Background Image
From Plato: The Man Who Has An Elevated Mind And Takes A View Of All Time And Of All Substance, Dost Thou Suppose It Possible For Him To Think That Human Life Is Anything Great? It Is Not Possible, He Said. Such A Man Then Will Think That Death Also Is No Evil.
-Marcus Aurelius
Please Wait....
Translating....

From Plato: The Man

Marcus Aurelius
From Plato: The Man Who Has An Elevated Mind And Takes A View Of All Time And Of All Substance, Dost Thou Suppose It Possible For Him To Think That Human Life Is Anything Great? It Is Not Possible, He Said. Such A Man Then Will Think That Death Also Is No Evil.
Views: 76412
Topic
Plato
Men
Thinking
More From Marcus Aurelius
A Man Should Be Upright, Not Kept Upright.
Truth
Integrity
Military
Nothing That Goes On In Anyone Else's Mind Can Harm You.
Mind
Criticism
Goes On
What Is Not Good For The Swarm Is Not Good For The Bee.
Freedom
Bees And Honey
Honey Bee
Gluttony And Drunkenness Have Two Evils Attendant On Them; They Make The Carcass Smart, As Well As The Pocket.
Smart
Two
Evil
Our Wills Are Ours, To Make Them Thine.
Always Bear This In Mind, That Very Little Indeed Is Necessary For Living A Happy Life.
Happy Life
Mind
Littles
No Longer Talk At All About The Kind Of Man That A Good Man Ought To Be, But Be Such
Love
Life
Family
Don't Be Ashamed To Need Help. Like A Soldier Storming A Wall, You Have A Mission To Accomplish. And If You've Been Wounded And You Need A Comrade To Pull You Up? So What?
Motivational
Wall
Soldier
Think Of All The Years Passed By In Which You Said To Yourself "i'll Do It Tomorrow," And How The Gods Have Again And Again Granted You Periods Of Grace Of Which You Have Not Availed Yourself. It Is Time To Realize That You Are A Member Of The Universe, That You Are Born Of Nature Itself, And To Know That A Limit Has Been Set To Your Time. Use Every Moment Wisely, To Perceive Your Inner Refulgence, Or 'twill Be Gone And Nevermore Within Your Reach.
Procrastination
Thinking
Years
When Pain Is Unbearable It Destroys Us; When It Does Not It Is Bearable.
Hurt
Pain
Doe
Because Your Own Strength Is Unequal To The Task, Do Not Assume That It Is Beyond The Powers Of Man; But If Anything Is Within The Powers And Province Of Man, Believe That It Is Within Your Own Compass Also.
Life
Strength
Believe
A Man's True Greatness Lies In The Consciousness Of An Honest Purpose In Life, Founded On A Just Estimate Of Himself And Everything Else, On Frequent Self-examinations, And A Steady Obedience To The Rule Which He Knows To Be Right, Without Troubling Himself About What Others May Think Or Say, Or Whether They Do Or Do Not That Which He Thinks And Says And Does.
Lying
Greatness
Men
Time Is Like A River Made Up Of The Events Which Happen, And A Violent Stream; For As Soon As A Thing Has Been Seen, It Is Carried Away, And Another Comes In Its Place, And This Will Be Carried Away Too.
Rivers
Events
Violent
Whatever May Happen To Thee, It Was Prepared For Thee From All Eternity.
Fate
May
Eternity
The Body Of An Actor Can Be Either His Best Friend Or His Worst Enemy.
Worst Enemy
Actors
Body
Be Satisfied With Your Business, And Learn To Love What You Were Bred To.
Satisfaction
Satisfied
When Thou Art Offended At Any Man's Fault, Forthwith Turn To Thyself And Reflect In What Manner Thou Doest Error Thyself. For By Attending To This Thou Wilt Quickly Forget Thy Anger, If This Consideration Is Also Added, That The Man Is Compelled; For What Else Could He Do? Or, If Thou Art Able, Take Away From Him The Compulsion.
Art
Men
Errors
Accept Whatever Comes To You Woven In The Pattern Of Your Destiny, For What Could More Aptly Fit Your Needs?
Destiny
Woven
Needs
Is Your Cucumber Bitter? Throw It Away. Are There Briars In Your Path? Turn Aside. That Is Enough. Do Not Go On And Ay, 'why Were Things Of This Sort Ever Brought Into The World?'
Goes On
World
Cucumbers
Dig Within. There Lies The Wellspring Of Good.
Wise
Lying
Wellspring
You Need To Be Prepared For Firm Decisions And Action, Without Losing Gentleness Towards Those Who Obstruct Or Abuse You. It's As Great A Weakness To Be Angry With Them As It Is To Abandon Your Plan Of Action And Give Up Through Fear.
Giving Up
Decision
Abuse
Love Only What Befalls You And Is Spun For You By Fate.
Love
Fate
Spun
How Easy It Is To Repel And Release Every Impression Which Is Troublesome And Immediately To Be Tranquil.
Peace
Humanity
Easy
Take Away Your Opinion, And Then There Is Taken Away The Complaint, 'i Have Been Harmed.' Take Away The Complaint, 'i Have Been Harmed,' And The Harm Is Taken Away.
Taken
Opinion
Harm
Everything Is Interwoven, And The Web Is Holy.
Holy
Pantheism
Give Yourself A Gift: The Present Moment.
Giving
Moments
Present Moment
Death, Like Birth, Is One Of Nature's Mysteries, The Combining Of Primal Elements And Dissolving Of The Same Into The Same.
Elements
Birth
Mystery
He Who Has Seen Present Things Has Seen All, Both Everything Which Has Taken Place From All Eternity And Everything Which Will Be For Time Without End; For All Things Are Of One Kin And Of One Form.
Philosophy
Philosophical
Taken
If It's In Your Control, Why Do You Do It? If It's In Someone Else's Control, Then Who Are You Blaming? Atoms? The Gods? Stupid Either Way. Blame No One. Set People Straight, If You Can. If Not, Just Repair The Damage.
Stupid
People
Atoms
A Person's Life Is What Their Thoughts Make It.
Life Is
Persons
Love The People With Whom Fate Brings You Together
Valentines Day
Fate
Destiny
Do Not Be Ashamed Of Help.
Helping
Ashamed
He Who Lives In Harmony With Himself Lives In Harmony With The Universe.
Happiness
Peace
Philosophical
Death - A Stopping Of Impressions Through The Senses, And Of The Pulling Of The Cords Of Motion, And Of The Ways Of Thought, And Of Service To The Flesh.
Stopping
Flesh
Way
Your Days Are Numbered. Use Them To Throw Open The Windows Of Your Soul To The Sun. If You Do Not, The Sun Will Soon Set, And You With It.
Soul
Use
Sun
Because A Thing Is Difficult For You, Do Not Therefore Suppose It To Be Beyond Mortal Power. On The Contrary, If Anything Is Possible And Proper For Man To Do, Assume That It Must Fall Within Your Own Capacity.
Fall
Power
Men
A Wrongdoer Is Often A Man Who Has Left Something Undone, Not Always One Who Has Done Something.
Men
Done
Undone
Everything - A Horse, A Vine - Is Created For Some Duty... For What Task, Then, Were You Yourself Created?
Horse
Tasks
Vines
Men Seek Out Retreats For Themselves In The Country, By The Seaside, On The Moutains . . . But All This Is Unphilosophical To The Last Degree . . . When Thou Canst At A Moment's Notice Retire Into Thyself.
Country
Men
Degrees
In The Same Degree In Which A Man's Mind Is Nearer To Freedom From All Passion, In The Same Degree Also Is It Nearer To Strength.
Anger
Passion
Men
Most Of What We Say And Do Is Unnecessary: Remove The Superfluity, And You Will Have More Time And Less Bother. So In Every Case One Should Prompt Oneself: 'is This, Or Is It Not, Something Necessary?' And The Removal Of The Unnecessary Should Apply Not Only To Actions But To Thoughts Also: Then No Redundant Actions Either Will Follow.
Time
Action
Unnecessary
Take Me And Cast Me Where You Will; I Shall Still Be Possessor Of The Divinity Within Me, Serene And Content.
Divinity
Serene
Take Me
The Soul Becomes Dyed With The Color Of Its Thoughts.
Inspirational
Philosophical
Thinking
If I And My Two Children Cannot Move The Gods, The Gods Must Have Their Reasons.
Children
Moving
Two
Observe Always That Everything Is The Result Of A Change, And Get Used To Thinking That There Is Nothing Nature Loves So Well As To Change Existing Forms And To Make New Ones Like Them.
Inspirational
Nature
Healing
We Are The Other Of The Other
Above, Below, All Around Are The Movements Of The Elements. But The Motion Of Virtue Is In None Of These: It Is Something More Divine, And Advancing By A Way Hardly Observed It Goes Happily On Its Road.
Elements
Movement
Way
If Any Man Should Conceive Certain Things As Being Really Good, Such As Prudence, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude, He Would Not After Having First Conceived These Endure To Listen To Anything Which Should Not Be In Harmony With What Is Really Good.
Men
Justice
Being Real
Does The Light Of The Lamp Shine Without Losing Its Splendour Until It Is Extinguished; And Shall The Truth Which Is In Thee And Justice And Temperance Be Extinguished Before Thy Death?
Light
Justice
Shining
I Can At Once Become Happy Anywhere, For He Is Happy Who Has Found Himself A Happy Lot. In A Word, Happiness Lies All In The Functions Of Reason, In Warrantable Desires And Virtuous Practice.
Happiness
Lying
Practice
In The End, What Would You Gain From Everlasting Remembrance? Absolutely Nothing. So What Is Left Worth Living For? This Alone: Justice In Thought, Goodness In Action, Speech That Cannot Deceive, And A Disposition Glad Of Whatever Comes, Welcoming It As Necessary, As Familiar, As Flowing From The Same Source And Fountain As Yourself.
Justice
Remembrance
Speech
Failing To Understand The Workings Of One's Own Mind Is Bound To Lead To Unhappiness.
Mind
Failing
Unhappiness
When We Consider We Are Bound To Be Serviceable To Mankind, And Bear With Their Faults, We Shall Perceive There Is A Common Tie Of Nature And Relation Between Us.
Nature
Ties
Faults
Man Is Born For Deeds Of Kindness.
Kindness
Men
Deeds
Each Thing Is Of Like Form From Everlasting And Comes Round Again In Its Cycle...
Philosophical
Form
Everlasting
No One Can Lose Either The Past Or The Future - How Could Anyone Be Deprived Of What He Does Not Possess? ... It Is Only The Present Moment Of Which Either Stands To Be Deprived: And If This Is All He Has, He Cannot Lose What He Does Not Have.
Past
Doe
Moments
Reflect Often Upon The Rapidity With Which All Existing Things, Or Things Coming Into Existence, Sweep Past Us And Are Carried Away.
Past
Existence
Carried Away
If Souls Survive Death For All Eternity, How Can The Heavens Hold Them All? Or For That Matter, How Can The Earth Hold All The Bodies That Have Been Buried In It? The Answers Are The Same. Just As On Earth, With The Passage Of Time, Decaying And Transmogrified Corpses Make Way For The Newly Dead, So Souls Released Into The Heavens, After A Season Of Flight, Begin To Break Up, Burn, And Be Absorbed Back Into The Womb Of Reason, Leaving Room For Souls Just Beginning To Fly. This Is The Answer For Those Who Believe That Souls Survive Death.
Death
Believe
Heaven
Wilt Thou, Then, My Soul, Never Be Good And Simple And One And Naked, More Manifest Than The Body Which Surrounds Thee?
Simple
Soul
Naked
What We Cannot Bear Removes Us From Life; What Remains Can Be Borne.
Bears
Remains
Remove
Things That Have A Common Quality Ever Quickly Seek Their Kind.
Kindness
Quality
Common
I Am An Old Man And Have Had Many Worries, But Most Have Never Come To Pass.
Motivation
Men
Worry
When Thou Art Above Measure Angry, Bethink Thee How Momentary Is Man's Life.
Life
Art
Anger
The Noblest Kind Of Retribution Is Not To Become Like Your Enemy.
Words Of Wisdom
Enemy
Kind
Is Your Cucumber Bitter? Throw It Away. Are There Briars In Your Path? Turn Aside. That Is Enough. Do Not Go On And Say, "why Were Things Of This Sort Ever Brought Into This World?" Neither Intolerable Nor Everlasting - If Thou Bearest In Mind That It Has Its Limits, And If Thou Addest Nothing To It In Imagination. Pain Is Either An Evil To The Body (then Let The Body Say What It Thinks Of It!)-or To The Soul. But It Is In The Power Of The Soul To Maintain Its Own Serenity And Tranquility. . . .
Pain
Attitude
Thinking
Truth And Ceremony Are Two Things.
Two
Flattery
Ceremony
Remind Oneself Continually Of One Of Those Who Practiced Virtue In Days Gone By.
Days Gone By
Gone
Virtue
Reverence The Gods, And Help Men. Short Is Life.
Men
Helping
Help Me
Frequently Consider The Connection Of All Things In The Universe. .. We Should Not Say 'i Am An Athenian' Or 'i Am A Roman' But 'i Am A Citizen Of The Universe.
Connections
Citizens
Ethics
If You Do The Task Before You Always Adhering To Strict Reason With Zeal And Energy And Yet With Humanity, Disregarding All Lesser Ends And Keeping The Divinity Within You Pure And Upright, As Though You Were Even Now Faced With Its Recall - If You Hold Steadily To This, Staying For Nothing And Shrinking From Nothing, Only Seeking In Each Passing Action A Conformity With Nature And In Each Word And Utterance A Fearless Truthfulness, Then The Good Life Shall Be Yours. And From This Course No Man Has The Power To Hold You Back.
Good Life
Men
Fearless
Remember That The Sole Life Which A Man Can Lose Is That Which He Is Living At The Moment.
Men
Remember
Sole
Everything Is Born From Change. ...there Is Nothing Nature Loves More That To Alter What Exists And Make New Things Like It. All That Exists Is The Seed Of What Will Emerge From It. You Think The Only Seeds Are The One That Make Plants And Children? Go Deeper.
Children
Thinking
Plant
Thanks To The Gods I Didn't Spend Much Time While Growing Up With My Grandfather's Mistress And Preserved The Flower Of My Youth, Waiting For The Proper Time To Demonstrate My Virility.
Growing Up
Flower
Waiting
All Things Are Changing; And Thou Thyself Art In Continuous Mutation And In A Manner In Continuous Destruction And The Whole Universe To.
Art
Mutation
Destruction
The Stream Of Tendency In Which All Things Seek To Fulfill The Law Of Their Being.
Law
Evolution
Tendencies
No One Loses Any Other Life Than The One He Now Lives, Nor Does One Live Any Other Life Than That Which He Will Lose.
Doe
Loses
Men Despise One Another And Flatter One Another; And Men Wish To Raise Themselves Above One Another, And Crouch Before One Another.
Men
Wish
Despise
... Allow Yourself A Space Of Quiet, Wherein You Can Add To Your Knowledge Of The Good And Learn To Curb Your Restlessness. Guard Also Against Another Kind Of Error: The Folly Of Those Who Weary Their Days In Much Business, But Lack Any Aim On Which Their Whole Effort, Nay, Their Whole Thought, Is Focused.
Space
Errors
Effort
As Thou Thyself Art A Component Part Of A Social System, So Let Every Act Of Thine Be A Component Part Of Social Life. Whatever Act Of Thine That Has No Reference, Either Immediately Or Remotely, To A Social End, This Tears Asunder Thy Life, And Does Not Allow It To Be One, And It Is Of The Nature Of A Mutiny, Just As When In A Popular Assembly A Man Acting By Himself Stands Apart From The General Agreement.
Art
Men
Tears
Be Not Unwilling In What Thou Doest, Neither Selfish Nor Unadvised Nor Obstinate; Let Not Over-refinement Deck Out Thy Thought; Be Not Wordy Nor A Busybody.
Selfish
Refinement
Busybodies
The Man Who Doesn't Know What The Universe Is Doesn't Know Where He Lives.
Science
Men
He Man
All Things Are The Same, Familiar In Enterprise, Momentary In Endurance, Coarse In Substance. All Things Now Are As They Were In The Day Of Those Whom We Have Buried.
Endurance
Substance
Buried
Pray Look Upon The Plants And Birds, The Ants, Spiders, And Bees, And You Will See Them All Exerting Their Nature, And Busy In Their Station. Pray, Shall Not A Man Act Like A Man?
Men
Bird
Spiders
Each Day Provides Its Own Gifts.
Life
Gratitude
Philosophical
The Things You Think About Determine The Quality Of Your Mind. Your Soul Takes On The Color Of Your Thoughts.
Positive Thinking
Color
Soul
Yet Living And Dying, Honour And Dishonour, Pain And Pleasure, Riches And Poverty, And So Forth Are Equally The Lot Of Good Men And Bad. Things Like These Neither Elevate Nor Degrade; And Therefore They Are No More Good Than They Are Evil.
Pain
Men
Evil
Objective Judgement, Now, At This Very Moment. Unselfish Action, Now, At This Very Moment. Willing Acceptance - Now, At This Very Moment - Of All External Events. That's All You Need.
Acceptance
Judgement
Events
Do What You Will. Even If You Tear Yourself Apart, Most People Will Continue Doing The Same Things.
Inspirational
People
Tears
One Of The Recurring Themes In Marcus' Handbook Is Leadership's Responsibility To Work Intelligently With What It Is Given And Not Waste Time Fantasizing About A World Of Flawless People And Perfect Choices.
Responsibility
People
Perfect
No Longer Let Thy Breathing Only Act In Concert With The Air Which Surrounds Thee, But Let Thy Intelligence Also Now Be In Harmony With The Intelligence Which Embraces All Things. For The Intelligent Power Is No Less Diffused In All Parts And Pervades All Things For Him Who Is Willing To Draw It To Him Than The Aërial Power For Him Who Is Able To Respire It.
Intelligent
Air
Breathing
Nature Set A Limit On Sleep - As It Did On Eating And Drinking. And Youre Over The Limit. But Not Of Working. There Youre Still Below Your Quota. You Dont Love Yourself Enough. Or Youd Love Your Nature Too And What It Demands Of You. People Who Love What They Do Wear Themselves Down Doing It. They Even Forget To Wash And Eat.
Drinking
Love You
Sleep
Without A Purpose, Nothing Should Be Done.
Purpose
Done
Should
It Is Not Right To Vex Ourselves At Things, For They Care Not About It.
Care
Vex
A Man Is A Little Soul Carrying Around A Courpse.
Men
Soul
Littles
Look At Everything That Exists, And Observe That It Is Already In Dissolution And In Change, And As It Were Putrefaction Or Dispersion, Or That Everything Is So Constituted By Nature As To Die.
Looks
Dies
Dispersion
It Is Within Our Power Not To Make A Judgement About Something, And So Not Disturb Our Minds; For Nothing In Itself Possesses The Power To Form Our Judgements.
Judgement
Mind
Form
It Is A Sin To Persue Pleasure As A Good And To Avoid Pain As A Evil.
Pain
Evil
Sin
When You Find An Unwillingness To Rise Early In The Morning, Make This Short Speech To Yourself: I Am Getting Up Now To Do The Business Of A Man; And Am I Out Of Humour For Going About That I Was Made For, And For The Sake Of Which I Was Sent Into The World? Was I Then Designed For Nothing But To Doze And Keep Warm Beneath The Counterpane? Well! But This Is A Comfortable Way Of Living.
Morning
Men
World
Letting Go All Else, Cling To The Following Few Truths. Remember That Man Lives Only In The Present, In This Fleeting Instant: All The Rest Of His Life Is Either Past And Gone, Or Not Yet Revealed. This Mortal Life Is A Little Thing, Lived In A Little Corner Of The Earth; And Little, Too, Is The Longest Fame To Come - Dependent As It Is On A Succession Of Fast-perishing Little Men Who Have No Knowledge Even Of Their Own Selves, Much Less Of One Long Dead And Gone.
Letting Go
Truth
Past
Where A Man Can Live, He Can Also Live Well.
Philosophical
Men
Live Well
Remember That Neither The Future Nor The Past Pains Thee, But Only The Present. But This Is Reduced To A Very Little, If Thou Only Circumscribest It, And Chidest Thy Mind, If It Is Unable To Hold Out Against Even This.
Pain
Past
Mind
Nothing Is Worth Doing Pointlessly.
Regain Your Senses, Call Yourself Back, And Once Again Wake Up. Now That You Realize That Only Dreams Were Troubling You, View This 'reality' As You View Your Dreams.
Dream
Reality
Views
An Angry Look On The Face Is Wholly Against Nature. If It Be Assumed Frequently, Beauty Begins To Perish, And In The End Is Quenched Beyond Rekindling.
Beauty
Nature
Looks
Everything We Hear Is An Opinion, Not A Fact. Everything We See Is A Perspective, Not The Truth.
Truth
Intelligent
Greatness
Failure To Read What Is Happening In Another's Soul Is Not Easily Seen As A Cause Of Unhappiness: But Those Who Fail To Attend The Motions Of Their Own Soul Are Necessarily Unhappy.
Soul
Unhappy
Causes
Leave Other People's Mistakes Where They Lie.
Mistake
Lying
People
When You Have Trouble Getting Out Of Bed In The Morning, Remember That Your Defining Characteristic-what Defines A Human Being-is To Work With Others.
Morning
Bed
Defining
Glory Arrives Too Late When It Comes Only To One's Ashes
Ashes
Too Late
Glory
Enter Others' Minds And Let Them Enter Yours.
Mind
A Man's Worth Is No Greater Than His Ambitions.
Philosophical
Ambition
Men
Tranquility Is Nothing Else Than The Good Ordering Of The Mind.
Science
Mind
Tranquility
Never Forget That The Universe Is A Single Living Organism Possessed Of One Substance And One Soul, Holding All Things Suspended In A Single Consciousness And Creating All Things With A Single Purpose That They Might Work Together Spinning And Weaving And Knotting Whatever Comes To Pass.
Creating
Soul
Together
Outward Objects Cannot Take Hold Of The Soul, Nor Force Their Passage Into Her, Nor Set Any Of Her Wheels Going. No, The Impression Comes From Herself, And It Is Her Own Motions Which Affect Her. As For The Contingencies Of Fortune, They Are Either Great Or Little, According To The Opinion She Has Of Her Own Strength.
Soul
Littles
Wheels
Live Out Your Life In Truth And Justice, Tolerant Of Those Who Are Neither True Nor Just.
Justice
Truth And Justice
Values
Do Not Act As If You Had A Thousand Years To Live.
Procrastination
Years
Thousand
Consider Thyself To Be Dead, And To Have Completed Thy Life Up To The Present Time; And Live According To Nature The Remainder Which Is Allowed Thee.
Thee
Present Time
Thyself
Enough Of This Wretched Life And Murmuring And Apish Tricks. Why Art Thou Disturbed? What Is There New In This? What Unsettles Thee? Is It The Form Of The Thing? Look At It. Or Is It The Matter? Look At It. But Besides These There Is Nothing. Towards The Gods, Then, Now Become At Last More Simple And Better. It Is The Same Whether We Examine These Things For A Hundred Years Or Three.
Art
Simple
Years
How Soon Will Time Cover All Things.
All Things
Everything That Happens Either Happens In Such A Way As You Are Formed By Nature To Bear It, Or As You Are Not Formed By Nature To Bear It.
Way
Bears
Happens
Reject Your Sense Of Injury, And The Injury Itself Disappears.
Happiness
Sad
Broken Heart
He Who Fears Death Either Fears To Lose All Sensation Or Fears New Sensations. In Reality, You Will Either Feel Nothing At All, And Therefore Nothing Evil, Or Else, If You Can Feel Any Sensations, You Will Be A New Creature, And So Will Not Have Ceased To Have Life.
Reality
Evil
Fear Of Death
No Form Of Nature Is Inferior To Art; For The Arts Merely Imitate Natural Forms.
Art
Nature
Natural
Each Of Us Needs What Nature Gives Us, When Nature Gives Us.
Giving
Needs
Humans Have Come Into Being For The Sake Of Each Other, So Either Teach Them, Or Learn To Bear Them.
Meditation
Sake
Bears
All Things Are In The Act Of Change; Thou Thyself In Ceaseless Transformation And Partial Decay, And The Whole Universe With Thee.
Decay
Transformation
Thee
...in The Ways Of Nature There Is No Evil To Be Found.
Evil
Way
Found
By A Tranquil Mind I Mean Nothing Else Than A Mind Well Ordered.
Mean
Order
Mind
All That Is From The Gods Is Full Of Providence.
Providence
He Does Not Write At All Whose Poems No Man Reads
Reading
Writing
Men
Just As The Sand-dunes, Heaped One Upon Another, Hide Each The First, So In Life The Former Deeds Are Quickly Hidden By Those That Follow After.
Life
Justice
Deeds
Anger Cannot Be Dishonest.
Philosophical
Historical
The Constant Recollection Of Death Is The Test Of Human Conduct.
Death
Dying
Tests
What Does Not Benefit The Hive Is No Benefit To The Bee.
Doe
Benefits
Bees
How Much Time He Saves Who Does Not Look To See What His Neighbor Says Or Does Or Thinks.
Philosophy
Philosophical
Reality
Soon You Will Have Forgotten The World, And Soon The World Will Have Forgotten You.
World
Forgotten
The Whole Contains Nothing That Is Not For Its Advantage. By Remembering That I Am Part Of Such A Whole, I Shall Be Content With Everything That Happens.
Remember
Advantage
Happens
Be Mindful At All Times Of The Following: The Nature Of The Whole Universe, The Nature Of The Part That Is Me, The Relation Of The One To The Other, The One So Vast, The Other So Small.
Relation
All Time
Following
Practice Really Hearing What People Say. Do Your Best To Get Inside Their Mind.
Practice
People
Mind
Even While A Thing Is In The Act Of Coming Into Existence, Some Part Of It Has Already Ceased To Be.
Existence
And Yet, After All, What Is Posthumous Fame? Altogether Vanity.
Vanity
Fame
Posthumous
The Greatest Part Of What We Say And Do Is Really Unnecessary. If A Man Takes This To Heart, He Will Have More Leisure And Less Uneasiness.
Heart
Men
Leisure
In One Way An Arrow Moves, In Another Way The Mind. The Mind Indeed, Both When It Exercises Caution And When It Is Employed About Inquiry, Moves Straight Onward Not The Less, And To Its Object.
Moving
Exercise
Arrows
All That Happens Is As Usual And Familiar As The Rose In Spring And The Crop In Summer.
Summer
Spring
Rose
God Sees The Inner Spirit Stripped Of Flesh, Skin, And All Debris. For His Own Mind Only Touches The Spirit That He Has Allowed To Flow From Himself Into Our Bodies. And If You Can Act The Same Way, You Will Rid Yourself Of All Suffering. For Surely If You Are Not Preoccupied With The Body That Encloses You, You Will Not Trouble Yourself About Clothes, Houses, Fame, And Other Showy Trappings.
Clothes
House
Mind
Once You Have Done A Man A Service, What More Reward Would You Have? Is It Not Enough To Have Obeyed The Laws Of Your Own Nature, Without Expecting To Be Paid For It?
Men
Law
Done
Let It Be Your Constant Method To Look Into The Design Of People's Actions, And See What They Would Be At, As Often As It Is Practicable; And To Make This Custom The More Significant, Practice It First Upon Yourself.
Practice
People
Design
Whatever Anyone Does Or Says, I Must Be Emerald And Keep My Colour.
Meditation
Doe
Emeralds
People Find Pressure In Different Ways. I Find It In Keeping My Mind Clear. In Not Turning Away From People Or The Things That Happen To Them. In Accepting And Welcoming Everything I See. In Treating Each Thing As It Deserves.
People
Mind
Different
Death Is A Release From The Impressions Of The Senses, And From Desires That Make Us Their Puppets, And From The Vagaries Of The Mind, And From The Hard Service Of The Flesh.
Death
Science
Perception
You Have To Assemble Your Life Yourself - Action By Action.
Action
Life Yourself
If Someone Is Able To Show Me That What I Think Or Do Is Not Right, I Will Happily Change, For I Seek The Truth, By Which No One Ever Was Truly Harmed. Harmed Is The Person Who Continues In His Self-deception And Ignorance.
Truth
Ignorance
Thinking
Suppose That Thou Hast Detached Thyself From The Natural Unity... Yet Here There Is This Beautiful Provision, That It Is In Thy Power Again To Unite Thyself. God Has Allowed This To No Other Part, After It Has Been Separated And Cut Asunder, To Come Together Again. ...he Has Distinguished Man, For He Has Put It In His Power Not To Be Separated At All From The Universal ...he Has Allowed Him To Be Returned And To Be United And To Resume His Place As A Part.
Beautiful
Cutting
Men
Misfortune Nobly Born Is Good Fortune.
Born
Fortune
Good Fortune
Be Not Disgusted, Nor Discouraged, Nor Dissatisfied, If Thou Dost Not Succeed In Doing Everything According To Right Principles; But When Thou Bast Failed, Return Back Again, And Be Content If The Greater Part Of What Thou Doest Is Consistent With Man's Nature, And Love This To Which Thou Returnest
Love
Men
Return Back
Praise Adds Nothing To Beauty--makes It Neither Better Nor Worse.
Add
Praise
Always Follow These Two Rules: First, Act Only On What Your Reasoning Mind Proposes For The Good Of Humanity, And Second, Change Your Opinion If Someone Shows You It's Wrong. This Change Of Mind Must Proceed Only From The Conviction That It's Both Correct And For The Common Good, But Not Because It Will Give You Pleasure And Make You Popular.
Two
Giving
Community
He Who Eats My Bread, Does My Will.
Hard Work
Bread
Doe
I Consist Of A Little Body And A Soul.
Soul
Body
Littles
Happiness Is No Other Than Soundness And Perfection Of Mind.
Happiness
Perfection
Mind
Snow Endures But For A Season, And Joy Comes With The Morning.
Morning
Snow
Joy
Every Instant Of Time... Is A Pinprick Of Eternity.
Inspirational
Life
Positive
The Main Thing We Were Made For Is To Work With Others.
Made
Vex Not Thy Spirit At The Course Of Things, They Heed Not Thy Vexations
Vex
Spirit
Courses
But This Is Altogether A Mark Of The Most Common Sort Of Men, For It Is In Your Power Whenever You Choose To Retire Into Yourself.
Self Esteem
Independence
Self Determination
Everything Harmonizes With Me, Which Is Harmonious To Thee, O Universe. Nothing For Me Is Too Early Or Too Late, Which Is In Due Time For Thee.
Too Late
Harmony
Thee
My Only Fear Is Doing Something Contrary To Human Nature - The Wrong Thing, The Wrong Way, Or At The Wrong Time.
Way
Human Nature
Wrong Time
Give Thyself Time To Learn Something New And Good, And Cease To Be Whirled Around.
Life
Time
Giving
The Lot Assigned To Every Man Is Suited To Him, And Suits Him To Itself.
Men
Suits
Every Man
In The Case Of Most Pains Let This Remark Of Epicurus Aid Thee, That The Pain Is Neither Intolerable Nor Everlasting, If Thou Bear In Mind That It Has Its Limits, And If Thou Addest Nothing To It In Imagination.
Pain
Imagination
Mind
Why Dost Thou Not Pray... To Give Thee The Faculty Of Not Fearing Any Of The Things Which Thou Fearest, Or Of Not Desiring Any Of The Things Which Thou Desirest, Or Not Being Pained At Anything, Rather Than Pray That Any Of These Things Should Not Happen Or Happen?
Giving
Praying
Should
If You Are Pained By External Things, It Is Not They That Disturb You, But Your Own Judgement Of Them. And It Is In Your Power To Wipe Out That Judgement Now.
Inspirational
Power
Judging
As The Same Fire Assumes Different Shapes When It Consumes Objects Differing In Shape, So Does The One Self Take The Shape Of Every Creature In Whom He Is Present.
Fire
Self
Doe
At Day's First Light Have In Readiness, Against Disinclination To Leave Your Bed, The Thought That "i Am Rising For The Work Of Man."
Work
Men
Light
Death Smiles At Us All, All A Man Can Do Is Smile Back.
Inspirational
Smile
Uplifting
The Best Sort Of Revenue Is Not To Be Like Him Who Did The Injury.
Revenge
Injury
Revenue
Each Of Us Lives Only Now, This Brief Instant. The Rest Been Lived Already, Or Is Impossible To See. The Span We Live Is Small - Small As The Corner Of The Earth In Which We Live It.
Earth
Impossible
Instant
Everything That Happens Happens As It Should, And If You Observe Carefully, You Will Find This To Be So.
Inspirational
Philosophical
Failure
The Gods Have Provided Me With Clear And Compelling Signs Of What It Means To Live In Conformity To Nature. They Did Their Part. So Far As Their Gifts, Aid, And Inspiration Are Concerned, Nothing Prevented Me From Following The Path Prescribed By Nature. If From Time To Time I Have Strayed From This Path, The Fault Lies With Me And With My Failure To Heed The Gods' Signs, Or Rather, Their Explicit Instructions.
Lying
Inspiration
Mean
To Expect An Impossibility Is Madness.
Madness
Impossibility
It Is A Shame For The Soul To Be First To Give Way In This Life, When Thy Body Does Not Give Way.
Giving
Soul
Doe
To Live Happily Is An Inward Power Of The Soul.
Happiness
Laughter
Philosophical
Everything Is Mere Opinion.
Opinion
Mere
Since You Are An Integral Part Of A Social System, Let Every Act Of Yours Contribute To The Harmonization Of Social Life. Any Action That Is Not Related Directly Or Remotely To This Social Aim Disturbs Your Life, And Destroys Your Unity.
Community
Action
Social
Remember That To Change Your Mind And Follow Him Who Sets You Right Is To Be None The Less Free Than You Were Before.
Inspirational
Leadership
Mind
Remember: Matter: How Tiny Your Share Of It. Time: How Brief And Fleeting Your Allotment Of It. Fate: How Small A Role You Play In It.
Fate
Play
Matter
Nothing Can Come Out Of Nothing, Any More Than A Thing Can Go Back To Nothing.
A Man Makes No Noise Over A Good Deed, But Passes On To Another As A Vine To Bear Grapes Again In Season.
Men
Vines
Deeds
If Thou Workest At That Which Is Before Thee ... Expecting Nothing, Fearing Nothing, But Satisfied With Thy Present Activity According To Nature, And With Heroic Truth In Every Word And Sound Which Thou Utterest, Thou Wilt Live Happy. And There Is No Man Who Is Able To Prevent This.
Men
Able
Sound
If You Do Everything As If It Were The Last Thing You Were Doing In Your Life, And Stop Being Aimless, Stop Letting Your Emotions Override What Your Mind Tells You, Stop Being Hypocritical, Self-centered, Irritable.
Self
Mind
Lasts
A Man Should Remove Not Only Unnecessary Acts, But Also Unnecessary Thoughts, For Then Superfluous Activity Will Not Follow.
Men
Unnecessary
Should
The Happiness Of Your Life Depends Upon The Quality Of Your Thoughts: Therefore, Guard Accordingly, And Take Care That You Entertain No Notions Unsuitable To Virtue And Reasonable Nature.
Life
Happiness
Happy
From Plato: The Man Who Has An Elevated Mind And Takes A View Of All Time And Of All Substance, Dost Thou Suppose It Possible For Him To Think That Human Life Is Anything Great? It Is Not Possible, He Said. Such A Man Then Will Think That Death Also Is No Evil.
Plato
Men
Thinking
Consider How Many Do Not Even Know Your Name, And How Many Will Soon Forget It, And How Those Who Now Praise You Will Presently Blame You.
Names
Blame
Forget
There Is No Man So Blessed That Some Who Stand By His Deathbed Won't Hail The Occasion With Delight.
Blessed
Men
Dying
The Controlling Intelligence Understands Its Own Nature, And What It Does, And Whereon It Works.
Doe
Our Inward Power, When It Obeys Nature, Reacts To Events By Accommodating Itself To What It Faces - To What Is Possible. It Needs No Specific Material. It Pursues Its Own Aims As Circumstances Allow; It Turns Obstacles Into Fuel. As A Fire Overwhelms What Would Have Quenched A Lamp. What's Thrown On Top Of The Conflagration Is Absorbed, Consumed By It - And Makes It Burn Still Higher.
Fire
Events
Needs
To A Rational Being It Is The Same Thing To Act According To Nature And According To Reason.
Reason
Rational
Get Rid Of The Judgement ... Get Rid Of The 'i Am Hurt,' You Are Rid Of The Hurt Itself.
Hurt
Judgement
I Am Hurt
All Those Things At Which Thou Wishest To Arrive By A Circuitous Road, Thou Canst Have Now, If Thou Dost Not Refuse Them To Thyself.
Refuse
Ifs
Thyself
Understanding Quotes: Their Essence and Application

Quotes, or quotations, are powerful tools in communication, encapsulating ideas, emotions, and wisdom in concise expressions. They serve various purposes across different contexts, from academic writing to everyday conversation.

1. Defining Quotes

A quote is a repetition of someone else's statement or thoughts. It can be a direct replication of words spoken or written by another individual, often used to support arguments, provide evidence, or convey profound insights.


2. The Importance of Quotes

2.1. Enhancing Credibility

Incorporating quotes from authoritative sources can bolster the credibility of your work. By referencing experts or primary sources, you demonstrate thorough research and a solid foundation for your arguments.


2.2. Providing Evidence

Quotes serve as concrete evidence to support claims. In academic and professional writing, they validate points made, offering readers a basis to trust the information presented.


2.3. Conveying Emotions and Perspectives

Quotes can encapsulate emotions and perspectives succinctly. They allow writers to express complex feelings or viewpoints through the words of others, often more eloquently than paraphrasing.


3. Types of Quotes

3.1. Direct Quotes

Direct quotes involve copying the exact words from a source, enclosed in quotation marks. They are used when the original wording is significant or particularly well-expressed.


3.2. Indirect Quotes (Paraphrasing)

Indirect quotes restate the original message in your own words. While not enclosed in quotation marks, they still require proper attribution to the original source.


3.3. Block Quotes

Block quotes are lengthy direct quotations, formatted as a separate block of text. They are typically used for quotes exceeding a certain length, varying by citation style. For instance, in APA style, quotes longer than 40 words are formatted as block quotes.



4. Proper Usage of Quotes


4.1. Contextual Relevance

Ensure that the quote you choose is relevant to the topic and adds value to your content. Avoid inserting quotes solely for decorative purposes.


4.2. Integration into Your Writing

Seamlessly integrate quotes into your writing. Introduce them appropriately and follow up with analysis or commentary to connect them to your main points.


4.3. Attribution and Citation

Always attribute quotes to their original authors and provide proper citations according to the required style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).


5. Common Mistakes to Avoid


5.1. Overusing Quotes

Relying too heavily on quotes can overshadow your voice. Use them sparingly to support your arguments, not replace them.


5.2. Lack of Analysis

Presenting a quote without analysis or explanation can leave readers questioning its relevance. Always follow up with your interpretation or discussion.


5.3. Misquoting or Taking Out of Context

Ensure that quotes are accurate and not taken out of context, as this can mislead readers and undermine your credibility.



6. Quotes in Different Contexts


6.1. Academic Writing

In academic writing, quotes are used to support arguments, provide evidence, and engage with existing literature. Proper citation is crucial to avoid plagiarism.


6.2. Journalism

Journalists use quotes to provide firsthand accounts, add authenticity, and present multiple perspectives within a story.


6.3. Literature and Creative Writing

In literature, quotes can be used to convey character voices, themes, and stylistic elements. They enrich narratives and provide depth to storytelling.



7. Punctuation and Formatting


Understanding the correct punctuation and formatting of quotes is essential:


Quotation Marks: Always enclose direct quotes within quotation marks.


Punctuation Placement: In American English, periods and commas are placed inside quotation marks, while colons and semicolons are placed outside.


Block Quotes: For longer quotes, format them as block quotes without quotation marks, and indent the entire block.



8. Ethical Considerations


Ethical use of quotes involves accurate representation, proper attribution, and respect for intellectual property. Misuse can lead to plagiarism, which carries serious academic and professional consequences.

9. Tools for Managing Quotes


Utilize tools like citation generators and plagiarism checkers to manage quotes effectively. These tools help ensure proper formatting and originality in your writing.



Conclusion


Quotes are invaluable in enriching content, providing evidence, and conveying complex ideas succinctly. When used appropriately, they enhance the quality and credibility of your writing. Always ensure relevance, proper integration, and ethical usage to maximize their impact.


Trending Author
Nick Cave
Ralph Bunche
Ben Nicholas
Shimon Peres
Lynn Barber
Denise Van Outen
Category
Information