POST CATEGORY : Stoicism

Extrapolating the Future

“Look at the past — empire succeeding empire– and from that, extrapolate the future: the same thing. No escape from the rhythm of events.

Which is why observing life for forty years is as good as a thousand. Would you really see anything new?”

-Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 7.49

I read the Book of Ecclesiastes in my early twenties. It was a depressing book. But it provided interesting insights about the cycle of life and how meaningless a lot of things are in the world. (I don’t agree that everything is meaningless.)

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What We Devote Our Energy To…

“Pointless bustling of processions, opera arias, herds of sheep and cattle, military exercises. A bone flung to pet poodles, a little food in the fish tank. The miserable servitude of ants, scampering of frightened mice, puppets jerked on strings.

Surrounded as we are by all of this, we need to practice acceptance. Without disdain. But remembering that our own worth is measured by what we devote our energy to.”

-Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 7.3

Dabbling with Stoicism

I read parts of the Meditations by Marcus Aurelius last year. Reading it helped me glimpse into the mind of a certified Philosopher-King. It was also a good exercise in understanding what a branch of philosophy had to say about the human condition and how we can live our lives meaningfully.

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