Simple Stoic Advice
Visualizing the end
Visualizing the end
The beautiful thing about Stoic philosophy is the advice contained within it is just as applicable today as it was when it was first written all those many years ago. We can learn a great deal from interpreting the advice provided and using it to our advantage as we go throughout our own lives.
Today’s quote comes to us courtesy of Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 7.56:
Quote
“Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what’s left and live it properly.”
Advice
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius were written within the last few years of his life and often contain reflections on life and death. To some, this can be depressing, but Marcus was trying to ensure he could meet his end with grace and virtue.
Death is the great equalizer. No matter what happens during our time on earth, death will eventuallty overtake us all. As the mime Publilius Syrus once wrote:
“As men, we are all equal in the presence of death.”
The Stoics thought it important to constantly keep death in mind as it was a possibility that it could occur at any moment. And while we have made advancements in health and medicine, the same rings true today: we do not have full control over our lives and things happen which we least expect.
Seneca speaks to this very idea in his moral letters to Lucilius. Seneca advises Lucilius that he himself once made a mistake of assuming one of his family members would outlive him due to their age gap. Yet, Seneca did end up outliving him. Seneca fell into great despair because he had never allowed himself to think about the possibility that things could befall his family in this way.
Seneca, the one who preaches the importance of premeditatio malorum, anticipation of adversity, didn’t take his own advice.
Death is a natural part of life and we must understand that it can happen to us or our loved ones at any time. Understanding this helps us to better put into perspective our current moment — the present moment — which is truly all we have.
As Marcus says, imagine yourself as dead. Now realize you’re not. What are you going to do with that gift?
We send a Stoic meditation every Monday morning directly to your inbox. To sign up to receive our Monday Meditations, click here.
Some links contained herein are Amazon affiliate links. Click here for disclosure.