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Meditation IX.11 - What, me Worry? - Translated by George Long and rewritten by Russell McNeil
If you are able, correct by teaching those who do wrong;1 but if you can not, remember that indulgence is given to you for this purpose.2 And the gods, too, are indulgent to such persons; and for some purposes they even help them to get health, wealth, reputation; so kind they are.3 And it is in your power also; or say, who hinders you?4
Explanation
(1) Those who "do wrong" live in opposition to nature. Stoics live in conformity with nature and have a duty to direct others to do so. Teaching, in Stoic terms, must of course be measured and tailored to fit each situation. Stoics must love their enemies (and mandated this long before Christians were so directed) but (unlike Christians) Stoics are not constrained from making war on their enemies if the state is threatened (please see Chapter 9, "Society and Government in Stoicism," p. 209). War, in Stoic tradition, is truly tough love. The Crusades were political wars waged in the name of Christianity and were inconsistent with fundamental Gospel directives. The same may be said about the 9/11 initiated Islamic Jihad, which is inconsistent with fundamental Koranic values. These wars are rooted in hate. They oppose the solidarity of the human community. They abuse Christian and Islamic values. And as such these movements fit the Stoic definition of evil. For a thorough discussion of the position of Stoicism on the nature of evil, please see The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained, Chapter 3, "Stoicism and Vice," p. 56 ff.
(2) Stoics recognize human limitation. Simply do your best. If you are unable to teach those who do wrong, find someone who can teach, or refer the wrong to the community.
(3) Stoics do not believe in gods - although Marcus will wave a flag toward the gods when necessary. As emperor he is so bound, but for a Stoic the gods are always euphemisms for nature and her laws. "Health, wealth, [and] reputation" are matters of complete indifference to Stoics who can care less about these things. But in bestowing these narcotic benefits on our enemies, the gods - in a sense - deflect the damage done by those who live in opposition to nature. The gods are kind, but not in the way a casual reader might interpret this passage. The kindness is directed toward those who live outside the addictive demands of wealth, health and reputation.
(4) What is also in your power? The only real power you as a human being have is in your opinion. No one can alter your orientation to nature or to what is right. This is Stoicism's "what, me worry" clause. Stoics are invulnerable in this regard. No wrong can be suffered by those who live in opposition to nature. The only wrong that is done by evil doers is to themselves.
Russell McNeil, PhD, is the author of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained by Skylight Paths Publishing. The unpublished selections presented in this Blog are provided as supplemental material to the published selections which are annotated and explained in the book. The published selections are referenced in this Blog by page number and section.
Meditation IX.12 - For Neda - Translated by George Long and rewritten by Russell McNeil
Labor not as one who is wretched, nor yet as one who would be pitied or admired:1 but direct your will to one thing only, to put yourself in motion and to check yourself, as the social reason requires.2
Explanation
(1) Anyone who labors "as one who is wretched" is discontented with their personal situation. This is unacceptable in Stoicism because, however unfortunate, all oppressive situations present us with opportunities to bring justice to the community. Rather than feeling wretched, Marcus commands us to work to remedy harsh or unfair social situations. These responses ought also be directed toward the welfare of the social group. One classic way this plays out in communities of oppressed is through the peaceful demonstration in which hundreds of thousands are willing to march against their oppressors in solidarity. This needs to be done for the benefit of the community. To seek pity or to expect acclaim is self-centered and not acceptable.
(2) "To put yourself in motion" means to act wisely toward a just resolution of whatever unfair situation you encounter. The approach you must take requires savvy, guts, and patience - in other words, wisdom, courage and temperance. The overarching goal must be justice for all. You must be prepared to suffer. You must be prepared and willing to die. This ideal accords with the universal order of things, and is in harmony with the Law of nature. As such, it is not only right, it is beautiful, and it is good. Any effort you take to move toward this goal will bring inner peace around your struggles. It will most assuredly remove any sense of discontent from your soul.
Image: Neda Agha-Soltan (1982 - June 20, 2009) died from a gunshot wound on the streets of Tehran, a martyr for justice.
Russell McNeil, PhD, is the author of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained by Skylight Paths Publishing. The unpublished selections presented in this Blog are provided as supplemental material to the published selections which are annotated and explained in the book. The published selections are referenced in this Blog by page number and section.
Meditation IX.14 – Time, Motion, Cosmology, and Evolution III - Translated by George Long and rewritten by Russell McNeil
Note: Meditation IX.14 is published in The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained; McNeil. Russell, PhD, Skylight Paths, Ch. 1 ("The Promise of Stoicism – Time, Motion, Cosmology, and Evolution III"), p. 29, 2007
Russell McNeil, PhD, is the author of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained by Skylight Paths Publishing. The unpublished selections presented in this Blog are provided as supplemental material to the published selections which are annotated and explained in the book. The published selections are referenced in this Blog by page number and section.
Meditation IX.15 - Diamonds and Rust - Translated by George Long and rewritten by Russell McNeil
Things stand outside of us, themselves by themselves, knowing nothing of themselves, nor expressing any judgment.1 What is it, then, which does judge about them? The ruling faculty.2
Explanation
(1) Stoicism is an animistic philosophy. Every entity in nature is a composite of body and soul, and it is the soul that actuates all motions of the body. Unlike animistic religious traditions the Stoic soul is not a spiritual force above nature, but a distinct physical property of nature. In the Stoic scheme an inanimate object, like a diamond, is not strictly speaking inanimate. A diamond is able to transmit and diffract light; it can resist decay more so than any other material; and if dropped, it will fall. Modern science will account for each of these properties invoking explanations that draw on the electromagnetic, nuclear, and gravitational forces and fields that surround the diamond at the microscopic and macroscopic levels. The covalent unit cell structure in diamond accounts for its strength. The crystal arrangements of the carbon atoms in diamond account for its unique optical and electromagnetic properties. The gravitational field surrounding the diamond accounts for its gravitational interactions. The Stoics were not aware of these precise physical details, but did maintain that the properties of "things [that] stand outside of us"- such as a diamond - were caused by an active principle. The active principle was called pneuma, a physical rather than spiritual substance in nature, and associated with soul. In this sense then a diamond has a soul. Without soul the diamond would be entirely inert, invisible, without mass, and unable to interact in any way with anything else. While the Stoics maintain that the elements of nature are animate, the soul of a diamond is not rational. It is in a sense in a state of unconscious bliss, incapable of judgment and unaware of its existence. This is an important point. In many polytheistic traditions inanimate forces and elements in nature were accorded judging powers and even deified. Nature and her components (sun, sea, wind, animals) were alive and powerful, and needed to be placated, worshiped and appeased with sacrifices. So, in the tradition of Greco-Roman polytheism this statement can be regarded as a radical and rational break with the past. Nature is indeed magnificent and powerful and beautiful. But the elements of nature are not rational. The elements and forces of nature are unaware of themselves and certainly cannot make judgments of themselves or of human beings. There is no room in Stoicism for superstition.
(2) Human beings also have souls. But unlike the soul of a diamond, the human soul is rational. It, like the soul of the diamond, comes from the active aspect of nature, the physical laws that govern the activity of all physical elements. But, unlike the soul of the diamond, the human soul has this additional property: it can reject nature. It can act in ways that are contrary to the will of nature. This freedom to judge is unique to all sentient life (Stoics did not presume that human beings were the only form of sentient life in the universe). It accounts for the consciousness that only sentient beings can sense. The bliss that humans can access is not the unconscious bliss of a rock or a diamond, it is the sublime conscious bliss that Stoics call eudomia or happiness. Happiness is not automatic. Because our ruling faculty allows judgment, we can reject nature, but with this we will also reject happiness. But, in the lonely spirit of Diamonds and Rust by Joan Baez, in doing this we can know then only the rust of despair that comes from our alienation from love, and from nature. Happiness is accorded to those who act in accord with the Law. What comes naturally and automatically to a diamond, must be freely chosen by a human being.
Russell McNeil, PhD, is the author of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained by Skylight Paths Publishing. The unpublished selections presented in this Blog are provided as supplemental material to the published selections which are annotated and explained in the book. The published selections are referenced in this Blog by page number and section.
Meditation IX.17 - Say Yes, to Life - Translated by George Long and rewritten by Russell McNeil
For the stone which has been thrown up it is no evil to come down, nor indeed any good to have been carried up.1
Explanation
(1) This meditation is about the vagaries of life over which we have little control. Yet many of us worship them still. We move inexorably from the bloom of youth to the dissolution of age. We watch as our fortunes disappear, our friends abandon us, our loves dissolve, our reputations are lost, our flames dim. Fame and fortune are capricious. Real friends are rare. Youth is brief. Life is short. But these are the ways of the world. The Stoic remains ever indifferent to each of these things. They are superficial measures of success. We can only be happy if we can honestly proclaim at the end of our days that in spite of these pitfalls, we have always, and unreservedly been able to say, yes - to life. Practice this - every day of your life.
Russell McNeil, PhD, is the author of The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: Selections Annotated and Explained by Skylight Paths Publishing. The unpublished selections presented in this Blog are provided as supplemental material to the published selections which are annotated and explained in the book. The published selections are referenced in this Blog by page number and section.
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