From Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations":
“‘No soul (saith he) is willingly bereft of the truth,’ and by consequent, neither of justice, or temperance, or kindness, and mildness; nor of anything that is of the same kind. It is most needful that you should always remember this. For so will you be far more gentle and moderate towards all men.”
This reminds me of a favorite quote of mine: "Be kinder that necessary; everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle." There are so many different kinds of people in the world, and so many people live in very difficult circumstances. Whenever I encounter someone who seems lacking in "temperance, kindness, mildness", etc. as Aurelius points out, I try to remember that most people don't willingly choose to be that way. Most people aren't even conscious enough of their actions and words to direct them. Many people just react without thought. Their actions and their words flow from their inner dispositions. And to judge by the actions and words of some people, what's going on inside must be pretty dark. I always try to remember this when dealing with others. Many people are trapped inside themselves and can't escape their cycles of inner judgement and negativity.
So take it easy on somebody today. :) Cheers!
“‘No soul (saith he) is willingly bereft of the truth,’ and by consequent, neither of justice, or temperance, or kindness, and mildness; nor of anything that is of the same kind. It is most needful that you should always remember this. For so will you be far more gentle and moderate towards all men.”
This reminds me of a favorite quote of mine: "Be kinder that necessary; everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle." There are so many different kinds of people in the world, and so many people live in very difficult circumstances. Whenever I encounter someone who seems lacking in "temperance, kindness, mildness", etc. as Aurelius points out, I try to remember that most people don't willingly choose to be that way. Most people aren't even conscious enough of their actions and words to direct them. Many people just react without thought. Their actions and their words flow from their inner dispositions. And to judge by the actions and words of some people, what's going on inside must be pretty dark. I always try to remember this when dealing with others. Many people are trapped inside themselves and can't escape their cycles of inner judgement and negativity.
So take it easy on somebody today. :) Cheers!
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