Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations in Simple Language: Book ThreeBy Betty Bassett

I. A person must not only think about how his life is passing and getting shorter every day, but also about how he can't be sure that if he lives a long time, his mind will still be good enough for careful business thought or quiet thought. This is what makes it possible to really know both God and other people. Because if he starts to love, his breathing, eating, creativity, appetite, and other natural skills will stay the same, and he won't run out of them. But he won't be able to use himself the way he should, which is to do what is right and fair in every situation, fix any wrongs or sudden fears or ideas, and carefully think about whether he should live longer or not. He won't be able to do any of these things, which require the most mental and physical strength. So, you should hurry, not only because you're getting closer to death every day, but also because the part of your brain that lets you understand how things really work and act on that knowledge is getting weaker and weaker every day, and it may fail you before you die.

II. You should also keep in mind that everything that happens naturally to natural things is pleasing and delightful. For example, when a big loaf of bread is baked, some of it breaks apart, making the crust rough and uneven. But even though these parts falling apart goes against the art and purpose of baking, they still taste good and look nice. So, people think that figs are best and most ripe when they start to shrink and, in a way, die. So olives look best right before they start to go bad. Grapes that hang down, the brow of a lion, the foam of a wild boar, and many other similar things are not beautiful on their own, but because they happen naturally, they are both beautiful and delightful. So, a smart person who looks at everything in the world, even the things that are just natural extras, won't find much he likes. So, he will enjoy seeing the real faces of wild animals just as much as those made by skilled painters and other artists. So, he will be able to see the beauty and maturity of old age in both men and women, and he will soon be able to learn and understand everything else that is beautiful and attractive. He will understand these things and a lot more, which is not true for everyone. People who know a lot about nature and everything that comes from it will only find them to be true.

III. Even though he had helped many people get better, Hippocrates got sick and died. Even though the Chaldeans and Astrologers said divers would die, they were surprised by what actually happened. Alexander, Pompeius, and Caius Caesar killed so many people on horseback and on foot in the field and destroyed so many towns that they all wanted to die. Heraclitus wrote a lot about how, at the end of the world, everything will burn up. When he died, he was full of water on the inside and dirty and smelly on the outside. Socrates was a bad person who didn't believe in God, so he died. Democritus was killed by lice. So, what do you think? You got on a boat, sailed, and are now back on land. If you want to live another life, you should go out.

IV. Don't spend the rest of your life thinking and dreaming about other people if it's not for the common good or if it keeps you from doing something better. That is, don't try to figure out why someone does what they do. Don't think about what he says, what he thinks, what he's about, or anything else that makes it hard to pay attention to the part of yourself that is rational and in charge. So, don't think about anything useless or unimportant, and especially don't think about anything bad or strange. If someone asks you what you're thinking, you should only think about things you feel comfortable talking about. This will show how calm and truthful you are. A priest and god's servant is someone like this who doesn't wait to get what's best. He talks to the god who lives inside him as if he were in a temple or a room for sacrifices, and he doesn't let pleasure or pain affect him. He doesn't hurt himself or do anything wrong, and he doesn't let others hurt him. A great wrestler who fights for the biggest prize so he won't lose because of how he feels. He is very good and loves and accepts everything that happens to him or is given to him with his whole heart. Someone who doesn't care much about what other people say, do, or plan unless it affects the public good in a big way. He only cares about things he can control or that are truly his, and he is always thinking about the things that fate or Providence have given him. He takes care of things that belong to him and are under his control and makes sure they work well. Things that happen to him make him think they are true. It's always good for everyone's share and lot, which can't be avoided and are needed. He also keeps in mind that things that make sense to him are like him and that caring about other people is natural. But he knows that praise and honor should only come from people who are true to themselves. For those who don't, he knows who they are, where they are, what time it is, what kind of people they are or who they hang out with, and what they do with their time. Because they can't like and approve of themselves, he doesn't pay much attention to their praise and approval.

V. Don't do anything against your will or against what the community wants, or just because you don't want to or haven't thought it through. Don't write things in a strange way. Be neither a great talker, nor a great undertaker. Also, let your God, who lives in you and rules over you, know through you that he is dealing with a man: an old man, a friendly man, a Roman, a prince, a man who has planned his life as if he expects nothing more than the sound of a trumpet to tell him to leave this life quickly. One who doesn't need an oath or someone else to back up what he or she says or does.

V. Don't do anything against your will or against what the community wants, or just because you don't want to or haven't thought it through. Don't write things in a strange way. Be neither a great talker, nor a great undertaker. Also, let your God, who lives in you and rules over you, know through you that he is dealing with a man: an old man, a friendly man, a Roman, a prince, a man who has planned his life as if he expects nothing more than the sound of a trumpet to tell him to leave this life quickly. One who doesn't need an oath or someone else to back up what he or she says or does.

VI. To be happy without needing the help, attention, or peace and quiet that you can only get from other people. Like someone who has never been gay or who has never been gay.

If you can find something better in this life than righteousness, truth, moderation, courage, and a mind that is happy with both the right and wise things you do and the things that happen to you without your will or knowledge, then do it with all your heart. Wherever you are, enjoy the best thing you find. But if you can't find anything better than your own spirit, if you can't find anything better than controlling your own lusts and desires and not giving in to fancies or imaginations before you've thought them through, if you can't find anything better than, in Socrates' words, "withdrawing yourself from all sensuality and submitting yourself to the gods and taking care of all men in general," then there's nothing better than your own spirit. Because it is against the law to put something like fame, money, pleasure, or honor in competition with something that makes sense and works well. Even if any of these things make someone happy for a short time, they soon win out and change their mind or take them off the right path. So, I say, pick what you think is best and stick with it. How do they say you should answer? What makes the most money? If "good for a rational man" is what they mean, you should keep it and stand by it. If, on the other hand, they mean "good for man as a creature," then you should just reject it. From this point of view and conclusion, you should be careful to keep all colors and looks away so you can see things clearly.

VII. If you can find something better in this life than righteousness, truth, moderation, courage, and a mind that is happy with both the right and wise things you do and the things that happen to you without your will or knowledge, then do it with all your heart. Wherever you are, enjoy the best thing you find. But if you can't find anything better than your own spirit, if you can't find anything better than controlling your own lusts and desires and not giving in to fancies or imaginations before you've thought them through, if you can't find anything better than, in Socrates' words, "withdrawing yourself from all sensuality and submitting yourself to the gods and taking care of all men in general," then there's nothing better than your own spirit. Because it is against the law to put something like fame, money, pleasure, or honor in competition with something that makes sense and works well. Even if any of these things make someone happy for a short time, they soon win out and change their mind or take them off the right path. So, I say, pick what you think is best and stick with it. How do they say you should answer? What makes the most money? If "good for a rational man" is what they mean, you should keep it and stand by it. If, on the other hand, they mean "good for man as a creature," then you should just reject it. From this point of view and conclusion, you should be careful to keep all colors and looks away so you can see things clearly.

VIII. Don't think anything is worth it if it requires you to break your faith or lose your modesty, to hate someone, to suspect them, to curse them, to lie, or to want something that you have to hide behind walls or veils. But a person who values his mind and spirit more than anything else, as well as the sacred mysteries of virtue that come from them, will never be sad, never cry out, and never sigh. He won't want to be alone or with other people. Most importantly, he won't want or fear anything. And he doesn't care how long or short his life is as long as he can enjoy his soul while it's in a body. For if he left right now, he would be just as ready as if he did anything else that could be done well. He only cares about one thing for the rest of his life: making sure his mind is always full of thoughts and goals that make sense for a smart, social creature.

IX. In a mind that has been truly trained and cleaned, you won't find anything that is dirty, unclean, or growing; nothing that is servile or fake; no partial ties, no malicious dislike, nothing offensive, and nothing hidden. For someone like this, death can never be a shock. For example, a man could say something if an actor died before the play was over or if the play was over.

X. Honor and respect your right to an opinion, because that's where everything is. Make sure that your opinion doesn't make you think something that goes against nature or what a rational creature should be like. The goal of a rational constitution is to not act too quickly, to be nice to people, and to willingly submit to the gods in everything. So, forget about everything else and focus on these few things. Also, keep in mind that no one has lived longer than the moment they are in. Everything else either happened already or is unknown. So, a person's life is short, and where he lives is only a small part of the world. Even the greatest fame a person can have after they die is short-lived, and even that is kept alive by a bunch of stupid mortals who will soon die and don't even know who they really are while they're alive.

XI. In addition to these always-present aids and reminders, make a detailed description of every object that comes to mind so you can look at it on its own, bare and naked, and in all of its parts and quarters. Then, in your mind, name both the object and the parts it is made of and can be broken down into. Because true magnanimity comes from being able to honestly and methodically look at and think about all the things that happen in life and understand their natures so that they all fit together in our minds at the same time. So, what's the point? What is the real nature of this universe, and how does that help? Compared to the universe, how big is it? How important is it for people to live in the highest city, compared to which all other cities are like homes and families?

XII. What's catching my eye right now? What is it made of? how much longer can it go on? which of the virtues is best for this situation? as whether meekness, courage, honesty, faith, sincerity, contentment, or any of the others? So, you should be able to say about everything, "This comes straight from God, this comes from that fatal connection and chaining together of things, or (almost the same thing) this just happened by chance." This comes from my friend and family member next door. He doesn't know himself well enough to know what is natural for him. But I know it, so I treat him with kindness and fairness, which is a natural law of friendship. I move toward things that don't matter on their own because, in my opinion, everything deserves more or less.

XIII. If you pay attention to what is going on right now, follow the rule of right and reason carefully, firmly, and meekly, and don't get involved in other things, but only study this to keep your spirit clean and uncontaminated, and cling to him without hope or fear of anything, in everything you do or say, as long as you stick to heroic truth, you will live happily, and no one can stop you.

XIV. Just like doctors and surgeons always have their tools ready in case of an emergency, you should always have your dogma ready to help you understand both divine and human things. And no matter what you do, even the smallest things, you should always think about the connections between the divine and the human. Because you can't move quickly in the world if you don't have a connection to God, and you can't move quickly in God if you don't have a connection to the world.

Don't be fooled; you won't live long enough to read your moral commentaries, the deeds of famous Romans and Greeks, or those excerpts from different books that you had saved for your old age. So, hurry up and bring it to an end, and give up all false hopes. If you care about yourself, which you should, you'll help yourself on time.

They don't know what these words mean or how many different ways they can be interpreted.

XVI. To steal, to sow, to buy, to rest, and to see what needs to be done (which can't be seen with the eyes but with another kind of sight): they don't know what these words mean or how many ways they can be interpreted. The spirit, the mind, and the body. Dogmas are a natural part of understanding, just like the senses, wants, and feelings are natural parts of the body and soul, respectively.

XVII. People and animals can both dream and make up stories, which is true. Wild animals and monsters like Phalaris and Nero are often violently drawn and moved by their desires and lusts. Even people who don't believe in gods and wouldn't betray their own country if it would help them would do what makes sense when the doors are closed. If everything else is the same, the only true trait of a god is for a man to like and accept all the things that happen to him and are meant for him, and not to bother the spirit that lives in his own heart with a lot of useless thoughts and ideas, but to keep him happy and obey him as a god, never saying or doing anything that goes against the truth or justice. Even though no one would believe that he lives honestly, morally, or happily, he doesn't get mad about it and doesn't let it take him off the path that leads to the end of his life, which he must pass through clean, always ready to die, and willing to fit and adjust himself to his proper lot and portion without force.