Quotes by Marcus Aurelius

Be like a rocky promontory against which the restless surf continually pounds; it stands fast while the churning sea is lulled to sleep at its feet. I hear you say, How unlucky that this should happen to me! Not at all! Say instead, How lucky that I am not broken by what has happened and am not afraid of what is about to happen. The same blow might have struck anyone, but not many would have absorbed it without capitulation or complaint.

Sexual ecstasy is like death. It is one of the secrets of nature’s wisdom.

Be your own master, and look at things as a man, as a human being, as a citizen, as a mortal creature.

What am I but a little flesh, a little breath, and the thinking part that rules the whole?

Human life. Duration: momentary. Nature: changeable. Perception: dim. Condition of Body: decaying. Soul: spinning around. Fortune: unpredictable. Lasting Fame: uncertain. Sum Up: The body and its parts are a river, the soul a dream and mist, life is warfare and a journey far from home, lasting reputation is oblivion.

It is in your power to withdraw yourself whenever you desire. Perfect tranquility within consists in the good ordering of the mind, the realm of your own.

All men are made one for another: either then teach them better or bear with them.

It is in your own power to maintain the beauty of your soul, or to be a decent human being.

Whatever this is that I am, it is a little flesh and breath, and the ruling part. Throw away thy books; no longer distract thyself: it is not allowed; but as if thou wast now dying, despise the flesh; it is blood and bones and a network, a contexture of nerves, veins, and arteries. See the breath also, what kind of a thing it is, air, and not always the same, but every moment sent out and again sucked in. The third then is the ruling part: consider thus: Thou art an old man; no longer let this be a slave, no longer be pulled by the strings like a puppet to unsocial movements, no longer be either dissatisfied with thy present lot, or shrink from the future.

A man’s worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions.

The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury.

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.

Salvation: to see each thing for what it is— its nature and its purpose.To do only what is right, say only what is true, without holding back.What else could it be but to live life fully— to pay out goodnesslike the rings of a chain, without the slightest gap.

And in the case of superior things like stars, we discover a kind of unity in separation. The higher we rise on the scale of being, the easier it is to discern a connection even among things separated by vast distances.

Do not be ashamed of help.

There is no man so blessed that some who stand by his deathbed wont hail the occasion with delight.

Dig within. Within is the wellspring of Good; and it is always ready to bubble up, if you just dig.

Swiftly the remembrance of all things is buried in the gulf of eternity.

There is nothing more shameful than perfidious friendship.