Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aureliuswas Roman Emperor from 161 to 180. He ruled with Lucius Verus as co-emperor from 161 until Verus' death in 169. Marcus Aurelius was the last of the so-called Five Good Emperors. He was a practitioner of Stoicism, and his untitled writing, commonly known as the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, is the most significant source of our modern understanding of ancient Stoic philosophy...
NationalityRoman
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth26 April 121
CityRome, Italy
admirers crowd dinner eloquent
When the crowd of your admirers is shouting, "Bravo! Hear, hear!" it is not you, Pomponius, but your dinner that is eloquent
advantage blaming break circumstance esteem lose people word
People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. Never esteem anything as of advantage to you that will make you break your word or lose your self-respect.
perfume rather smell
I would rather smell of nothing than of perfume
dyed habitual
Such as are your habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of your mind; for the soul is dyed by the thoughts.
life thoughts universe
The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it.
execute life though thy
Execute every act of thy life as though it were thy last.
blank consider leaves poet present presents small
When a poet presents you with blank leaves you should consider it no small present
doubly joys life looking past pleasure present taste
The present joys of life we doubly taste by looking back with pleasure on the past
order prepared
I mean, you never know how these things are going to go, but I always want to be prepared that I have everything in order so if I need to go then I can. Because, obviously, if there's not electric, there's not gas.
enjoy life man quick
No man is quick enough to enjoy life
formed happens man nature
Nothing happens to any man which he is not formed by nature to bear.
amount hundred man misfortune reading satisfied satisfy
No amount of misfortune will satisfy the man who is not satisfied with reading a hundred epigrams
account full gratitude remember
Take full account of what excellencies which you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not.
accept court declining favor gave grave invitation reason repay socrates wish
Socrates gave as his reason for declining an invitation to the court of Perdiccas, "I have no wish to go down to my grave with ignominy;" implying that he would accept no favor which he could not repay