Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 11.10

There is no nature that is inferior to art, for the arts imitate the natures of things. But if this is so, that Nature which is the most perfect and the most comprehensive of all natures, cannot fall short of the skill of art.

 Now all arts do the inferior things for the sake of the superior; therefore the Universal Nature does so too.

And, indeed, hence is the origin of justice, and in justice the other virtues have their foundation: for justice will not be observed, if we either care for middle things, those things indifferent, or are easily deceived and careless and changeable.

—Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 11.10 (tr Long)

There is an art to being fair, right, and decent, just as there is an art to all aspects of living well. Yet that art remains fully in the service of Nature, such that whatever we may desire must always exist within the whole and for the sake of the whole, never for one part at the expense of another. It is deeply comforting to know that morality is grounded in the very dignity of what things are, not merely in how convenient they may be at the moment.

Still, I need to be quite careful when I hear people appealing to justice, because they may well be speaking of something very different. For some, justice does not mean everyone giving and receiving what is rightfully due, but rather becomes giving only enough to receive what is most preferred. This is hardly just a play on words; it is the difference between respect and gratification as the measure of our lives.

The art of justice can easily become twisted into the utility of cleverness. I have come to recognize this whenever I see someone who would expect to be treated in a certain way, but will not treat others in that very same way.

Do you know the sort of person who demands to be forgiven for a mistake, but will cast blame whenever another makes a mistake? Do you know the sort of person who is always asking for sacrifice from you, but who never seems to sacrifice anything of himself? Do you know the sort of person who distinguishes between telling a lie on the one hand, and being caught telling a lie on the other? You already know quite well those who subvert Nature to their own sense of entitlement.

Understanding that justice is rooted in Nature herself, and not merely in appearance and convention, will change absolutely everything about how I go about living my life, and it will often require taking the path that is the not the easiest or the most pleasant. Justice, as the virtue that orders our relationship to others, in turn informs all the other virtues, such that no thought or action can ever really be considered separately from whether it works in harmony with the whole.

If I start ruling my life by what the Stoics often call “middle things” or “indifferent things” I have left justice far behind. It is my own virtue that is good for me, and my own vice that is bad for me. Now there are also all sorts of things in life, those in the middle, that are neither good nor bad in themselves, rather becoming good or bad by whether I guide them with character.

So it will in itself be neither good nor bad for me, and should therefore be indifferent to me, whether I am rich or poor, loved or hated, healthy or sick, and so on. As soon as I want these things for their own sake, and act toward them as my highest goal, I am far from being a just man. I am now only a man who follows what he most prefers, what strikes his fancy from a certain light, and what feels appealing at the time.

In all, I can ask myself: Am I acting to improve my own excellence, or just to improve my situation? Am I acting for the good of the whole, or am I supporting some of the parts while neglecting other parts? Am I correctly discerning what is good and bad from what is indifferent?

The scales are only balanced if these questions are answered rightly.

Written in 4/2009