Just Finished Reading: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

This is the second book in the Penguin Great Ideas series – though the third of that series I’ve read since I’ve also read The Social Contract out of sequence. My plan – which has so far failed miserably – is to read one of these slim volumes each month.

Marcus Aurelius was a Roman Stoic philosopher and Emperor of Rome and lived from AD 121 – 180. His collection of thoughts presented in this volume of twelve books covers a variety of topics and are basically his thoughts on how to live a good life. Unfortunately I found this rather hard going – unlike the previous Stoic writings of another Roman philosopher Seneca – because Aurelius seemed to be endlessly repeating himself. He appeared to have these basic ideas which recurred in various guises:

That the use of Reason should be paramount in any decision making process and that one should not give any weight to emotions.

That everything is ruled by Fate and you should just get used to the idea. The trick is to figure out what you are Fated to be and then simply be that person. Fighting your fate is pointless and will only bring you grief. Not recognising your fate is just confusing and will lead you into counterproductive activities.

You are going to die – soon. Anyone you know now will be dead – soon. Everyone who has ever heard of you will be dead – soon. So why bother trying to impress other people or spend your time trying to be famous? Such attempts are fruitless and the time can be spent more productively.

Don’t get too attached to things. People you love will die. Property can be stolen or destroyed. Do not accumulate hostages to Fortune who can be fickle at the best of times.

Don’t worry about the actions or thoughts of your neighbours. Their lives are their problem – not yours. You can try and correct their mistakes but only they can make the decisions to improve their lives.

Harm can only be self-inflicted. A reasoning person with the right attitude towards the universe can never come to harm.

It’s all good basic Stoic philosophy but 100+ pages of that did honestly wear a bit. Some of it makes a great deal of sense. I’m even getting an appreciation of the Stoic idea of Fate, though I do struggle with the idea a great deal. I’m a firm believer in Free Will but now understand, from my other readings, how Free Will and Fate can operate in the same Universe. I still remain far from convinced however.

I expect that I’ll have problems with the next book in the list for different reasons – its Confessions of a Sinner by St Augustine. Wish me luck – I think that I’m going to need it.