Meditation I

Chapter 14

Neither the future nor the past can bring you pain, it is the present moment that can.

Happiness is in what you do naturally
This reflection can help us to dispel the desire for the extreme pursuit of fame, that is, your ability to control your life like a philosopher, or at least your life as an adult; The homes are far apart.So your life is in turmoil, and you no longer have a chance of getting a reputation as a philosopher; your life plan is completely different from it.If you have really recognized the crux of the problem, then please get rid of distracting thoughts. As long as you spend the rest of your life in a way that follows your nature, you can get satisfaction from it.You need, however, to investigate and inquire into what your nature wills to be, and not to let external things lead you astray; for you have had many experiences of life wandering about without finding ultimate happiness.Not in syllogism, not in wealth, not in fame, not in enjoyment, you will not find happiness anywhere.So where is happiness?Happiness is in what you do naturally.So how should one achieve it?If the person has guiding principles that govern his emotions and behavior.What are the guiding principles?It is about the criterion of judgment of right and wrong, good and evil: that is, if a thing cannot make a person have the character of justice, modesty, courage and freedom, then it is a bad thing for this person; nothing is bad Yes, if it does not transform man into a character contrary to the above.

Before taking any action ask yourself, what does it have to do with me?Will I regret it in the future?There's still a little time before I'm dead, and then everything will be gone like a cloud.If what I am doing now is what a rational person, a social person, and a person who is bound by the same laws as God should do, what else can I ask for?
What are Alexander, Gaius, and Pompey17 compared with Diogenes, Heraclitus, Socrates, etc.?They know things like the back of their hands, they have a deep understanding of the why (form) and inner substance of things, and most of them share the same spiritual guiding principles.But for the latter, how many things do they have to pay attention to?And how many things they are enslaved to!
But, don't forget, people are still going to do these things, even when you're furious.

First of all, the key point of the matter is: don't let people disturb you, because the existence of all things is in accordance with the nature of the universe; but you yourself will disappear in a short time, and there will be no trace to be found, just like Ha Like Delian and Augustus.Second, keep your undivided attention on the task at hand.At the same time, you have to remember that it is your duty to be a good person as much as possible. No matter what the requirements of human nature are, do not take an evasive attitude when doing things; try to be as appropriate and appropriate as possible in your speech, just have a good temperament, gentleness and humility That's it, don't be hypocritical.

It is one of the works of the nature of the universe to transfer things that belong to one place to another, to change them so that these things go from here to there.Everything is changing, but we need not fear the new; everything is familiar; and the general distribution of these things remains unchanged.

Every natural thing is, of course, satisfied with itself when it is going well in its own way; and a rational natural entity, if it is to go well in its way, must have its own thoughts free from all errors or inconsistencies. A determinate content, whose activity is directed only in the direction of social action, confines its own desires and aversions to the limits of its capabilities, and is completely content with all that common nature assigns to it.For every quality is a part of the general nature, just as the nature of the leaf is a part of the nature of the plant to which it belongs; easily hindered; but that natural nature, to which man's nature belongs, is undisturbed and unhindered, has intelligence and a sense of justice, because it allots an equal share to every thing, and according to value, age, content , cause (form), activity, and event to determine the ultimate bestowal.But the purpose of our investigation is not to deliberately reveal that any thing is completely equal in every respect compared with other individual things, but to put all the components of a thing together, and then compare them one by one with The individual components of another thing are compared separately.

You may not have the leisure or ability to read.But surely you have the leisure or ability to wean yourself from your arrogance; you will surely have time when you need to rise above pleasure and pain;Don't fret over those stupid and ungrateful guys, you can just ignore them.

Let no one else hear your complaints about court life or your own.

Regret is something like this: you forget to do something very useful, so you feel deeply guilty; because good things must have a place for them, and the best people should strive for them.But the good man does not feel sorry for missing some sensual pleasure.Therefore, pleasure is neither a good nor a useful thing.

This thing, what is it in itself, what is its structure?What is the material content and composition of this thing?What is the shape (or form) of this thing?What is it doing in this world?How long can it exist?
If you lie in bed and don't want to get up, just think about it: your nature and your nature as a human being require you to engage in all kinds of social activities, and as far as sleep itself is concerned, irrational animals have the same habit .However, even things that are based on the nature of an individual have their own characteristics, and this exclusive characteristic is more in line with the nature of this individual, so it can actually bring more happiness to this individual.

As far as conditions permit, try to stick to physics, ethics, and dialectics for every perception of the soul.

No matter what kind of person you meet, remember to ask yourself this question: What is this person's concept of right and wrong, good and evil?Because he has various views and will do various things on issues such as suffering and happiness, cause and effect, honor and disgrace, life and death, which is not surprising or novel; Remember, he had to.

Remember: the fig tree bears figs, and if you make a fuss about it, be ashamed, as you should be ashamed that the world produces what it ought to produce; Be ashamed to be astonished that the wind is blowing you wrong.

Remember: Opinions can be changed, and it is not against the principles of liberty to listen to someone who tells you where you are wrong;Because this is your own choice, and this choice is made according to your own behavior habits and thoughts, so it actually conforms to your own understanding.

If this is within your reach, why not do it?But if it's someone else's responsibility, who is to blame? — Atoms (accidental) or gods?Blaming anyone is ridiculous.You don't have to blame anyone at all.If you really want to do something, you might as well correct the root of the problem; but if you can't find the source of the problem, at least correct the thing itself; and if you can't even do that, then you just What's the use of complaining?There is nothing without a purpose.

Even when things are dead, they are still within the bounds of the universe.If it remains here, it will also change and dissolve into its proper constituents, the basic elements of the universe and also of yourself.These elements are all in flux, but without complaint.

When things exist in the world, they must have their function—such as a horse and a vine.Why are you still surprised?Even the sun-god would say that I exist for a purpose, and the rest of the gods would say similar things.So, for what purpose did you come into this world--for pleasure?Ask your conscience if it can say that answer.

Nature takes care of everything, in the beginning, in the process, and in the end, just as one throws a ball and catches it.So what is the benefit of being thrown up for this ball?What harm does it do to the ball when it falls and accidentally misses it and falls to the ground?Taking the bubble as an example again, what good does it do to be clustered together?What's the harm in being broken?The same principle applies to lightning.

Look inside it (the body) and see what it really is; what it becomes when the body ages, and what it becomes when the body gets sick.

Whether it is the person who praises or is praised, the person who remembers or the person who is remembered, their lives are very short; and these only happen in a corner of the world; Unanimous opinions, and even the opinions of the same person, can sometimes be inconsistent.However, the whole earth itself is just a point in the universe.

Focus on what is in front of you, whether it is a thought, an action or just a word.

You bear it fairly: because your choice is to be good tomorrow rather than today.

Am I making a difference?Everything I do is about human well-being.Am I being rewarded?I accept it openly, and consecrate it to the gods, who are the source of everything that happens, and everything that happens comes from it.

When you take a shower, you see these things - grease, sweat, grime and dirty bath water, all of which are disgusting. — This is true of every part of our lives and everything.

Lucilla witnessed the death of Veles, and then Lucilla herself could not escape death; Secunda witnessed the death of Maximus, and then Secunda himself embarked on the road to hell; Chanus watched Diotimus die, and then Epitian Chanus himself died; Antony watched Faustina's death, and then Antony himself died.That's how it all happened.Celer witnessed Hadrian's death, and Celer also died.Where are these men of great wit, who are either prophets or haughty and conceited? —Take, for example, those men of great intellect, such as Charax, Demetrius of the Platonists, and Eudermont, and others like them.All these people's lives were fleeting, long dead.Some were not even remembered for a short time, others became legendary heroes, and others disappeared from legend.Remember: you are just a small living body lingering in the world, and you are destined to be dissolved into the basic elements of the universe, and your breathing will eventually stop, and you may be transferred to other strange places.

One should be satisfied if one can do the work that suits one.Now, it is the job of a man to do: to be kind to others, especially to his own kind; All kinds of things need to be considered comprehensively.

Be orderly in every word and deed

Between yourself and things outside of you there are three relations: the first is your relation to the things around you; the second is your relation to the Divine Cause itself of the birth of all things; the third is Your relationship with the people you live with.

Pain, both to your body and to your soul, is a sin.However, when the body is in pain, let it express the personal feeling of pain; while the soul is fully capable of maintaining its original peace and tranquility, and even does not regard pain as a sin.The reason is that every judgment, every motion, every desire and aversion, arises from the depths of the soul, and no sin can be traced to such a depth.

As long as you always keep yourself in mind the following words, you can break all your illusions: Right now, I can use my ability to keep any evil things away from my soul, all kinds of desires and anxieties are no exception; When I observe all things carefully, I want to see clearly what their nature is, and I want to use their natural value to make the best use of them. ——Remember, this is the ability given to you by nature.

Whether in the senate or in other occasions, you must speak appropriately to anyone, without affectation, and use simple and straightforward words.

Court of Augustus, wives, daughters, descendants, ancestors, sisters, Agrippa, kinsmen, confidants, friends, Arepheus, Mecenas, physicians and priests, - all at court died.Then look at others, not just consider the departure of one person, but look at the demise of a family, such as the Pompey family; engraved on the tombstone,-he is the last of the family.Let us think again how anxious their ancestors were about having an heir, yet one must be the last of the family.Again reminding you to bear in mind the downfall of this family.

(End of this chapter)