Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
Look, there's a lot of unavoidable bull**** out there. Tons of it, in fact, and there is precisely nothing you can do about it. The sooner you accept that, the better your life will be; rather than bitching and complaining, learn to deal with it. Or, of course, you could keep whining like a little bitch; sure, maybe that'll fix everything.
There are two ways your existence could turn out: either there are no gods, in which case nothing means anything, so **** it; or there are gods and they'll take care of us in the life to come. And by two ways, I actually mean only one way, since I think we can all agree that the gods definitely exist. If there's one thing I'm absolutely sure about, it's those bros. Still, your body is going to be dust in a hundred years, and all that really matters is your mind. Does anyone here remember who won the first Olympics? Yeah, I didn't think so. Only things of the mind last; therefore, it's supremely important to cultivate your mind on your own, to think for yourself. And the best way to do that? You guessed it - ****ing philosophy, bro.
You absolutely must elevate your mind above the petty bull****, the shallow and superficial. And that means the **** you think is 'good' as well as bad. Money is meaningless to the gods, whether you have none or plenty. Trust me, we emperors are rich mother****ers. It's not that great. Pleasure too - Caesar had several servants assigned exclusively to the royal penis. He's famous as **** - there are those creepy-ass statues of his head everywhere. For all that, he's still dead. There's nothing intrinsically good or evil to money or pleasure or anything else common to all or fleeting in this life. Only philosophy helps us know the will of the gods, and serve them, which is, in the end, the only thing that really matters.
Philosophy isn't just reading what dead guys said or contemplating the sun. It's about putting the will of the gods into action, no matter what they've given you to do. We should all be dignified public servants, fearless, striving for what's good instead of what's popular. Seriously, if you have something to say, ****ing say it; the truth always comes out. Until then, it is better to live in the favor of the gods who see all and be hated by fallible men than the other way around. If some petty mother****er hates you, maybe he spreads a rumor or throws a rock. So what? On the other hand, if Jupiter isn't thrilled with you, well, you're pretty much ****ed then, huh?
The gods don't speak directly to us. It's even easier than that: they have given us all reason and conscience to figure out our duty, and fortune will correct our mistakes; no matter what, they get what they want. Fighting it won't get you anywhere. No one who earnestly and eagerly sought the will of the gods has ever gone wrong. Don't pray to 'score hot bitches' or 'make mad money' - if the gods want that, it'll happen. If not, you're just going to piss them off. You can't control the world. All you can control is your interior life. Pray, then, only to desire what the gods desire for you, to desire what you know is good, and let the chips fall where they may.
In conclusion, get over yourself. Nothing outside of you is within your control, so don't waste your effort. You'll only make yourself more miserable. Be serene, dignified, patient, and honest at all times; that, and that alone, is within your power.
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Not sure whose summary that is but it's better than any I could write and so I'm using it. All I will say is this is an excellent book by history's one true philosopher king.
Look, there's a lot of unavoidable bull**** out there. Tons of it, in fact, and there is precisely nothing you can do about it. The sooner you accept that, the better your life will be; rather than bitching and complaining, learn to deal with it. Or, of course, you could keep whining like a little bitch; sure, maybe that'll fix everything.
There are two ways your existence could turn out: either there are no gods, in which case nothing means anything, so **** it; or there are gods and they'll take care of us in the life to come. And by two ways, I actually mean only one way, since I think we can all agree that the gods definitely exist. If there's one thing I'm absolutely sure about, it's those bros. Still, your body is going to be dust in a hundred years, and all that really matters is your mind. Does anyone here remember who won the first Olympics? Yeah, I didn't think so. Only things of the mind last; therefore, it's supremely important to cultivate your mind on your own, to think for yourself. And the best way to do that? You guessed it - ****ing philosophy, bro.
You absolutely must elevate your mind above the petty bull****, the shallow and superficial. And that means the **** you think is 'good' as well as bad. Money is meaningless to the gods, whether you have none or plenty. Trust me, we emperors are rich mother****ers. It's not that great. Pleasure too - Caesar had several servants assigned exclusively to the royal penis. He's famous as **** - there are those creepy-ass statues of his head everywhere. For all that, he's still dead. There's nothing intrinsically good or evil to money or pleasure or anything else common to all or fleeting in this life. Only philosophy helps us know the will of the gods, and serve them, which is, in the end, the only thing that really matters.
Philosophy isn't just reading what dead guys said or contemplating the sun. It's about putting the will of the gods into action, no matter what they've given you to do. We should all be dignified public servants, fearless, striving for what's good instead of what's popular. Seriously, if you have something to say, ****ing say it; the truth always comes out. Until then, it is better to live in the favor of the gods who see all and be hated by fallible men than the other way around. If some petty mother****er hates you, maybe he spreads a rumor or throws a rock. So what? On the other hand, if Jupiter isn't thrilled with you, well, you're pretty much ****ed then, huh?
The gods don't speak directly to us. It's even easier than that: they have given us all reason and conscience to figure out our duty, and fortune will correct our mistakes; no matter what, they get what they want. Fighting it won't get you anywhere. No one who earnestly and eagerly sought the will of the gods has ever gone wrong. Don't pray to 'score hot bitches' or 'make mad money' - if the gods want that, it'll happen. If not, you're just going to piss them off. You can't control the world. All you can control is your interior life. Pray, then, only to desire what the gods desire for you, to desire what you know is good, and let the chips fall where they may.
In conclusion, get over yourself. Nothing outside of you is within your control, so don't waste your effort. You'll only make yourself more miserable. Be serene, dignified, patient, and honest at all times; that, and that alone, is within your power.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not sure whose summary that is but it's better than any I could write and so I'm using it. All I will say is this is an excellent book by history's one true philosopher king.
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