Marcus Aurelius · 121–180 CE
Meditations 8.46 — Marcus Aurelius
Translation by George Long (1862)
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 8.46
Nothing can happen to any man which is not a human accident, nor to an ox which is not according to the nature of an ox, nor to a vine which is not according to the nature of a vine, nor to a stone which is not proper to a stone. If then there happens to each thing both what is usual and natural, why shouldst thou complain? For the common nature brings nothing which may not be borne by thee.
Cite this passage
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 8.46, tr. George Long (1862)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/meditations/8.46
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, tr. George Long (1862). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesWhatever happens to a person is simply a human experience, just as an ox or a vine only meets what belongs to its kind. If each thing meets what is usual and natural for it, there is nothing to complain about, and the universe never sends you more than you can bear.
Older wording
- “common nature”
- — the nature of the universe that governs all things
Themes and situations
- Acceptance and fate
- Adversity and hardship
- Resilience and endurance
- Nature and the cosmos
- A career setback
- Illness or diagnosis
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