GENIUS #1: Marcus Aurelius
A study on Marcus Aurelius, known for being emperor of Rome and a Stoic philosopher
Welcome to this edition of GENIUS: a study on the top intellectuals and creatives from modern history. In today’s newsletter, we’re profiling Marcus Aurelius, a benevolent and wise Roman emperor whose private thoughts helped shape the Stoic philosophy.
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus
121 - 180 AD
Background:
Marcus Aurelius ruled Rome from 161 to 180 AD, serving as the last of the Five Good Emperors (following Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius). Aurelius embodied the spirit of the Philosopher King: a ruler who did not illiberally seek power but rather used his platform to ameliorate the lives’ of his constituents, as articulated by Plato in Republic. Aurelius was unique in placing the needs of the common people before his desires or visions of glory.
“People exist for the sake of one another; teach them, then, or bear with them.”
Historical Accomplishments:
Aurelius enabled a culture of virtue with every Roman serving each other for the common good and supported free speech, the arts, and education as a means to stimulate wisdom within the empire. A man more suited for the Great Renaissance, Aurelius understood the value in funding and empowering these artistic expressions as a way of furthering society, ergo the World toward a brighter future.
Aurelius’ greatest gift to the world is his journal, Meditations, that serves as a framework to logically answer metaphysical and ethical questions like, why are we here, how should we live our lives, how can we ensure that we do what is right, without disturbing one’s peace and happiness. He understood that logos, which controls all things, is responsible for man’s destiny; however, the freedom to respond to circumstance is still governed by man. When a man fails to appreciate the true control of the universe, he suffers and makes emotional decisions to fix a non-existent wrong.
“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
What makes him a GENIUS:
As the ruler of Rome, Aurelius took advantage of his platform to spread Stoic virtues like wisdom, knowledge, patience, and moderation not only within his empire but into the world. The lasting takeaway for Stoicism is to think about the long-term consequences of acting on certain desires and asking ourselves whether they’re reasonable and balanced and whether they’re in our long-term interests, or if they’re perhaps harmful to indulge in too much. This holds extreme relevance in our current social media and ad-filled society that promotes constant short-sighted fulfillment. Thinking long-term is the best way to maintain a strong north-star, one that guides us towards our true happiness.
His commentary on humanity and our role within the natural order continues to inspire a selfless, optimistic future in which we all build for the greater good. This mantra continues to thrive in pockets of the scientific and technology communities as evidenced by scores of individuals sacrificing their livelihoods in the pursuit of breakthrough human advancement.
Renown leaders like Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King led multi-decade freedom movements, sacrificing through extended jail sentences, hunger fasts, and public humiliation to seek a life in service of others.
Entrepreneurs like Elon Musk shaping the electronic vehicle, global internet infrastructure, and space exploration industries at the expense of his personal life and downtime.
Astronauts like Scott Kelly and Mikhail Korniyenko spending almost a year aboard the ISS to study the health impact of long-term space flight.
Researchers stationed at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in Antarctica, conducting biological, ecological, and geological experiments in the coldest, driest, and most remote location on Earth.
Accepting that humans only possess second-order control in the natural world was a profound shift in philosophy. Humans have a strong desire for certainty and control. We like to believe we’re in the driver seat. Instead, Aurelius understood that humans can’t effectively control natural outcomes but can at least manage their responses in pleasant and painful environments. In today’s climate, in which we’re exposed to a new global tragedy every day, his words resonate deeply, “things happen to us, but what we can really control is the way that we respond to those things.”
Our lasting takeaway:
Not in recent memory has the leadership void from our political leaders seem so apparent. All over the world, political leaders are generally failing their citizens by avoiding the change needed to support 21st century needs like healthy food, clean water, non-pollutive energy sources, reliable internet, working toilets, and a functioning health care system. Instead of building next-gen infrastructure, modernizing our economic systems, and regulating access to basic human needs (see above), many global leaders still push fruitless diatribes rather than engage in thoughtful discussions for a shared future.
As Aurelius believed, nature determines our fate unemotionally. It will unleash plagues, famines, and natural disasters no matter how much we pray or engineer our way out of them. To lead in an uncompromising environment, Aurelius relied on optimism and wisdom to guide an empire throughout disasters. Humans understand that death and calamity surround us. However, a leader should provide hope and visions of a better tomorrow. Unfortunately, our leaders continue to manipulate our fear to cement their reign instead of empowering us all with hope for a more prosperous future. The keyword here is all.
If Aurelius were around today, I believe he would push our leaders to build long-term solutions that preserve the fabric of our societies. They must accept that while nature is queuing up more disruptions, some even more deadly than COVID, they have the agency to act at this moment to chart an optimistic path for the future. It’s like being the captain of a ship entering a terrible hurricane. You know there will be moments of hell battling an untamable storm, but with the right vision and guidance, you can rally the ship’s sailors to focus on the clear skies and endless treasure that await everyone at the far end of the horizon.
“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose and fell, and you can foresee the future too.”
Quotes / Life Lessons:
“Things happen to us, but what we can really control is the way that we respond to those things.”
“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
“People exist for the sake of one another; teach them, then, or bear with them.”
“The things you think about determine the quality of your mind. Your soul takes on the color of your thoughts. Color it with a run of thoughts like these: Anywhere you can lead your life, you can lead a good one. Lives are led at court – so then good ones can be.”
“If it is good to you, O Universe, it is good to me. Your harmony is mine. Whatever time you choose is the right time. Not late, not early. What the turn of your seasons brings me falls like ripe fruit. All things are born from you, exist in you, return to you.”
“Fear of death is fear of what we may experience: nothing at all or something quite new. But if we experience nothing, we can experience nothing bad. And if our experience changes, then our existence changes with it – change, but not cease.”
“What does not transmit light creates its own darkness.”
“The best revenge is not to be like your enemy.”
“I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others.”
“Be like the cliff against which the waves continually break; but it stands firm and tames the fury of the water around it.”
“When men are inhuman, take care not to feel towards them as they do towards other humans.”
“Remember two things: i. that everything has always been the same, and keeps recurring, and it makes no difference whether you see the same things recur in a hundred years or two hundred, or in an infinite period; ii. that the longest-lived and those who will die soonest lose the same thing. The present is all that they can give up, since that is all you have, and what you do not have you cannot lose.”
People try to get away from it all—to the country, to the beach, to the mountains. You always wish that you could too. Which is idiotic: you can get away from it anytime you like. By going within. Nowhere you can go is more peaceful—more free of interruptions—than your own soul. Especially if you have other things to rely on. An instant’s recollection and there it is: complete tranquillity. And by tranquillity I mean a kind of harmony. So keep getting away from it all—like that. Renew yourself. But keep it brief and basic.
“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose and fell, and you can foresee the future too.”
Further Readings:
http://classics.mit.edu/Antoninus/meditations.html
Sources:
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/marcus-aurelius/
https://fs.blog/intellectual-giants/marcus-aurelius/
https://www.ancient.eu/Marcus_Aurelius/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Aurelius
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/apr/25/stoicism-in-a-time-of-pandemic-coronavirus-marcus-aurelius-the-meditations
https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/how-marcus-aurelius-stoicism-can-help-on-the-job/