Previous Stoicism

IT’S JUST A NUMBER

“You aren’t bothered, are you, because you weigh a certain amount and not twice as much? So why get worked up that you’ve been given a certain lifespan and not more? Just as you are satisfied with your normal weight, so you should be with the time you’ve been given.”

- MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS

Summary

Marcus Aurelius compares the finite nature of life to other natural limits, such as one’s physical weight. Just as we accept our weight without wishing to double it, we should also accept the length of our lives without desiring more. Contentment comes from embracing what we have rather than lamenting what we lack.

Interpretation

In real life, this teaches us to focus on quality over quantity. Worrying about the length of our lives, much like obsessing over anything beyond our control, distracts us from making the most of the time we do have. For readers of The Daily Stoic, this echoes the Stoic principle of living in harmony with nature by accepting life’s boundaries and focusing on living with purpose, gratitude, and mindfulness rather than fixating on what we cannot change.

 

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