Self-Reflections
Here are some texts by Mark Aurel I heard this morning (Saturday) on the radio program “Bayerisches Feuilleton” on “Bayern 2”. Wonderfully declaimed by Martin Hofer, they were the thread during a report on Bavarian-Italian Views. The text went right to my heart. Consequently, I wrote down what was said during the program and am now publishing it in the IF blog:
There is no such thing as objectivity as in “the one truth”. All is subjective. Everything is a matter of perspective. Yet you should notice everything around you. You cannot say: “Now I only want green things.” That would make you a case for the optician. We also have to be receptive towards what you can hear and smell. We should be prepared to take in everything that exists.
When enjoying delicacies or food in general, never forget that what you are eating is the corpse of, for instance a fish, a bird, or a pig. And that the Falerme is the juice of a grape. Take a close look at everything you see. What is it? Why is it as it is? What is its purpose? Also ask yourself the same questions when dealing with people.
Accept the circumstances you have been born into, as well as the people it will be your destiny to meet.
Accept, respect and hold in high regard all humans. And maybe even love them – but genuinely. Yet make yourself neither the master nor the slave of anybody else.
If someone despises me, let him feel free to do so. It is his concern. My own concern, however, is to do and say nothing contemptible. If someone hates me, then that is again his own affair. As opposed to this, I must aspire to be amicable and benevolent towards everybody, especially towards those who despise and hate me. I want to make him see his errors without abusing him. Neither will I carry my charity towards his behaviour before me. Instead, I want to be upright and kind-hearted.
Ii is quite easy to ward off all that is aggravating and be absolutely serene.
If you want to indulge in your own well-being, only see the nice characteristics of your contemporaries. Admire somebody for his energy, someone else for his modesty, a third person for his largesse and a fourth person for other virtue. After all, there is nothing that will make you happier than all these virtues which, incidentally, abound around you. All you have to do is want to see them.
A branch that is cut from its neighbour is by definition also cut from the entire tree. Consequently, a human being who cuts himself free from one of his contemporaries is also cut off from the entire society. At least, the branch has been cut off by a remote hand. The human being, however, who is motivated by hatred, cuts himself off from his neighbour and society.
As soon as someone convinces me that I am wrong in my judgement and behaviour, I will gladly change. After all, I am looking for truth and justice. So far, nobody suffered because of truth and justice. However, you will certainly suffer if you persist in error and ignorance.
Who can change people’s basic maxims? And what benefit is a change if those maxims are not modified? All you might get is slavery suffered with sighs and counterfeit obedience.
I see myself as a reasonable person. Someone who wants to the general public to benefit from his activities. My home and my fatherland is Rome. But as a human being, my home is the world. Whatever is good for the world is good for me.
From the Self Reflections(Selbstbetrachtungen) by Mark Aurel (* April, 26th, 121 in Rome; † March, 17th, 180 in Vindobona or perhaps Sirmium).
Mark Aurel was Roman Emperor from 161 until 180 and at the same time the last important representative of the “Younger Stoa”. Being the “princeps”, adopted son and successor of Antoninus Pius, he called himself Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus.
So much on Mark Aurel. Isn’t it just great? Every single one of his sentences deserves to be read again and again.
RMD
(Translated by EG)
P.S.
The entire program can be downloaded at “Bayern2.de” as podcast. I saved it and am quite happy to share it with you. It is worth listening to.
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