How much trouble he avoids who does not look to see what his neighbour says.
Marcus Aurelius Meditations, Book IV, §18 (180 CE) Translated by Gregory Hays
Source checked by an editor
When and why it was written
- When
- Around 170 CE, in private notebooks written on campaign in the north.
- Why
- Marcus was emperor, surrounded by advisors, factions and gossip. These notes are him managing his own attention.
What it means
This is written by someone with an unusual amount of commentary directed at him, and it reads as relief rather than superiority.
The economy he notices is real: attention spent tracking what others say about you is attention unavailable for the work. He is not claiming indifference is virtuous. He is noticing how much trouble the alternative manufactures.
Read the source
Meditations, 180 CE
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Your turn
When did you compare yourself to others today?
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