"The second step: Concentrate on what you have to do. Fix your eyes on it. Remind yourself that your task is to be a good human being… Then do it, without hesitation, and speak the truth as you see it. But with kindness. With humility. Without hypocrisy."
- Meditations, page 102
"Choose not to be harmed – and you won’t feel harmed. Don’t feel harmed - and you haven’t been."- Meditations, page 39
According to Stoic philosophy, it is not the objects or events in our lives that are the problem; rather, it is our perception of the events that cause the issues. When the objects and events around us reach our faculty of perception, they can be misinterpreted by our mind based on our previous experiences or biases. Meditations is a book largely focused on Marcus Aurelius’s attempts to exercise stringent control over his faculty of perception. In his first entry in Book Two, he openly admits that, “The people I deal with today will be meddling, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly.” But he also asserts that “I have seen the beauty of good, and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own – not of the same blood or birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine.” He shifts his perception by explaining to himself that we are all human, having been born into the world the same way, and to feel anger towards another person is in itself unnatural.
Early in my career, I was passed over for a promotion. At that time, the event felt like a disaster to me. I was disappointed in myself, in my manager, and in the company that I worked for. Sadly, I never regained my footing in the organization again and left a few years later. What if I had looked at that situation differently? What if I didn’t take it so personally and looked at it as an opportunity to improve or as a fresh start? Being able to detach oneself from the objects and events around us can turn a challenge into an opportunity. It’s not easy but we owe it to ourselves to exercise stringent control over our perception.
"People find pleasure in different ways. I find it in keeping my mind clear. In not turning away from people or the things that happen to them. In accepting and welcoming everything I see. In treating each thing as it deserves."- Meditations, page 110
In order control our perceptions, we first need to be able to objectively see what is happening around us. The key to this is ensuring your mind is clear. Marcus Aurelius compares having a sound mind to having healthy eyes. If you have healthy eyes, they should be able to see everything and distinguish between the many different colours they are exposed to. According to Aurelius, a mind “that keeps saying, ‘Are my children all right?’ or ‘Everyone must approve of me’ is like eyes that can only stand pale colours, or teeth that can handle only mush.” A mind that is healthy and clear is one that handles emotional responses and maintains objectivity at all times.
So what are some tactical ways to do that? Personally, I enjoy the practice of meditation and daily journaling. Meditation helps me realize that as chaotic a day can become, I still have the power within me to find stillness and calm. Daily journaling also allows me to put down the jumbled thoughts and feelings in my head onto a piece of paper. Seeing these thoughts and feelings on paper allows me to assess them objectively and reduce their power over me, especially if they are negative feelings or thoughts. In a way, Aurelius’s entries into Meditations was likely a method for him to process his thoughts and maintain objectivity.
So keep your mind clear. And as the Zen saying goes, keep your “mind like water”. Open, flexible, and resilient.
"If they’ve made a mistake, correct them gently and show them where they went wrong. If you can’t do that, then the blame lies with you. Or no one."- Meditations, page 132
As the Emperor of the largest empire in the world, Marcus Aurelius must have dealt with a variety of people from the noblest to the most unscrupulous. A persistent motif in Meditations is Aurelius’s struggle with restraining frustration and anger with incompetent or dishonest people in his life. However, at no point in the book does he blame others for wrong doing. Instead, when faced with someone’s bad behaviour, he asks himself when he might’ve acted like that or if he should have trusted that person in the first place. Either perspective puts the responsibility squarely on his shoulders.
Although the Stoics believed in an all-pervading force called the logos, judging from Aurelius’s writings they still firmly believed in the importance of controlling what one can control. Once you take care of your own actions then you can be open to whatever may happen from there.
If you’ve enjoyed this summary, you’ll likely also enjoy some other Stoic philosophy. Ryan Holliday has a fantastic book called The Obstacle Is the Way which draws from the many lessons from historical Stoics including Marcus Aurelius. You’ll likely also enjoy The Tao of Seneca: Practical Letters from a Stoic Master which is an audiobook of the letters written by another Stoic master, Lucius Annaeus Seneca.
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (A.D. 121 – 180) was Roman Emperor and wrote his Meditations during his campaigns against the barbarians.
