Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §4.43.1

Time as a Violent River Carrying All Away

Passage 93 of 486 · Greek

Summary

The author compares time to a violent river of passing events, describing how everything is carried away as soon as it appears.

§4.43.1Ποταμός τίς ἐστι τῶν γινομένων καὶ ῥεῦμα βίαιον ὁ αἰών· ἅμα τε γὰρ ὤφθη ἕκαστον, καὶ παρενήνεκται καὶ ἄλλο παραφέρεται, τὸ δὲ ἐνεχθήσεται.
Time is a river of passing events, and a violent torrent; for no sooner is each thing seen than it has been carried away, and another is being carried past, and this too will be carried away.

Notes

  1. §4.43.1ἅμα τε γὰρ ὤφθη ... καὶ παρενήνεκται — A construction expressing immediate succession ("no sooner ... than ..."). The aorist ὤφθη ("was seen") and the perfect παρενήνεκται ("has been carried away"), which indicates a completed action with lasting results, are connected by ἅμα τε ... καί, emphasizing the fleeting nature of things that vanish the moment they appear.
  2. §4.43.1τὸ δὲ — The article with δέ here functions as a demonstrative pronoun ("and it", "but that too"), referring back to the preceding ἄλλο ("another").

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §4.43.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.43.1

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