Selected Passage — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book IV
“If thou art pained by any external thing, it is not this thing that disturbs thee, but thy own judgment about it. And it is in thy power to wipe out this judgment now.”
—Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book IV, translated by George Long
The Influence We Have on How We Handle Adversity
According to Marcus Aurelius, people have a great deal of control over the meaning they give to situations and how they choose to react to them, even though they cannot control every situation they come across. This passage's deeper meaning does not imply that suffering, loss, or adversity are unreal. Instead, Aurelius asks the reader to distinguish between an occurrence and the conclusions we draw about it. We can build resilience, emotional self-control, and a greater feeling of personal accountability by learning to manage our reactions rather than letting events control us.
Aurelius's use of the term "external thing" is the first significant element of the passage. Situations outside of our direct control are referred to as external things. Loss, rejection, illness, financial struggle, other people's actions, and unforeseen life upheavals are all situations that a person cannot always avoid. People are inherently drawn to control because it gives them a sense of security. But a lot of things in life don't go as planned. Aurelius acknowledges this fact and shifts focus from attempting to control all that occurs to managing what is still under our control.
The core of Stoic philosophy is this distinction. Aurelius is not saying that unpleasant experiences are unimportant. Genuine suffering can result from a loved one's death, illness, or other significant adversity. When we realize that he is discussing what happens after the incident, his argument gains greater significance. Although we can't always control the circumstances, we can analyze the inferences we make.
When someone fails, for instance, they may come to the conclusion that they are a failure. An occurrence is described in the first section, and it is transformed into a personal identification judgment in the second. Aurelius would advise the person to keep those concepts apart. A failure does not necessarily determine a person's value or future, even though it may be frustrating and have repercussions. The person is still capable of learning, adapting, and making future decisions.
Aurelius's claim that humans have the ability to "wipe out" a judgment is given more significance by this concept. He is talking about the capacity to reevaluate how we perceive the situation. Sometimes people accept their initial emotional response as an indisputable truth. Aurelius challenges us to consider the reasonableness of our interpretation. This calls for self-awareness because altering a judgment does not entail making something unpleasant seem good. It entails avoiding to inflict needless suffering by holding views like "My life is over," "Nothing will ever improve," or "This experience defines me."
Additionally, the paragraph makes clear that resilience is not only a psychological characteristic but rather an active process. Even a resilient person can feel fear, rage, despair, and disappointment. The distinction is that those feelings don't have to define reality indefinitely. Recognizing what has occurred while accepting that the event will not have total control over what transpires next is a key component of resilience.
Those who have gone through challenging situations in their early years may find this ideology very potent. The family situations we are born into, the losses we endure, and many of the difficulties we face throughout our lives are not something we choose. However, depending in part on how we react to those events, they may ultimately take us in different ways. Although adversity might lead to resentment, it can also foster compassion. Failure can teach perseverance, but it can also lead to despair. Pain can make someone distance themselves from other people or make it easier for them to identify another person's suffering.
Thus, Aurelius's argument conveys a crucial lesson regarding accountability. We have an obligation to consider our judgments if they are under our control. This does not imply that people should be held accountable for their emotional suffering. Rather, it empowers people. Saying "You caused your suffering" and "You still possess choices about what you do with what happened" are two very different things. While the second can be powerful, the first can be harsh.
Additionally, the passage has significant ramifications for our social interactions. We might be less quick to pass judgment on others if we realize that everyone is reacting to situations that we may not fully comprehend. A person may be reacting to an experience that is invisible to us if they seem angry, withdrawn, irritated, or fearful. Therefore, stoic self-discipline shouldn't result in a lack of empathy. Rather, by comprehending our own internal conflicts, we can become more conscious of the fact that others are also struggling with internal issues.
This idea is particularly pertinent to the medical field. Patients frequently enter hospital settings when they have lost a lot of control. They can be dealing with a new diagnosis, pain, uncertainty, or anxiety. Sometimes a patient's reality cannot be altered by medical personnel. Not all diseases can be healed, nor can a diagnosis be easily removed. Professionals, however, have the power to affect a patient's sense of respect, knowledge, and support while confronting that truth. A person's feeling of dignity and hope can be restored by assisting them in realizing what is still within their control.
Additionally, misinterpreting Aurelius could be dangerous. If taken too literally, his comment could indicate that people should choose not to experience suffering or repress their emotions. The underlying philosophical meaning would be lost in that view. Emotional denial is not the same as emotional discipline. It is possible to accept grief without thinking that it has eliminated all chances for happiness in the future. Fear can be acknowledged and the next appropriate step can be taken. Pretending that adversity doesn't hurt is not a sign of strength.
Thus, "power" might be the most important word in the passage. Aurelius believes that each person has strength, especially in situations where the outside world seems overpowering. Opportunities can be lost, plans can be altered, suffering can occur, and individuals must adjust. However, there is still an interior space where a person can determine the meaning of an event and the next course of action.
In the end, Aurelius's chapter offers a disciplined resilience philosophy. Its fundamental idea is that since it is impossible to control everything around us, freedom does not result from doing so. Acknowledging what we own our opinions, decisions, values, and reactions leads to a more profound kind of freedom. We will unavoidably encounter situations in life that we would never pick, but those situations do not always define who we become. The capacity to think, rethink, and make decisions resides between what happens to us and what we do next. According to Aurelius, this capacity is among the most significant types of power that a person can have.
Reference
Aurelius, M. (1906). The thoughts of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (G. Long, Trans.). George Bell & Sons. (Original work written ca. 2nd century CE)