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 opinions of himself than on the opinions of others.
Marcus AureliusRead
Anything in any way beautiful derives its beauty from itself and asks nothing beyond itself. Praise is no part of it, for nothing is made worse or better by praise.
Interpretation
True beauty is inherent and does not require external validation or praise.
This quote by Marcus Aurelius reflects the idea that beauty is an intrinsic quality that does not rely on external appreciation or praise. It emphasizes that the true essence of beauty exists independently, and while praise can be nice, it does not enhance or diminish the inherent beauty of something. The pursuit of self-sufficiency in beauty suggests that we should appreciate things for what they are rather than seeking validation from others.
In practice
When giving a speech about the nature of art, you could cite this quote to emphasize the idea that true artistic beauty is self-contained.
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 opinions of himself than on the opinions of others.
You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.
Do not act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over you. While you live, while it is in your power, be good.
Vex not thy spirit at the course of things; they heed not thy vexation. How ludicrous and outlandish is astonishment at anything that may happen in life.
You don't have to turn this into something. It doesn't have to upset you. Things can't shape our decisions by themselves.
A man's worth is no greater than his ambitions.
What exists is a godly existence, a divine existence. God not as a person but as a presence certainly exists. But to understand that presence, you have to understand your own inner presence first, because it is from there that you can take off, it is from there that you can have the first glimpse of what godliness is. If you have not known yourself you will never know God.
Things outside you are projections of what's inside you, and what's inside you is a projection of what's outside. So when you step into the labyrinth outside you, at the same time you're stepping into the labyrinth inside.
What have I done? I've blundered my way through life. So I have my picture on the wall. The minute I die, that picture will start to yellow and fade and eventually be gone. Blown in the wind and become part of the molecular structure of something else. These things we see as "success," they're non-accomplishments.
The Sophists had this idea: Forget this idea of what's true or notβwhat you want to do is rhetoric; you want to be able to persuade the audience and have the audience think you're smart and cool. And Socrates and Plato, basically their whole idea is, "Bullshit. There is such a thing as truth, and it's not all just how to say what you say so that you get a good job or get laid, or whatever it is people think they want.
He saw all these forms and faces in a thousand relationships become newly born. Each one was mortal, a passionate, painful example of all that is transitory. Yet none of them died, they only changed, were always reborn, continually had a new face: only time stood between one face and another.
While football embarrassingly exposes the excesses of capitalism, the Olympic sports have been used to propagate the neoliberal mantra that success is simply a matter of hard work.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.