Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 8.49

Remember that the ruling faculty is invincible, when self-collected it is satisfied with itself, if it does nothing that it does not choose to do, even if it resist from mere obstinacy.

What then will it be when it forms a judgment about anything aided by reason and deliberately? Therefore the mind that is free from passions is a citadel, for man has nothing more secure to which he can fly for refuge and for the future be inexpugnable.

He then who has not seen this is an ignorant man; but he who has seen it and does not fly to this refuge is unhappy.

—Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 8 (tr Long)

My own uncanny ability to be quite a stubborn fellow, usually to my detriment, already tells me how powerful the mind and the will can be. If I insist that my thoughts and choices aren’t going to budge, they are most certainly not going to budge.

If I am just being obstinate, of course, I am acting from a base instinct to puff myself up, and I do so by standing against something, reveling in conflict and opposition. There may not be much, if any, thinking going on at all. It is the sort of strength that is quite brutal.

But now imagine if that sort of commitment is joined together with a love of wisdom, informed by conscience, and in the service of character. It can now become something distinctly human. Driven by virtue instead of vanity, love instead of lust, justice instead of anger, it no longer merely stands against something, but rather works in conjunction with the good in all things. It goes with the grain of Nature, not against it.

Take the sort of strength we see in being merely stubborn, and let it be put in the service of moral excellence. You now have a fortress that is truly unassailable.

Do I feel my passions running away with me? Am I shackled by resentment, jealousy, or greed to consume? Let sound judgment tame my passions, redirect them, and put them in their rightful place. My reason, which can discover meaning and purpose in all things, is my refuge from losing myself.

Do I feel overwhelmed by my circumstances? Am I convinced I can longer bear being hated, ignored, ridiculed, passed by, or abused? Let sound judgment temper my circumstances, accept them for what they are, and find what is good in each and every one of them. My reason, which can allow me to always depend only on the virtue that is within my power, is my refuge from whatever may happen to me.

I need not fear, despair, or surrender to my worst inclinations when I can find complete safety and contentment within myself. There should be no anxiety about losing what can’t be lost.

Written in 5/2008