Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §3.16.1-3.16.2

The Unique Mark of a Good Man and Guarding the Inner Divinity

Passage 50 of 486 · Greek

Summary

The author distinguishes the functions of body, soul, and mind, arguing that while outward activities are shared with beasts and wicked men, the unique characteristic of a good man is to keep his inner divinity pure, accept his fate, and advance peacefully toward the end of life.

§3.16.1Σῶμα, ψυχή, νοῦς· σώματος αἰσθήσεις, ψυχῆς ὁρμαί, νοῦ δόγματα.
Body, soul, mind: to the body belong sensations, to the soul impulses, to the mind principles.
τὸ μὲν τυποῦσθαι φανταστικῶς καὶ τῶν βοσκημάτων· τὸ δὲ νευροσπαστεῖσθαι ὁρμητικῶς καὶ τῶν θηρίων καὶ τῶν ἀνδρογύνων καὶ Φαλάριδος καὶ Νέρωνος· τὸ δὲ τὸν νοῦν ἡγεμόνα ἔχειν ἐπὶ τὰ φαινόμενα καθήκοντα καὶ τῶν θεοὺς μὴ νομιζόντων καὶ τῶν τὴν πατρίδα ἐγκαταλειπόντων καὶ τῶν ποιούντων, ἐπειδὰν κλείσωσι τὰς θύρας.
To receive impressions by means of presentation is common even to cattle; to be pulled by the strings of impulse like puppets is common even to wild beasts, to effeminate men, to Phalaris, and to Nero; and to have the mind as guide to what appear to be duties is common even to those who do not believe in gods, to those who abandon their country, and to those who do their deeds when they have closed their doors.
§3.16.2εἰ οὖν τὰ λοιπὰ κοινά ἐστι πρὸς τὰ εἰρημένα, λοιπὸν τὸ ἴδιόν ἐστι τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ φιλεῖν μὲν καὶ ἀσπάζεσθαι τὰ συμβαίνοντα καὶ συγκλωθόμενα αὐτῷ, τὸν δὲ ἔνδον ἐν τῷ στήθει ἱδρυμένον δαίμονα μὴ φύρειν μηδὲ θορυβεῖν ὄχλῳ φαντασιῶν, ἀλλὰ ἵλεων διατηρεῖν, κοσμίως ἑπόμενον θεῷ, μήτε φθεγγόμενόν τι παρὰ τὰ ἀληθῆ μήτε ἐνεργοῦντα παρὰ τὰ δίκαια.
If then all the rest are common to those whom I have mentioned, there remains as the peculiar characteristic of the good man to love and welcome what happens to him and what is spun for him by fate, and not to defile or disturb the divinity settled within his breast with a crowd of presentations, but to keep it pure and tranquil, following God in an orderly manner, speaking nothing contrary to truth, and doing nothing contrary to justice.
εἰ δὲ ἀπιστοῦσιν αὐτῷ πάντες ἄνθρωποι, ὅτι ἁπλῶς καὶ αἰδημόνως καὶ εὐθύμως βιοῖ, οὔτε χαλεπαίνει τινὶ τούτων οὔτε παρατρέπεται τῆς ὁδοῦ τῆς ἀγούσης ἐπὶ τὸ τέλος τοῦ βίου, ἐφ’ ὃ δεῖ ἐλθεῖν καθαρόν, ἡσύχιον, εὔλυτον, ἀβιάστως τῇ ἑαυτοῦ μοίρᾳ συνηρμοσμένον.
And even if all men disbelieve that he lives a simple, modest, and cheerful life, he is not angry with any of them, nor does he turn aside from the path that leads to the end of life, at which one must arrive pure, peaceful, ready to depart, and harmonized without compulsion with one's own fate.

Notes

  1. §3.16.1καὶ τῶν βοσκημάτων — The genitive τῶν βοσκημάτων (cattle) is a genitive of possession or characteristic, with an impersonal phrase like κοινόν ἐστι (is common) being understood. The conjunction καὶ functions as an intensive "even" or "also". This construction of "articular infinitive + καὶ + genitive" is repeated in the subsequent two sentences.
  2. §3.16.1τὸ δὲ τὸν νοῦν ἡγεμόνα ἔχειν — Within the articular infinitive τὸ ἔχειν (to have), τὸν νοῦν (mind) functions as the object, and ἡγεμόνα (leader/guide) as the predicate accusative, meaning "to have the mind as guide".
  3. §3.16.2τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ — The genitive τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ refers to the masculine "good man" rather than the neuter "the good". This is clear from the personal context of the subsequent participles and the singular verb βιοῖ (he lives) in the following sentence.
  4. §3.16.2εὔλυτον — An adjective meaning "easily loosed" or "ready to depart/release". In the Stoic context, it describes the state of a soul that is ready to be released from the body and earthly attachments at death without resistance.

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §3.16.1-3.16.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.16.1-3.16.2

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.