius.  When that happens and when I return to reading Aurelius, it is like returning to a cool spring of water after a hot day of work.  It is comforting to read the purity of Stoicism.  Now, I simply need to love the art of living philosophically and to be consistent.  For me, the danger I face is becoming a slave to laziness or pleasure.

Commentary on Meditations: B4:30

One philosopher has no shirt, one has no book. Here is another half-naked: 'I have no bread', he says, 'but I am faithful to Reason.' But I for my part have all the food of learning, and yet I am not faithful.

Such a simple and straight-forward self-admonition.  If I were to re-write this and write it to myself, it would go something like this:  "You've been given all the resources and books and means to practice philosophy, yet you dabble.  You have a mansion, yet live and sleep on the porch.  You have a Maserati, but only drive it in the parking lot."

Commentary on Meditations: B4:28-29

Nero: mercenary, despotic

A black character, an effeminate, unbending character, the character of a brute or dumb animal: infantile, stupid, fraudulent, coarse, mercenary, despotic.

If one who does not recognize the contents of the universe is a stranger in it, no less a stranger is the one who fails to recognize what happens in it. He is a fugitive if he runs away from social principle; blind, if he shuts the eye of the mind; a beggar, if he depends on others and does not possess within him all he needs for life; a tumour on the universe, if he stands aside and separates himself from the principle of our common nature in disaffection with his lot (for it is nature which brings this about, just as it brought you about too); a social splinter, if he splits his own soul away from the soul of all rational beings, which is a unity.

In verse 28, Marcus reminds himself of his potential to be a tyrant Emperor - this was his way of hedging himself from his powerful and swift capacity to make others' life living hell.

Looking within yourself, what dark qualities could you become if you don't yield to reason?  This negative visualization could be useful in hedging yourself from a life of vanity.

In verse 29, he further reminds himself of his social duties with regard to others.  We live in a social order and any attempt to separate ourselves from that social order goes against our design and our purpose.  Engage with others; make a difference; use reason and fulfill your duties.

Commentary on Meditations: B4:27

Either an ordered universe, or a stew of mixed ingredients, yet still coherent order. Otherwise how could a sort of private order subsist within you, if there is disorder in the Whole? Especially given that all things, distinct as they are, nevertheless permeate and respond to each other.

This passage is one of many that Marcus wrote on the question of: is there a God, or are there just random atoms that govern the universe?

The Stoics would see beyond the question and arrive at the conclusion that whether a person believed in a God or Gods that govern the universe or if a person believed it was all chaos and random atoms, the response from a person ought to be the same.  And that response is: live according to reason - be who you were meant to be; accept your fate regardless if you view it as coming from God(s) or from random events.

(see also Citadel p. 148)

Commentary on Meditations: B4: 25-26

Try out too how the life of the good man goes for you - the man content with his dispensation from the Whole, and satisfied in his own just action and kind disposition.

You have seen that: now look at this. Do not trouble yourself, keep yourself simple. Someone does wrong? He does wrong to himself. Has something happened to you? Fine. All that happens has been fated by the Whole from the beginning and spun for your own destiny. In sum, life is short: make your gain from the present moment with right reason and justice. Keep sober and relaxed.

A few weeks ago, while talking to my kids about life choices, I offered up this bit of advice.  Pursue a life of pleasure; pursue a life of thrill-seeking adventure; pursue of life of ease; pursue getting rich; pursue fame; pursue all of these to the end and see where it takes you.  I'm willing to bet that none of these pursuits will bring you true happiness and contentment.  Rather, you will almost certainly come to the realization that these pursuits were empty promises.  You might think these pursuits would bring you what you truly seek, but you will still be discontented and will be off in search of yet some new thing to make you content.

Another, more recent, example came when I learned of person who always needs to plan for some new big event or travel plan - they need something to look forward to and I assume that if they didn't have something to look forward to, they would be discontented and depressed.  I understand that thought process - I used to think this way too.  Eventually, I came to the humble conclusion that daily life is enough.  I learned to be content with my lot in life and to be grateful for what I do have and less concerned for what I don't have.  I'm not a sage and I still look to things and events to settle my anxiety, but I am much more accepting of getting up in the morning, exercising, working, commuting, interacting with others and dealing with day-to-day events.

Commentary on Meditations: B4:24

'If you want to be happy', says Democritus, 'do little.' May it not be better to do what is necessary, what the reason of a naturally social being demands, and the way reason demands it done? This brings the happiness both of right action and of little action. Most of what we say and do is unnecessary: remove the superfluity, and you will have more time and less bother. So in every case one should prompt oneself: 'Is this, or is it not, something necessary?' And the removal of the unnecessary should apply not only to actions but to thoughts also: then no redundant actions either will follow.

Efficiency and focus - these lead to a life of meaning and happiness.  Time, money and thought spent on superfluous things leads to a dead end.  What are we doing to benefit society?  Are we raising decent children?  Are we helping others in our community?  Are we doing no harm?

Life with a purpose and minimal time spent on low-value-add activities should be the aim for all.

(see also Citadel, p. 55, 187)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:23

Universe, your harmony is my harmony: nothing in your good time is too early or too late for me. Nature, all that your seasons bring is fruit to me: all comes from you, exists in you, returns to you. The poet says, 'Dear city of Cecrops': will you not say, 'Dear city of Zeus'?

For this commentary, I wish to share a passage from Inner Citadel by Hadot (p. 143):

This brings us back to the theme of the present. A particular event is not predestined for me and accorded with me only because it is harmonized with the World; rather, it is so because it occurs in this particular moment and no other. It occurs in accordance with the kairos ("right moment"), which, as the Greeks had always known, is unique. Therefore, that which is happening to me at this moment is happening at the right moment, in accordance with the necessary, methodical, and harmonious unfolding of all events, all of which occur at their proper time and season.

To will the event that is happening at this moment, and in this present instant, is to will the entire universe which has brought it about. 

(see also Citadel, p. 75, 143, 260)

Commentary on Meditations: B4:21-22

You may ask how, if souls live on, the air can accommodate them all from the beginning of time. Well, how does the earth accommodate all those bodies buried in it over the same eternity? Just as here on earth, once bodies have kept their residence for whatever time, their change and decomposition makes room for other bodies, so it is with souls migrated to the air. They continue for a time, then change, dissolve, and take fire as they are assumed into the generative principle of the Whole: in this way they make room for successive residents. Such would be one's answer on the assumption that souls do live on.

We should consider, though, not only the multitude of bodies thus buried, but also the number of animals eaten every day by us and other creatures - a huge quantity consumed and in a sense buried in the bodies of those who feed on them. And yet there is room for them, because they are reduced to blood and changed into the elements of air and fire. How to investigate the truth of this? By distinguishing the material and the causal.

No wandering. In every impulse, give what is right: in every thought, stick to what is certain.

In this passage, Marcus seems to reflect on the aspect of existence and how Nature loves to change. He focuses his mind on the problem of an earth and atmosphere accommodating all the elements. While it may seem that the earth and air might become full of souls and dead bodies, he rightly comprehends that elements decompose to the point "the generative principle of the Whole" or in a word, pneuma.

In the second chapter, it is almost as if he snaps back to it, telling himself to not think about such matters. He tells himself to not wander anymore.  Rather, he should focus his time and effort on what action ought to be done and to focus on what is up to him.

(see also Citadel, p. 29, 41, 45, 186)