About Marcus Aurelius: Marcus Aurelius is also considered one of the most important Stoic philosophers.
Is your cucumber bitter? Throw it away. Are there briars in your path? Turn aside. That is enough. Do not go on and say, "Why were things of this sort ever brought into this world?" neither intolerable nor everlasting - if thou bearest in mind that i...
How ridiculous and unrealistic is the man who is astonished at anything that happens in life.
That which is really beautiful has no need of anything; not more than law, not more than truth, not more than benevolence or modesty.
Will any man despise me? Let him see to it. But I will see to it that I may not be found doing or saying anything that deserves to be despised.
Don't go on discussing what a good person should be. Just be one.
Give up your thirst for books, so that you do not die a grouch.
Observe always that everything is the result of change, and get used to thinking that there is nothing Nature loves so well as to change existing forms and make new ones like them.
Maximus was my model for self-control, fixity of purpose, and cheerfulness under ill-health or other misfortunes. His character was an admirable combination of dignity and charm, and all the duties of his station were performed quietly and without fu...
A person's worth is measured by the worth of what he values.
Perfection of character is this: to live each day as if it were your last, without frenzy, without apathy, without pretence.
If any man despises me, that is his problem. My only concern is not doing or saying anything deserving of contempt.
Do not act as if you had ten thousand years to throw away. Death stands at your elbow. Be good for something while you live and it is in your power.
How good it is, when you have roast meat or suchlike foods before you, to impress on your mind that this is the dead body of a fish, this the dead body of a bird or pig.
I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others.
We must make haste then, not only because we are daily nearer to death, but also because the conception of things and the understanding of them cease first.
That which has died falls not out of the universe. If it stays here, it also changes here, and is dissolved into its proper parts, which are elements of the universe and of thyself. And these too change, and they murmur not".
Whenever you are about to find fault with someone, ask yourself the following question: What fault of mine most nearly resembles the one I am about to criticize?
As far as you can, get into the habit of asking yourself in relation to any action taken by another: "What is his point of reference here?" But begin with yourself: examine yourself first.
Accustom yourself not to be disregarding of what someone else has to say: as far as possible enter into the mind of the speaker.
It is in your own power to maintain the beauty of your soul, or to be a decent human being.
It is a ridiculous thing for a man not to fly from his own badness, which is indeed possible, but to fly from other men's badness, which is impossible.
