Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §3.12.1

Living Well by Following Right Reason and the Inner God

Passage 46 of 486 · Greek

Summary

The author asserts that if one performs the present task with right reason, keeps the inner divinity pure, and remains content with natural activity and truthfulness, one will live a happy life without any external hindrance.

§3.12.1Ἐὰν τὸ παρὸν ἐνεργῇς ἑπόμενος τῷ ὀρθῷ λόγῳ, ἐσπουδασμένως, ἐρρωμένως, εὐμενῶς, καὶ μηδὲν παρεμπόρευμα, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ δαίμονα καθαρὸν ἑστῶτα τηρῇς, ὡσεὶ καὶ ἤδη ἀποδοῦναι δέοι· ἐὰν τοῦτο συνάπτῃς μηδὲν περιμένων μηδὲ Φεύγων, ἀλλὰ τῇ παρούσῃ κατὰ Φύσιν ἐνεργείᾳ καὶ τῇ ὧν λέγεις καὶ Φθέγγῃ ἡρωικῇ ἀληθείᾳ ἀρκούμενος, εὐζωήσεις.
If you perform the present task following right reason, earnestly, vigorously, benevolently, and admit no distraction, but keep your own divine spark pure and upright, as if you had to surrender it at any moment; if you bind yourself to this, expecting nothing and avoiding nothing, but content with your present activity according to nature and with heroic truthfulness in every word you speak and utter, you will live a happy life.
ἔστι δὲ οὐδεὶς ὁ τοῦτο κωλῦσαι δυνάμενος.
And there is no one who can prevent this.

Notes

  1. §3.12.1μηδὲν παρεμπόρευμα — An accusative noun phrase. A participle or verb meaning 'introducing' or 'admitting' (such as παρεισάγων) is elliptically omitted, functioning adverbially as 'introducing no side-business' or 'without any distraction'. Alternatively, it can be taken as an object-like accusative modifying the main action.
  2. §3.12.1τοῦτο συνάπτῃς — The pronoun τοῦτο (this) refers to the entire set of rules of life mentioned in the previous sentence. The verb συνάπτω (to bind together, to connect) implies maintaining these principles uninterruptedly and consistently.
  3. §3.12.1ὧν λέγεις καὶ φθέγγῃ — An instance of relative attraction. The relative pronoun ὧν (genitive plural), which would syntactically be ἃ (accusative, object of λέγεις and φθέγγῃ), has been attracted to the genitive case by the implied antecedent or as depending on τῇ ἀληθείᾳ ('the truth of those things which you speak').

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §3.12.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.12.1

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