Written by Marcus Aurelius, the only philosopher and emperor in ancient Rome, this twelve-volume dialogue between himself and himself, most of which was written by him in The Horse, is a A milestone in Stoic philosophy. "Meditations" comes from the author's feelings about himself in the palace and the chaotic world in which he lives, and pursues a calm and optimistic life that is free from passion and desire. In the book, Marcus Aurelius elaborated on the relationship between the soul and death, analyzed personal virtue, personal liberation, and personal responsibility to society, requiring frequent introspection to achieve inner peace and abandoning all useless and trivial thoughts. , think with integrity. And, not only think good and aboveboard things, but also act on them.

1. People despise each other and flatter each other. People each hope that they are higher than others, and each prostrates himself in front of others.

2. Never guess what others are thinking. People who ponder other people's thoughts are never happy people. Everyone should pay attention to what is going on in their hearts. If you cannot do this, it would be very sad.

3. Don’t be slow in doing things, don’t talk in a messy way, don’t have wandering thoughts, don’t pour your soul completely into yourself, or be too restless, and don’t be busy all the time in life.

4. Everything that is in line with one’s nature is worth saying and doing. Don't be swayed by blame or gossip. If you think you said something right and did something well, then don't belittle yourself. Others have other people's judgments and their own special tendencies, so ignore them. Go straight to your own path, follow your own nature, follow the nature that everyone has. Because there is only one and only one way for the two.

5. Remember: after this life, people will never get any afterlife. The life in front of you is no different to anyone. What we waste or gain is exactly the time that is passing by.

6. Don’t worry about the future. If you have to go to the future, you will go with the same reasons as you come to the present with the same reasons. If a person does not care whether other people's words, deeds, and thoughts are correct, but only pays attention to whether his own behavior is correct, then how rich this person's life will be! To be honest, a good person should not look into the darkness in other people's hearts, but should "go straight to the goal without squinting."

7. If something is really worth saying or doing, then please don’t think twice about whether it is in line with your identity.

8. The quality of being strong enough to withstand it on the one hand and remaining sober on the other is the mark of a person with a perfect and invincible soul.

9. You do not have the leisure or ability to read, but you have the leisure or ability to prevent arrogance. You have the leisure to transcend happiness and pain. You have the leisure to transcend the love of false fame. Don’t worry about stupid and ungrateful people. , don't even pay attention to them.

10. Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.

11. He talks and laughs with people within an appropriate range.

12. There is no place where a person can be more peaceful and less distressed than retreating into his own mind, especially when he has such thoughts in his heart.

13. Don’t work unwillingly, don’t disrespect the interests of the public, don’t fail to give due consideration, don’t be distracted, don’t lose your thoughts by pretending to be knowledgeable, and don’t become A chattering or busy person. At the same time, be happy and don't seek outside help or the peace that others can give you. In this way, a person must stand upright instead of being supported upright by others.

14. When you do the work set before you, you must carefully follow correct reason, be energetic, tranquil and far-reaching, not distracted by anything else, but maintain your sacred part Pure, as if you must return him directly; if you insist on this, desire nothing and fear nothing, be content with your natural activities now, content with the bravery in every word and syllable you utter. Be sincere and you can live happily. No one can stop this.

15. Don't pay attention to what is going on in other people's minds, and a person will rarely be seen as unhappy, but those who don't pay attention to what's going on in their own hearts are bound to be unhappy.

16. Don’t waste the rest of your life thinking about others when you are not directing your thoughts towards some goal of public welfare. Because when you have this kind of thought, you lose the opportunity to do other things. What the person is doing, why he is doing it, what he is saying, thinking, arguing, paying attention to all these things will make us neglect to observe the dominant forces within ourselves. Therefore we should suppress in the course of our thoughts all aimless and worthless thoughts, as well as a great deal of curious and malicious emotions.

17. Remember you have put off these things long enough, you have had enough opportunities from God and you have not taken advantage of them. You only have a limited amount of time, and if you don't use this time to clear away the haze of your inspiration; it will be gone, and so will you, never to return.

18. Don’t panic when things happen, don’t be afraid when things happen, take your time but don’t delay, never get confused, never get frustrated, never force a smile, and never lose your temper or become suspicious.

19. Throw away your opinions, then you will put away the complaint: "I have been hurt." And throw away the complaint of "I have been hurt," and the hurt will disappear. .

20. Don’t just focus on formal rhetoric and abandon substantive thinking.

21. The only thing that can be taken away from a person is now. If it is true that one only has the present, then one cannot lose something that one does not possess.

22. Everyone’s life is enough, but your life is coming to an end, and your soul does not take care of itself, but places your happiness on the souls of others.

23. Most people live in seclusion in the countryside, at the seaside, or in the mountains. You once longed for such a life. But this is the most vulgar thing, because you can retreat into yourself at any time. A man cannot find a place more peaceful than his own soul.

24. If you perform every act of your life as if it were its last, excluding all indifference and intense aversion to the dictates of reason, all hypocrisy, self-love, and lack of respect for what is given to you. You will free yourself from that dissatisfaction.

25. Let the body have feelings, let the soul have a refuge, and let reason obey the laws.

26. Don’t repay evil with evil, but be patient and tolerant. People are born to endure everything. This is their obligation.

27. Accept without arrogance and give up without hesitation.

28. Regardless of happiness or pain, do not let the turmoil of the body disturb your soul, because the soul is the one that guides and controls.

29. True beauty comes from one’s own inner beauty. All the reasons for this kind of beauty come from itself, and external compliments cannot be the reason for its beauty. Nothing will become better because of people's praise, nor will it become worse because of people's disparagement.

30. Make your actions noble, make your motives pure, and abandon all useless and trivial thoughts.

31. The allocation of energy to each task must be consistent with its value and in an appropriate proportion.

32. The best way to avenge yourself is not to become like the person who did evil to you.

33. Do the external things you encounter distract you? Give time to learn new and good things and stop going in circles. But you must also avoid being led down another path. For those who are exhausted by their activities in life are also vagabonds; they have no purpose to guide every action, and in short all their thoughts are aimless.

34. In fact, as long as a person grasps what he has, even just a little bit, he can live a life of inner tranquility.

35. We have the right not to express any opinions on things, and we have the right to keep our souls free from harassment; because the things themselves do not force us to form a natural ability to judge.

36. Put on a happy face, you don’t need outside help, and you don’t need the peace that others can give you. Stand up by yourself, don't let others help you up.

37. People who are greedy for fame like to attribute other people's praises to their own merits; people who are greedy for pleasure like to regard their own feelings as their own good deeds; truly rational people, You should regard your actions as your own truth and goodness.

38. What is of no use to the entire colony will not benefit one of the bees.

39. Run towards your goal quickly, and if you cherish yourself, give up all your delusions and save yourself while you can still do anything!

40. Always remember: your heart is unconquerable.