Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §8.47.1

Suffering from Judgment and Departing Life with Peace

Passage 318 of 486 · Greek

Summary

The author argues that suffering from external things or internal states is due to one's own judgment, and even if action is blocked, one should depart from life with a peaceful mind.

§8.47.1Εἰ μὲν διά τι τῶν ἐκτὸς λυπῇ, οὐκ ἐκεῖνό σοι ἐνοχλεῖ, ἀλλὰ τὸ σὸν περὶ αὐτοῦ κρῖμα, τοῦτο δὲ ἤδη ἐξαλεῖψαι ἐπὶ σοί ἐστιν.
If you are pained by any external thing, it is not this that disturbs you, but your own judgment about it; and it is in your power to wipe out this judgment now.
εἰ δὲ λυπεῖ σέ τι τῶν ἐν τῇ σῇ διαθέσει, τίς ὁ κωλύων διορθῶσαι τὸ δόγμα;
But if anything in your own disposition pains you, who is there to prevent you from correcting your judgment?
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ εἰ λυπῇ ὅτι οὐχὶ τόδε τι ἐνεργεῖς ὑγιές σοι φαινόμενον, τί οὐχὶ μᾶλλον ἐνεργεῖς ἢ λυπῇ; —ἀλλὰ ἰσχυρότερόν τι ἐνίσταται. —μὴ οὖν λυποῦ· οὐ γὰρ παρὰ σὲ ἡ αἰτία τοῦ μὴ ἐνεργεῖσθαι. —ἀλλὰ οὐκ ἄξιον ζῆν μὴ ἐνεργουμένου τούτου. —ἄπιθι οὖν ἐκ τοῦ ζῆν εὐμενής, ᾗ καὶ ὁ ἐνεργῶν ἀποθνῄσκει, ἅμα ἵλεως τοῖς ἐνισταμένοις.
And likewise, if you are pained because you are not doing this particular action which seems to you to be healthy, why do you not rather do it than be pained? — "But something more powerful stands in the way." — Then do not be pained; for the cause of its not being done does not lie with you. — "But life is not worth living if this is not done." — Depart then from life with a good will, in the same way as he who does perform it dies, and at the same time being well-disposed toward those who stand in your way.

Notes

  1. §8.47.1ἐπὶ σοί ἐστιν — The preposition ἐπί with the dative (σοί) expresses that something is within one's power or depends on someone.
  2. §8.47.1τοῦ μὴ ἐνεργεῖσθαι — An articular infinitive in the genitive case (passive voice), serving as the complement to the noun αἰτία (cause). Accompanied by the negation μή, it means "(the cause) of its not being done".
  3. §8.47.1μὴ ἐνεργουμένου τούτου — A genitive absolute construction using the present passive participle. With the negative particle μή, it is interpreted conditionally as "if this is not done/being performed".
  4. §8.47.1ᾗ καὶ ὁ ἐνεργῶν ἀποθνῄσκει — The relative adverb ᾗ ("in the same way as") points to the fact that even those who do perform their activities (ὁ ἐνεργῶν) must ultimately die. It leads to the moral conclusion that one should face death with a good will (εὐμενής), even if prevented from acting.

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §8.47.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.47.1

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