Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §8.41.1

Obstacles of Various Natures and the Unhindered Mind

Passage 312 of 486 · Greek

Summary

Showing the analogy of obstruction and evil across different natures, the text asserts that the human mind, as a rational entity, cannot be obstructed by external forces as long as it remains self-contained.

§8.41.1Ἐμποδισμὸς αἰσθήσεως κακὸν ζωτικῆς φύσεως.
Obstruction of sense-perception is an evil to animal nature.
ἐμποδισμὸς ὁρμῆς ὁμοίως κακὸν ζωτικῆς φύσεως.
Obstruction of impulse is likewise an evil to animal nature.
ἔστι δέ τι ἄλλο ὁμοίως ἐμποδιστικὸν καὶ κακὸν τῆς φυτικῆς κατασκευῆς.
And there is something else that is likewise obstructive and an evil to vegetative constitution.
οὕτως τοίνυν ἐμποδισμὸς νοῦ κακὸν νοερᾶς φύσεως.
So likewise, obstruction of the mind is an evil to intelligent nature.
πάντα δὴ ταῦτα ἐπὶ σεαυτὸν μετάφερε.
Apply all these things then to yourself.
πόνος, ἡδονὴ ἅπτεταί σου;
Does pain or pleasure affect you?
ὄψεται ἡ αἴσθησις.
Let sense-perception look to it.
ὁρμήσαντι ἔνστημα ἐγένετο;
Did an obstacle arise when you set out with impulse?
εἰ μὲν ἀνυπεξαιρέτως ὥρμας, ἤδη ὡς λογικοῦ κακόν, εἰ δὲ τὸ κοινὸν λαμβάνεις, οὔπω βέβλαψαι οὐδὲ ἐμπεπόδισαι.
If you were acting with impulse without reservation, this is already an evil to you as a rational being. But if you accept what is common to all, you are not yet harmed or obstructed.
τὰ μέντοι τοῦ νοῦ ἴδια οὐδεὶς ἄλλος εἴωθεν ἐμποδίζειν· τούτου γὰρ οὐ πῦρ, οὐ σίδηρος, οὐ τύραννος, οὐ βλασφημία, οὐχ ὁτιοῦν ἅπτεται, ὅταν γένηται ʽσφαῖρος κυκλοτερὴς μονίῃʼ.
However, no one else is accustomed to obstruct the things peculiar to the mind; for neither fire, nor steel, nor tyrant, nor abuse, nor anything else whatsoever can touch it, when it becomes 'a sphere rounded in its solitude'.

Notes

  1. §8.41.1ὁρμήσαντι — The dative participle `ὁρμήσαντι` functions as a dative of reference with an implied second-person singular pronoun ('to you having set out with impulse'), expressing temporal or conditional circumstance.
  2. §8.41.1ὡς λογικοῦ — The conjunction `ὡς` ('as') is followed by the genitive singular of the substantivized adjective `λογικός` ('rational being'), expressing the capacity or character in which the evil is experienced.
  3. §8.41.1ʽσφαῖρος κυκλοτερὴς μονίῃʼ — A quotation from Empedocles (Fragments B27, B28). `μονίῃ` is the Epic/Ionic dative singular of `μονία` ('solitude', 'rest'), functioning as a dative of manner or cause ('in its solitude' or 'by remaining at rest'), metaphorically describing the self-sufficient state of the soul untouched by external disturbances.

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §8.41.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.41.1

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