Those of you who’ve been following me for a while will know that I recommend the Ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism as a cure to many of the problems we face in the digital age.
Today, I thought I’d share ten of the most useful quotes I found from Marcus Aurelius, one of the most quotable Stoics, along with brief annotations of my own.
“You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
This quote highlights a core principle of Stoicism: the importance of focusing on what we can control and letting go of what we cannot. I was surprised to learn that a lot of our sufferings are induced mentally by the things we do not have any control over or having unrealistic never-ending desires.
“It is not death that one should fear, but never beginning to live.”
How many of the motivational posts you encounter on social media do you recall? If not many, then is there much difference between mindlessly scrolling and being dead?
“Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears.”
This quote reminds me that our perception of being hurt or offended often amplifies the actual harm. By letting go of our sense of injury, we can diminish its impact and this also reminds me of a line from Kanye West’s song “Ghost Town”, nothing hurts anymore, I feel kinda free.” This resonates with the idea that releasing our attachment to hurt feelings can lead to a sense of liberation and peace.
“How much more grievous are the consequences of anger than the causes of it.”
It’s a privilege and a rare skill to be able to keep calm under extreme stress or anger. One must be able to think beyond the short-term consequences of actions led by the anger. I’ve learned not to make any decisions in the first hour of me being angry.
“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.”
Our quality of life depends upon the quality of decisions we have made over the years. We are likely to make high-quality decisions based on the amount of wisdom and self-awareness we accumulate over time.
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”
Media, social or otherwise merely shares an opinion of a certain group of people, ethnic or otherwise. It is often not facts and this quote reminds me to question everything and allows me to be aware of my personal biases before forming an opinion.
“The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury.”
No comments on this one.
“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive — to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.”
Above everything else, being able to breathe and having the chance to be a contributing member of this society in itself is a privilege we all must be grateful for.
“We love ourselves above all others, yet we put more stock in other people’s opinions of us than in our own.”
We are social animals. Often seeking external validations for our survival. Social Media amplifies the need for this hardwired instinctive mindset and often gets us to live a miserable life when we start seeking external validation on social media for 1’s and 0’s.
That’s it for now. Thanks for reading.
Pratik.