Marco Aurelius (121–180 AD), who held the title of Imperator Caesar, was the last emperor of the Roman Empire's Five Wise Emperors and is also recognized as one of the greatest emperors of the Roman Empire.
He was highly accomplished in Greek and Latin literature, rhetoric, philosophy, law, and painting, especially in philosophy, and was one of the famous representatives of the Stoic School, known as the "Imperial Philosopher".
He insisted on dialogue with himself, and recorded his life's whispers and thoughts, named "Meditations". This two-thousand-year-old book of wisdom is not long, consisting of 12 volumes and more than 200 pages, most of which he wrote in Kurama Lawton.
Marco Aurelius's writing is rustic and unpolished, and you can find a lot of inspiration by flipping through it. His writing is not directed at a certain people, a certain class, or a certain gender, but directly to the heart, to our spirit and soul. This is an imperial codex of "three provinces and one body every day", a book about settling one's life, a masterpiece of settling the soul, and a philosophical self-examination book worth reading repeatedly by each of us.
Fedeman commented on the book in The Book Of a Lifetime: Meditations has an incredible charm, it is sweet, melancholy and noble. This book of gold bears the burden of being a human being with a solemn and indomitable spirit, and directly helps people to live a better life.
When the hustle and bustle occupy every corner of the world, when loneliness and contemplation become longing, it is all the more necessary for us to visit life and find the spiritual homeland from this immortal text that has traveled through thousands of years.
1 A book of the Emperor's Proverbs
The universe is fluid, life is opinion.
No matter what anyone does or says, I must be good, just as gold, emerald or purple robe always says: No matter what a person does or says, I must still be an emerald, keeping my color.
I belong to a ruler, a father, who can take all the arrogance from me, and bring me the knowledge that one can live in a palace that does not require guards, delicacies, torches, statues, etc., and that one has the power to live a life of selfishness, without being mean to think inferiorly and act in a slack manner, but still to do what must be done in the public interest in a capacity commensurate with the ruler.
The body is simple, and the art of living is more like a gladiator than a dancer: that is, it should stand firmly, ready for a sudden attack.
What is evil? It's commonplace to you. Keep this in mind when everything happens: it's what you're used to. You will find the same thing everywhere, up and down, filling the history of the past times, the history of the middle ages, and the history of our time; and the cities and homes of the present.
Although you intend to live three thousand years, tens of thousands of years, remember that what anyone has lost is not another life, but only the life he is living now; no one is living any other life, but only the life he has lost.
Pay attention to the hearts of those who seek fame and observe who they are, what they avoid, what they pursue. Think of the pile of sand that has accumulated to bury the sand of the past, so that the things that go first in life are quickly covered up by the things that come later.
Is anyone afraid of change? But what can happen but there is no change? How can the nature of the universe be made more pleasurable or more suitable for it? Firewood does not undergo a change can you take a bath? Doesn't food go through a change that you can get nourishment? Can anything else useful be formed without changes? Don't you see that for you, as much as for the nature of the universe, there is a need for change?
Since we love ourselves more than all other people, why should we value other people's opinions about ourselves more than our own opinions about ourselves?
This is an ancient Roman Analects, a proverb written by the emperor, a model for dealing with the world, and a sutra for self-respect. Every time you and I can read something different from it. But what doesn't change is to keep your heart.
2 A soul of Tao Yuanming trapped under the emperor's body
"Don't let anyone hear any more of your dissatisfaction with court life or your own life," the book inhabits a melancholy soul.
The quagmire of ideal life and reality, noble philosophy and despicable politics, misunderstanding and betrayal, accusation and attack, Aurelius can only breathe in philosophical contemplation.
"Meditations" is a sentimental work, and this sentimentality is hidden behind the text of the desire for an ideal life. Although Aurelius described the philosophy of the heart in a rational manner and guided life with eternal morality, life could not be fully integrated into the ideal track after all. He stood at the crossroads of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, in every direction, sunset.
Russell said of him, "Marco Aurelius was a miserable man, and of the series of desires to resist, he found the most attractive of which was the desire to retire to a peaceful rural life. But the opportunity to realize this desire has never come."
When the unchangeable reality keeps us suffocated, what man has to do is to follow his own nature, "to keep himself simple, kind, pure, serious, unpretentious, to love justice, to worship the gods, to be kind, to be gentle, to devote himself to all proper deeds."
In times of torment, retreating into our own small territory, tranquility is nothing more than the orderliness of the mind.
"Everything you see will decay rapidly, and those who witnessed its decomposition will soon die. Those who live the longest will be taken to the same place as those who died prematurely. A thousand years later, a soul's repeated murmurs of the self are still worth pondering.
Ancient Greek civilization is a civilization that "looks up at the stars", as the cradle of Western civilization, known for its beautiful myths and legends, noble and elegant Olympia Athletics, profound fate tragedies and philosophical ideas full of wisdom; ancient Roman civilization is a civilization that "embraces the earth", and it is precisely such a feature that makes Rome slightly inferior to the Greek civilization of "looking up at the stars" in philosophy, art, etc., but has achieved higher achievements than Greece in military, civil and other aspects.
The Romans used wolf nature, force, tenacious spirit and indomitable fighting spirit to create the ancient Rome that lasted for 2214, and made great contributions to the world in terms of decrees, politics, art, civilization, construction, science and technology, religion and so on. The rapid rise and quiet decline of the Roman Empire, which began in the 8th century BC, gave profound historical enlightenment to future generations, and also left a rich cultural heritage for Western civilization. Among them, the rise and fall, the vicissitudes of honor and disgrace, and still have profound lessons and enlightenment.
October 23-24
Guangzhou | University City
Through the two-day and 12-hour offline course "Course of Western Culture", Professor Zhao Lin is invited to embark on a journey of Western culture with you, along the rise and fall of ancient Roman civilization, to explain the rise and fall of the Roman Empire at one time, and let the wisdom of ancient civilization look at the future.
Lecturer
Professor Zhao Lin has studied Western philosophy and Western culture for more than 30 years, and is a well-known cultural person at home and abroad. He was the first person to speak about philosophy on the "Hundred Pulpits" and one of the four "famous mouths" of Wuhan University. At Wuhan University, Zhao Lin often talked about philosophy as an unpopular subject, and the scene was even more popular than the general public elective course. Wuhan University has a saying: "Not taking Zhao Lin's class is equivalent to not attending Wuhan University."
Why study "Ancient Greek and Roman Civilization"
How has Western civilization affected the world?
How will the new world order be reshaped?
How does China talk to the world? How does the world become a community, and where does it go?
"We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, our religions, have their roots in Greece. —Shelley
Westerners must call it Greece, how much influence did ancient Greek and Roman civilization have on the West?
Teacher Zhao Lin takes you into the rise and fall of ancient Greek civilization, refreshes your logic, and subverts your cognition.
You will reap the rewards
1 time to trace the roots, understand the underlying logic of Western culture;
700+ minutes of luxurious volume, build system cognition;
At the same time, you can:
1. Learn to see the world at a macro level
Take you to explore why a heroic Europe is difficult to unify.
2. Sort out the context of ancient Greek civilization
From the Golden Age to the Black Iron Age, the logic behind the origin, development and decline of each era of ancient Greek and Roman civilization. Why the origins of European civilization, the roots of Western law, literature, religion, and art are all in Greece.
3.Lay the foundation for studying Western philosophy
Ancient Greek philosophy represents the highest level of Western philosophy and helps you to understand the thoughts of at least 6 great philosophers, such as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Pythagoras, Heraclitus, Epicurus, etc.
4. Friends come from afar
Face-to-face Q&A with philosophy celebrities, meet more like-minded philosophers, and if you have questions about business management, seek resource sharing, and Bo Yan Education alumni will answer them for you.
Enrollment benefits
1. Limited time early bird price, only 990 / person, including buffet lunch (until October 21)
2. Register now, and the event site will give a copy of Zhao Lin's "Traditions and Evolution of Western Culture"
3. Small philosophical and learning fans meet and communicate (optional)
Tips
1. The registration time is closed at 14:00 on October 23, and the class time is 9:00 a.m. on October 24;
2. The Bo yan class is serious, and children under the age of 18 should not be brought into the classroom;
3. Please fill in the form after paying the fee and leave your contact information to facilitate the staff to contact;
4. For any questions, please add a small assistant WeChat to answer questions
Click to register now