Marcus Aurelius · 121–180 CE
Meditations 6.57 — Marcus Aurelius
Translation by George Long (1862)
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 6.57
To the jaundiced honey tastes bitter, and to those bitten by mad dogs water causes fear; and to little children the ball is a fine thing. Why then am I angry? Dost thou think that a false opinion has less power than the bile in the jaundiced or the poison in him who is bitten by a mad dog?
Cite this passage
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 6.57, tr. George Long (1862)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/meditations/6.57
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, tr. George Long (1862). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesHoney tastes bitter to a sick person and a ball seems wonderful to a child, so perception depends on the condition of the one judging. Anger comes from a false opinion that distorts your view like an illness, so when you find yourself angry, suspect your own judgement before blaming the thing.
Older wording
- “jaundiced”
- — people with jaundice, a liver illness once thought to make honey taste bitter
- “bile”
- — a digestive fluid once believed to cause illness
- “mad dogs”
- — rabid dogs
Themes and situations
- Anger
- Judgements and impressions
- Emotions and the passions
- Insult and criticism
- Being angry with someone
- Everyday irritations
- Being criticised or insulted
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