Humanitext Reader

Marcus Aurelius · Meditations §9.23.1

Actions as Contributions to Social Life and Harmony

Passage 355 of 486 · Greek

Summary

The author argues that just as individuals are part of a social system, all their actions must contribute to social life, and any action diverging from this social end disrupts personal life and community harmony.

§9.23.1Ὥσπερ αὐτὸς σὺ πολιτικοῦ συστήματος συμπληρωτικὸς εἶ, οὕτως καὶ πᾶσα πρᾶξίς σου συμπληρωτικὴ ἔστω ζωῆς πολιτικῆς.
Just as you yourself are a complementary part of a social system, so also let every action of yours be complementary to social life.
ἥτις ἐὰν οὖν πρᾶξίς σου μὴ ἔχῃ τὴν ἀναφοράν, εἴτε προσεχῶς εἴτε πόρρωθεν, ἐπὶ τὸ κοινωνικὸν τέλος, αὕτη διασπᾷ τὸν βίον καὶ οὐκ ἐᾷ ἕνα εἶναι καὶ στασιώδης ἐστίν, ὥσπερ ἐν δήμῳ ὁ τὸ καθ’ αὑτὸν μέρος διιστάμενος ἀπὸ τῆς τοιαύτης συμφωνίας.
Whichever action of yours, therefore, does not have its reference, whether immediately or remotely, to the social end, this tears life apart, does not allow it to be one, and is seditious, like a man in a democracy who separates his own part from such harmony.

Notes

  1. 9.23.1ἕνα εἶναι — The word ἕνα (masculine accusative singular of the numeral εἷς) serves as the complement of the infinitive, referring back to the preceding accusative τὸν βίον as its subject, meaning "does not allow [life] to be one [unified whole]."
  2. 9.23.1ἥτις ἐὰν οὖν πρᾶξίς σου μὴ ἔχῃ — The relative pronoun ἥτις combined with ἐάν (= ἄν) and the subjunctive ἔχῃ forms a general conditional relative clause, acting as the subject of the main verbs (διασπᾷ, ἐᾷ, ἐστίν).
  3. 9.23.1τὸ καθ’ αὑτὸν μέρος — Literally "the part according to himself," meaning "his own part" or "his individual share/role" in relation to the whole.

Cite this passage

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations §9.23.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0562.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:9.23.1

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