natural rhythm
"To work against one another therefore is to oppose Nature, and to be vexed with another or to turn away from him is to tend to antagonism." (10)
This reminds me of Mencius' ideals on maintaining social harmony and going with the universe's natural rhythm.
"Be sober without effort." (28) - wu wei!
one life to live, with purpose
We only have one life to live, it may be brief, it may be long so live it to its fullest. Live in the present moment. Live is ephemeral (30). Very much based in materialism like Lucretis.
reason and passion
Our ability to reason distinguishes us from animals. We use reason to control our passions. Reason creates virtue. Passions/desires like wealth, power, material things are fleeting and unimportant. Self control is key. MA very methodically reasons out that the processes in life like aging, death, etc. are inevitable and so we should accept them instead of fighting or fearing them (very Epicurean (Lucretius)) - mitigating anxiety and fear in life. Disease, aging, etc. neither good nor evil. It is just part of the natural rhythm of life. Celebrates the rhythms of life.
oneness with the universe/duties
We are all interconnected to all humans and the whole universe. We have social duties to each other and thus we must work with each other. We must do our assigned duties in life. Very much like Krishna's counsel. Perhaps this is MA's way of reconciling all the war that has been going on under his reign. (What of Obama in today's context?)
One consciousness (31) - very much Krishna ("I am in everything"). A very Hindu/Buddhist idea in which the interconnectedness of life is emphasized - perhaps a teaching on why we should respect our environment instead of conquering it.
way of life
Philosophy guides you life but you must have the will (heart - Mencius) to conduct action. Philosophy as a way of life (a lifelong commitment). look within when you are not on the right path. do not worry about what others think, rather observe and correct yourself (through reason). Must calm, give peace to mind, not body. Look to positive examples for inspiration (53).
divinity
"And this deity is each man's mind and reason" (41) - like Krishna or the 'Buddha within'. The concept of divinity in Meditations appears less mystical than that in Hinduism or Buddhism. I think each concept conveys the same ideas, just in different forms.
materialism
Reasoning must be grounded in empiricism/facts (45) and logic (70). Change is constant and normal (59).
It's interesting that Nixon and Obama were mentioned in class. Perhaps I am cynical.. While I 'get it' that Aurelius did not seem to be a stereotypical power hungry ruler nor was he born into power. None the less, he was a ruler and he chose a life of the elites. He chose to defend the Roman empire, to war with other empires seeking to maintain or expand their territories. Mencius defends a punitive war and this seems to be the case for Aurelius. As such, Aurelius is seen to be doing his necessary duties to his kingdom yet at the same time, was war/defence really the necessary option? Did he really have to send thousands of men to die to uphold an empire? Were other solutions not possible? Did he contemplate the ethics of him defending territories that were 'won' through expansionist violence? I am asking rhetorical questions, of course... and I speak from a pacifist point of view. But I can't help but wonder, did Aurelius really want to be a philosopher but landed in the role of a warring emperor instead? I get the sense that this may be partially true and his writings may have scribed the way they were so that he would be remembered as a good philosopher rather than as an effective ruler.
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