Plain
Marcus Aurelius — The Emperor

How useful it is to see food and drink for what they really are! This is a dead fish. This is a dead bird. This is a dead pig. That expensive wine everyone praises? It's just grape juice. That fancy purple robe? It's sheep hair dyed with shellfish blood. Sex? It's just rubbing body parts together and releasing fluids with some muscle spasms — as Hippocrates put it.

Meditations, Book 6, Section 11 Book 6 · 12 of 64
Calm Your Mind What Matters Most
Marcus Aurelius — The Emperor Original

How marvellous useful it is for a man to represent unto himself meats, and all such things that are for the mouth, under a right apprehension and imagination! as for example: This is the carcass of a fish; this of a bird; and this of a hog. And again more generally; This phalernum, this excellent highly commended wine, is but the bare juice of an ordinary grape. This purple robe, but sheep's hairs, dyed with the blood of a shellfish. So for coitus, it is but the attrition of an ordinary base entrail, and the excretion of a little vile snivel, with a certain kind of convulsion: according to Hippocrates his opinion.

Meditations, Book 6, Section 11 Book 6 · 12 of 64
Marcus Aurelius — The Emperor

If you had both a stepmother and your natural mother alive, you would honor and respect the stepmother too. But you would always turn to your natural mother for comfort and support. Let the court and your philosophy be like this to you. Turn to philosophy often and find comfort in it. Philosophy makes those other things bearable for you, and makes you bearable to others in return.

Meditations, Book 6, Section 10 Book 6 · 11 of 64
Calm Your Mind Facing Hardship
Marcus Aurelius — The Emperor Original

If it were that thou hadst at one time both a stepmother, and a natural mother living, thou wouldst honour and respect her also; nevertheless to thine own natural mother would thy refuge, and recourse be continually. So let the court and thy philosophy be unto thee. Have recourse unto it often, and comfort thyself in her, by whom it is that those other things are made tolerable unto thee, and thou also in those things not intolerable unto others.

Meditations, Book 6, Section 10 Book 6 · 11 of 64
‹ Previous Next ›

Ancient philosophy, in plain English.

About · Support