In the noise of applause, the voice of truth is not heard | 5 minutes

In the noise of applause, the voice of truth is not heard | 5 minutes

In the next episode of "5 Minutes", you will learn how the Roman emperor thought more about how to control himself than others.

Marcus Aurelius lived in the 2nd century AD and was the ruler of the Roman Empire. Under his command, he had a vast state, a large army, and immense authority. His decisions affected the fate of many countries. It is easy, of course, for such a person to imagine himself as the eternal master of the world. However, he lived differently.

"Meditations" is not actually a book intended for others. The ruler wrote it as his personal reflections, notes to keep himself in check.

In this book, the emperor tries to restrain himself from anger. He reminds himself not to be overly attached to reputation. He reflects on not being dependent on the opinions of others. He frequently mentions the passage of time.

Imagine, the ruler of Rome does not present himself as a complete, perfect individual. On the contrary, he knows his shortcomings and admits them repeatedly. It is as if he is reminding himself that being an emperor does not excuse him from the duty of being a human being.

For example, he thinks a lot about anger. The people around him may not act according to his wishes, they may be ungrateful, speak rudely, or behave badly. But another person's mistake should not turn him into a bad person as well.

These thoughts are, of course, very familiar to most of us. For example, someone cuts us off in traffic, and our whole day is ruined. Someone speaks unfairly, and our mood changes. Someone disrespects us, and we want to respond in the same way. Aurelius, however, wants to say: control your own behavior before judging the behavior of another person. Because you do not have to punish yourself for someone else's mistake.

The emperor is very cautious about praise. He keeps flatterers and applauders away from himself. Believe me, the person who praises you to the skies today will bow to another leader tomorrow when they arrive. They might even express a completely different opinion about you. People's evaluation is changeable, and reputation is always helpless before time, he says.

Therefore, Aurelius tries not to make fame the ultimate goal of life. According to him, whether a person is good or bad should not be determined by how many people praise them. What are they doing, why are they doing it, and what kind of person is this work turning them into? That is what matters!