Meditation I

Chapter 9

We can even benefit from things that are affirmative to most of us.For if a person regards certain things as true, good and beautiful, such as prudence, gentleness, impartiality, and fortitude, then he will not have the patience to listen to things that are not in harmony with these things in the future.However, if a person accepts from the beginning what is good for most people, he may follow the classic quotations of those comedy writers and think that they are best for him.Most people can understand this subtle difference.For, if it were not so, the foregoing would not have been violated, and would not have been rejected by people in the first place.But when we talk about wealth and how to get more luxury and fame, as long as we talk about it in the right way, then we will accept it.Then go ahead and ask yourself: should we hold these things in high regard and place them among the good and the good, especially when it is these notions that are first remembered, that even the words of a comedy writer can have an influence on them— People with these concepts have plenty of energy, but they just have nowhere to vent it.

What constitutes me is a certain material form and matter, and neither can be destroyed or reduced to nothing, just as it is not a principle that arises from nothing.Every part of me will be transformed to become a part of the universe, and this part will be transformed again to become other parts of the universe.This cycle is endless.Among the results of this series of transformations, the things that conceived me were born, only in different directions, but also evolved endlessly.This is true whether we notice it or not, even though the universe is governed by cycles of constant change.

The arts of reason and logical reasoning (i.e., philosophy) are both competent in themselves and their respective functions.They proceed from their own first principles and proceed toward the ends that have been set for them, which is why such actions are called "the right way," a word that means they follow the right path.

None of these things should be called human-owned things, because they do not belong to human beings.They are not things that man needs, nor does his nature anticipate their existence, nor are they the means that his nature requires to achieve his ultimate end.Human goals do not exist in these things, which in turn are not conducive to the realization of human goals, let alone the realization of human goals of truth, goodness and beauty.Besides, if there is indeed something human in these things, it is wrong for people to despise and disapprove of it; Bonus; if these things are good in themselves, the people who don't get involved are bad.But now, if a man can get himself rid of these things, or other similar things, or even some of them, the more he gets rid of, the greater the loss he can bear, and his chances of being a good person The probability is also higher.

This is your habitual thinking, and it is also a characteristic of your inner soul, because the human inner soul is completely saturated by human thoughts.Then please use the following series of thoughts to infuse your soul: For example, wherever people can live, they are also places where people can live very nourishingly.Even if he has to live in the palace, he can be content in the palace.Consider again, for what purpose each thing was made, for if they were born for a purpose, they must live towards that purpose; and their purpose is the direction in which they live ; where its purpose is, that is where the virtue and the "good" of the thing exist.The "goodness" of rational creatures is reflected in their sociality.We humans are all members of society, which has been mentioned above. [-]. Is it not clear whether the lowly man exists for a noble purpose?Animate beings are superior to inanimate beings, and rational animate beings are the noblest of them all.

Pursuing the impossible is madness

Madness is the pursuit of the impossible: it is impossible for the wicked to keep them from doing it.

What a person is destined not to have at birth will naturally not happen to him.If this happened to another man, it was either because he did not see what had happened, or because he wanted to appear to be of uncompromising greatness and unharmed.However, if ignorance and arrogance surpass rational wisdom, then this is actually a shameful thing.

The thing itself cannot come into close contact with the soul, even in the smallest degree; nor can it enter into the soul, change or push the direction of the soul.The soul only changes itself and promotes its own movement. The soul judges and implements what is right before it.

In one respect, the closest thing to me is people.So I have to be kind to others, not to hate others.But whoever, for their own reasons, prevents me from doing right, becomes to me an inhuman being exactly like the sun, the wind, or even the wild beasts.The objective fact now is that these people hindered my actions.But it is impossible to affect my mood and temper, because my mood and temper have the ability to adapt to changing circumstances.Furthermore, my mind can turn the resistance in the process of action into a driving force. Any hindering factor is also a promoting factor for action, and the stumbling block in the process helps us move forward.

Please respect the best things in the universe, because these things guide all things in the world and make them play their respective roles; you must also respect the best things in yourself with the same attitude, the reason is the same as before the same.Because it is these things that guide your life direction and guide your life.

What is injurious to the state is in no way injurious to the citizens.In every appearance of injury, the following rule holds: If the state is not injured by it, neither am I.However, even if the country is hurt, instead of being angry at the person who hurt the country, you should tell him what is wrong.

Always maintain this kind of thinking, everything in the world, whether it is the creator or the created thing, is as fleeting as a flash in the pan.Everything is like an endless river, things are constantly changing, and the form of motion is ever-changing; there is hardly anything that is static.Think of the things around you, past and future as a bottomless abyss in which everything perishes.Isn’t this kind of person stupid if he exalts himself to the sky because of these things or finds troubles for these things, and finally panics all day long?Because these things will only stay with him for a short time.

Compared to the overall material of the universe, your share is really insignificant; compared to the overall time of the universe, what is allocated to you is really a tiny drop in the ocean; moreover, compared to the overall destiny, you are just It's just one of the pawns.

What if someone does evil to me?Let him take care of himself.He will have his own destiny, as well as his own behavior.What I have now is nature's gift to me; I only do what nature wills.

Whether you are happy or in pain, don't let the turmoil of the body disturb your soul, because the soul is the one that guides and controls; don't let the soul and the body get entangled, and there should be a boundary between the soul and the body. influences.However, if these influences are due to the fact that the sympathy in life betrays the soul, then you must not resist this kind of emotion, because this is in line with the law of nature, but don't let the dominant part of yourself be against you. This feeling is coupled with an evaluation, either good or evil.

Be with the gods.People who often present themselves before the gods are actually already with the gods.His soul is completely satisfied with what it has received according to fate, and has done all that the gods have sent him to do.Zeus assigned to each man a guardian and guide of the soul, and made it part of himself.This is a person's understanding and rationality.

Do you get mad at someone with underarm odor?Are you mad at someone with bad breath?What good does it do you?He did have bad breath, and he did have body odor: but there must be something to this bad smell.However, it is said that a person who smells is also rational, and if he finds that he has offended others, he will feel pain in his heart.So I hope you deal with these people properly when you become aware of them.You are also a rational person, you can use your rational ability to stimulate his rational ability, explain the problem to him, and advise him.If he listens to you, then you have cured him, so there is no need for anger at all.You are neither a tragic actor nor a whore.

At the moment of your deathbed, you want to live a few more days...so live while you can.But if people won't allow you to live, then die and act like you're not hurt by it.If the house is on fire, I get out immediately.Why do you find this troublesome?As long as nothing happens that makes me have to leave, of course I will stay, I am a completely free person, no one can stop me from choosing what to do, and I do it completely according to the nature of a rational animal and a social animal choose.

The intelligence of the universe is social.Therefore, the universe created the lower species to serve the higher species and to make them live in harmony with each other.You will find that the universe will make everything fit its place according to the principles of subordination, mutual coordination, and the harmony of the best things.

How have you treated your gods, parents, brothers, children and teachers so far?How did you treat those who took care of you when you were a child?And your friends, your relatives, your servants.Think about it, up to now, whether your attitude towards people can be evaluated as follows:

Never neglected anyone in words or deeds. ⑨
Think back on how many things you have been through, and how many of them have you endured?The course of your life is now over, your term of service is at an end: how many beautiful things have you seen?How much happiness and pain do you disdain?How many honorable things have you missed?How many people with ulterior motives have you treated with benevolence?
Why do clumsy and ignorant souls bother intelligent people?What kind of soul can have consciousness?Understand the ins and outs of things, know that reason is common to all matter and exists in all time periods of history, and only controls and commands the universe through a fixed period (cycle).

In quick and fast time you will be a corpse or a skeleton, named or nameless; and the name is but a sound wave and an echo.What is precious in life turns out to be nothing in the end, so perishable and insignificant in the end, like puppies biting each other, like children quarreling and laughing and then crying all the time.But loyalty, humility, justice, and truth:
From the plain of Yimapingchuan, I climbed Mount Olympus. ⑩
What exactly keeps you here?For the objects of sense are very mobile and never static, and the senses are dull and susceptible to false impressions.Moreover, the poor soul itself, also emanates from the blood.In such a world, the good name gained is in the end nothing more than nothing.Therefore, whether death is the final annihilation or drifts to another country, wait for the end of life in peace.When that moment comes, are you ready?What is there but reverence and praise to the gods, kindness to men, magnanimity in all things, and self-restraint?As for those things that are beyond the limits of poor flesh, remember this: they are not originally yours, nor are they within your control.

If you stick to the right path and think and act in the right way, you will live a life of peace and happiness.These two are equally applicable to the soul of man or to the soul of God. For the soul of rational existence, they should not interfere with each other and hinder each other; let you uphold justice and practice justice in your nature, and at the same time achieve no desires and no desires begging.

If it is neither my crime nor the consequence of my own, and if the public welfare is not injured, should I be troubled by it?How does this harm the public welfare?

Don't be led by the appearance of things without thinking, but help everyone according to your ability and appropriateness.Don't think of it as a kind of harm if people are continuously harmed by things that don't matter.Because it is a bad habit.And to learn from the old man who asked only the ancestors of his adopted son when he was about to die, remember that people are all conceived by the same ancestor, and in this case you should do the same.

When you shout from the podium, man, have you forgotten the nature of these things? —Yes, but these things are things that these people are extremely concerned about—then are you willing to make a fool of yourself because of these things?I was a very lucky person, but I lost it, and I don't know how. —However, luck means: a person is endowed with a wealth, and having a good disposition, good emotion, and good behavior in the soul is the greatest wealth.

⑦ Esculap is the god of medicine in Roman mythology. ——Translator's Note
⑧ Refer to Volume [-].

⑨Homer's Epic: "Odyssey"——Translator's Note
197 Hesiod: "Work and Days", line [-].

(End of this chapter)