Marcus Aurelius · 121–180 CE
Meditations 11.29 — Marcus Aurelius
Translation by George Long (1862)
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 11.29
Neither in writing nor in reading wilt thou be able to lay down rules for others before thou shalt have first learned to obey rules thyself. Much more is this so in life.
Cite this passage
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 11.29, tr. George Long (1862)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/meditations/11.29
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, tr. George Long (1862). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesYou cannot lay down rules for others, in reading and writing or, even more so, in life, until you have first learned to follow rules yourself.
Themes and situations
- Learning and progress
- Self-discipline and habit
- Leadership and power
- Virtue and character
- Leading others
- Parenting
Quote cards
The opening line of this passage as an image, with its citation — for sharing or keeping.