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Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. Philosophical views of M. Aurelius Philosophical views of Marcus Aurelius

Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. Philosophical views of M. Aurelius Philosophical views of Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius - Emperor of the Roman Empire (161-180) and the last representative of the Stoic school of philosophy. In the history of world philosophy it is hardly possible to find two functions - the emperor and the philosopher - merging in one person.

Marcus Aurelius was born in 121 into a wealthy patrician family. At an early age he lost his father. His grandfather becomes Mark's main educator. The formation of character was influenced by the mother. “To Grandfather Vera,” wrote Marcus Aurelius, “I owe balance and gentleness; to the glory of memory – modesty and courage; to my mother – piety, generosity and abstinence not only from bad deeds, but also from bad thoughts, and moreover, a simple way of life, far from from all love of luxury." From a young age, Marcus Aurelius gained an understanding of the duties of a ruler, the rights and freedom of citizens, and the outstanding political figures and philosophers of his time. He received a good family education. He was particularly influenced by the Stoic philosopher. Under the influence of the teacher, Mark began to accustom himself to a harsh lifestyle.

In 138 Mark was engaged to Faustina, daughter of Emperor Anthony Pius, and in 145 their marriage was formalized. Thus, he becomes heir to the throne. Faustina was a beautiful but dissolute woman. She often chose gladiators and sailors as lovers. When friends advised Mark to divorce his wife, he replied: “If I divorce my wife, then I will need to return her dowry, that is, the future imperial power.”

The emperor brought Marcus Aurelius closer to governing the state. Another adopted son of the emperor, Lucius Verus, laid claim to the imperial throne. In 161, Emperor Antony Pius died, and power passed to Marcus Aurelius. Lucius Verus became his co-ruler. Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus were people of different types: Marcus was modest, strong-willed, decent, sympathetic, and Lucius Verus was licentious, selfish, and arrogant. However, they got along, ruled the empire together and carried out military campaigns. Marcus Aurelius spent almost half of his reign on campaigns with his warriors, who loved him and were ready to give their lives for him.

Co-ruler Lucius Verus died in 169. Marcus Aurelius became the absolute ruler of the empire. During this period, his relationship with his son Commodus did not develop. By nature, the son was the direct opposite of his father: hot-tempered, arrogant, treacherous.

During his campaigns, Marcus Aurelius made his philosophical notes, which after his death were published under the title “Alone with Oneself.”

What are the main provisions of the teachings of Marcus Aurelius? Marcus Aurelius is a representative of late Stoicism. It is known that the Early Stoa divided its philosophy into three sections: physics (the study of nature), logic (the study of thinking and knowledge) and ethics (the study of man and society). The Late Stoa (Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius) focused its main attention on ethics, and in ethics - on the problem of man, on the problem of the meaning of life.

Like all the Stoics, Marcus Aurelius believed that there is an eternal nature, which is a fusion of matter and the world soul. Nature is animated. The world soul is the Heraclitian logos. In nature, everything is interconnected, everything develops under the direction of logos. Logos, the world soul, is God. God is not the creator of nature. God is the ruler of nature. There is an endless cause-and-effect relationship in nature, in space. In this sense, fate and fate should be understood. All processes bear the stamp of fate. Fate is the world order pre-established by God, or Logos. Consequently, a person inscribed in this world order must live in accordance with nature. Man is one of the manifestations of this single whole.

Man, Marcus Aurelius believed, is a complex entity. All the components of living space merged in it. In a person, one should first of all distinguish the body, soul and mind. The body is a combination of fire, water, air and earth. This combination allows the body to have the properties of perceiving and feeling. Death destroys this combination, and the destroyed human body merges into the general material mass of nature. The human soul is a particular manifestation of the world soul or pneuma. The soul is the vital force of a person, performing in the human body the same function that the fire-breathing pneuma or world soul performs in nature. After the death of a person, his soul merges with the world soul. Reason is the “I” of a person, a person’s conscience, his “inner genius.” Reason is a particle of the world mind. The world mind and the mind of man are the guiding principle.

Nothing, Marcus Aurelius argued, that usually causes pleasure and pain in people (wealth and poverty, fame and dishonor, life and death) can be assessed in terms of good and evil, since they fall to the lot of both the worthy and the unworthy . From his point of view, only those who discard vain aspirations for external goods act truly rationally and morally, stand above passions and consider everything that happens as a manifestation of the world cosmic law. Although Marcus Aurelius talks a lot about man's duties to society, about the need to be devoted to the common good, his ethics are deeply individualistic. The main meaning of human life lies in the desire for moral improvement. How to achieve this? We must withdraw into ourselves. We must engage in spiritual self-education every day. You need to constantly talk to yourself in your free hours. Through self-education, a person can become courageous, honest, noble, respectful, resistant to adversity, modest in wealth and luxury, devoted to the interests of society and the state.

Conclusion

List of sources used

INTRODUCTION

Philosophy, especially in Ancient Rome, has always been revered, therefore its branching into different schools, the emergence of new directions, in each of which new ideas appeared, created the power of philosophizing that almost no one, especially the Romans, could do without.

In ancient Rome, the development of Hellenistic schools arose, the directions of which were so influential on history that they gave the world a number of famous personalities. In one of the directions of the Hellenistic schools, Stoicism, such a cult personality was Antoninus Marcus Aurelius, who in turn was the last representative in this direction. As for the very emergence of Stoicism, its founder was Zeno, who arrived from Cyprus in the 4th century BC, and developed this direction long before the moment when the complete collapse of this direction occurred and which would go away forever after the death of Marcus Aurelius.

Philosophy itself occupied a very important place in the Roman Empire and had a special influence on the life and culture of the Romans. The influence of the philosophy of Ancient times on man and the entire society in Rome meant fulfilling the function of religion and instruction. Since religion continued to protect and sanctify this state order, it was concentrated in the cult of the personalities of the emperors. But just as any Emperor of the Greek world of one time or another, based on philosophy, received that knowledge, honoring which in his further actions, he acted wisely, and then for all the actions that he committed, he was awarded honor, respect, recognition, then such actions were truly worthy of a ruler. This was the Emperor Marcus Aurelius.

Marcus Aurelius

Antoninus Marcus Aurelius (121-180), from the Antonin dynasty, was the last Stoic philosopher, whose philosophy could be considered as the last completion of ancient Stoicism and at the same time its complete collapse. From 161 to 180 Roman Emperor and conqueror who expanded the borders of the Roman Empire.

Marcus Annius Verus, who later became, after Antoninus adopted him, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, was born in 121, in Rome, into a wealthy patrician family. His father died at a very young age, and the main concern for the upbringing of Marcus fell on his grandfather Annius Verus, who was twice consul, and, apparently, enjoyed the favor of the Emperor Hadrian, who was distantly related to him.

Marcus Aurelius was always imbued with a feeling of gratitude to the people to whom he considered himself indebted.

Mark was educated at home and as a child fell under the influence of his main teacher, a Stoic. This teacher was the Stoic Lucius Junius Rusticus. But on the other hand, he also had the opportunity to receive a philosophical education from Diognetus, under whose influence Marcus Aurelius had the opportunity to sleep on bare boards, covering himself with animal skin; From the same Diognetus, Mark learned painting. He also improved his education under the guidance of the sophist (from Greek - sage) Herodes Atticus, the Platonists (followers of the Platonist) Alexander and Sextus of Chaeronea, the peripatetic (follower of Aristotle) Claudius Severus, the Stoic Apollonius of Chalcedon. In Smyrna he listened to the sophist Aelius Aristides, but the main thing for him was still Lucius Junius Rusticus.

Fascinated by Stoicism, Mark would become the greatest admirer and admirer of the philosophy of Epictetus. Apparently, therefore, over time, only two outstanding personalities in Roman Stoicism will be named - these are Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius, the latter who learned the importance of philosophical thoughts written by the Stoic Epictetus, realizing from his notes that it was necessary to correct and heal his character. Marcus Aurelius was even glad that, due to his acquaintance with Epictetus’s notes, he did not turn into sophistry, into the analysis of syllogisms, and did not study extraterrestrial phenomena. Moreover, he was glad that he did not believe the tales of sorcerers and wizards, setting philosophy as his goal.

Marcus Aurelius, because of his love for Stoic philosophy, remained an adherent of it until the end of his days. His extraordinary abilities were soon noticed, and the ruling emperor Antoninus Pius, believing that he did not have long to live, adopted Mark, who was his nephew, gave him the family name Antoninus and began to prepare his adopted son to take the reins of government into his own hands. However, Antonin lived longer than expected, and therefore Mark became the head of the state only in 161.

Marcus Aurelius was distinguished by his unselfishness, despised denunciations, successfully fought wars, and ruled the provinces with kindness. He established several philosophical schools in Rome, bringing famous philosophers of that time closer to the palace. In Athens, he founded four departments of philosophy, corresponding to each direction - academic, peripatetic (meaning learning while walking with the followers of Aristotle, who created logic), Stoic and Epicurean.

The brewing crisis of the Roman Empire determined the specificity of the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. In his interpretation, Stoicism finally loses its materialistic features and takes on a religious-mystical character. God for Marcus Aurelius is the primal principle of all things; this is the world mind in which all individual consciousness dissolves after the death of the body. His ethics are characterized by fatalism, preaching humility and asceticism. He calls for moral improvement and purification through the very deepening and knowledge of the fatal necessity that rules the world.

Marcus Aurelius expressed his philosophical thoughts in the form of aphorisms in a single work - “To Himself.” In the essays “To Myself” (in Russian translation - “Alone with Myself”, 1914; “Reflections”, 1985) a picture of a world governed by the providence of nature (identified with God) is painted, and human happiness is understood as life in harmony with nature.

The philosophy of Marcus Aurelius had a great influence on Christianity, although the emperor himself brutally persecuted Christians.

And, despite the fact that the Stoics gave away a whole series of their ideas that were consonant with Christianity, they themselves remained pagans, and at the same time, they persecuted Christians, not suspecting that all this could not help but affect such kinship. And perhaps the deepest kinship between Stoicism and Christianity should be sought not in the coincidence of individual thoughts and statements, but in that self-deepening of the individual at which the history of Stoicism ended and the history of Christianity began.

The revolution accomplished by the Stoics in philosophy can be called the fact that the indifferent attitude of the Stoic sage to the world around him (including the social one) penetrates more deeply into the innermost depths of his own “I”, thus revealing in his personality a whole universe previously completely unknown and inaccessible to him. In the “Meditations” of Marcus Aurelius, the maximum depth of self-awareness and devotion accessible to ancient man was apparently achieved. Without this discovery of the “inner world” of man, accomplished by the Stoics, the victory of Christianity would hardly have been possible. Therefore, Roman Stoicism can be called, in a certain sense, as a consideration of the “preparatory school” of Christianity, and the Stoics themselves as “seekers of God.”

MAIN IDEAS OF MARCUS AURELIUS

The universe is governed by the mind that is God

In a rationally ordered universe, everything that happens is not only necessary, but also good.

Human happiness lies in living in harmony with nature and reason.

Although an individual's actions are causally determined, he achieves freedom by acting rationally.

The bad actions of others do not harm us; rather, we are harmed by our opinions about these actions.

All sentient beings are subject to the law of nature and are thus citizens of a universal state.

A rational individual should not be afraid of death, since it is a natural event of life.

WORLDVIEW OF MARCUS AURELIUS

Marcus Aurelius deals exclusively with ethical problems and is very far from any logic, physics and dialectics. After all, the task is not to explore the depths of the earth and underground, but to communicate with the inner “I” and honestly serve it.

The philosophy of Marcus Aurelius arose from a feeling of constant struggle with the outside world, with thoughts within oneself, taking all the vicissitudes of fate for granted.

For Marcus Aurelius, for all his kindness and, on the contrary, the mood to fight, from the seemingly surging joy, sadness, or grief, these feelings were not reflected in any way on the expression of his face. This suggests that he can and should be called persistent, courageous, and that, among his army, during all the wars, he lost many who were close to him.

Because of this, Marcus Aurelius’s heightened sense of melancholy increases to an incredible degree the appeal to the deity and faith in divine revelation. One of the most remarkable aspects of the personality of Marcus Aurelius: he could not be further from any utopias and he consciously rejects them. Philosophy remains the law of life, but the philosopher must understand all the imperfections of human material, all the extreme slowness of people’s assimilation of the highest moral and intellectual truths, all the enormous power of resistance contained in historical life. The concept of fate presented a problem for Stoic philosophy. If, as Mark recognized, the universe is governed by reason and, because of this, everything that happens is definitely going to happen this way and not otherwise, then is there any room left for human freedom? Mark resolves this issue by making a subtle distinction. If we understand freedom as a choice between equally open alternatives, then such freedom, of course, does not exist. But freedom also has another meaning: to accept everything that happens as part of a good world order and to respond to events with reason, and not with emotions. An individual who lives in this way, Mark insists, is a truly free person. Such a person is not only free, but also righteous. Since the rationality of the universe is the basis of his goodness, everything that happens in the universe should only strengthen this goodness. Consequently, a rational person, accepting events, not only responds to external good, but also makes a personal contribution to the value of the world as a whole.

Mark was a theist, for he constantly speaks of God in terms that imply the existence of a good cosmic mind.

Another theological question that Mark devotes a lot of space to is the question of death and immortality. A reasonable person will not be afraid of death. Being a natural phenomenon, death cannot be evil; on the contrary, it participates in the good that is inherent in every natural phenomenon. After death we simply cease to exist.

Mark shares the Stoic theory of immortality. According to this view, the history of the cosmos develops not linearly, but cyclically. This doctrine is often called the doctrine of “eternal recurrence.”

Being rational beings, we are also subject to a higher law - the law of nature. This law applies to each of us, no matter what the society in which we live. According to natural law, all people are equal, whether you are an emperor, a slave, or anyone else. Therefore, it is true that, as rational beings, all people are members of one state, governed by the same laws. Mark’s famous thesis reads: “I am Antoninus, and my fatherland is Rome; I am a man, and my fatherland is the world.”

Particularly noticeable in the worldview of Marcus Aurelius is the Heraclitian characterization of existence: nature, like a river, is in continuous flow; in the nature of the whole, as if in a stream, all bodies move; eternity is a river of becomings; flow and change constantly rejuvenate the world, etc. The flow in which existence resides is circular. Up, down, in a circle the primary elements rush, writes Marcus Aurelius. The world is governed by certain circuits. From the cycle of existence it follows, firstly, that nothing dies, everything is reborn. Secondly, it follows that everything that happens has happened, will happen and is happening now.

Marcus Aurelius says the following about man: I am flesh, breath and the body, soul, mind that leads them; body - sensations, soul - aspirations, mind - principles. Man received all this from nature and therefore can be considered its creation. I consist of the causal and the material, says Marcus Aurelius. No one has anything of their own, but both your body and your very soul came from there. Everyone's mind is God and originates from there.

Thus, we can formulate another important principle of the moral instruction of Marcus Aurelius: to live under the guidance of reason and in accordance with it. It can further be reformulated into the position: live in harmony with nature, since for a rational being, what is done by nature, writes Marcus Aurelius, is also done by reason. It turns out that a person must live both according to his own nature and the general one. According to Marcus Aurelius, nature is the source of good life, since everything that is in accordance with nature is not evil.

According to Marcus Aurelius, it is natural for a person to do good, to do it instinctively, unconsciously, and not demand any rewards for it.

Marcus Aurelius, at the same time, recognized some unshakable values: “Righteous thoughts, generally useful activity, speech incapable of lies, and a spiritual mood that joyfully accepts everything that happens as necessary, as foreseen, as arising from a common principle and source.” Thus, the philosopher tragically combined courage and disappointment.

The Stoic ideal of the sage Marcus Aurelius expressed this way: “Be like a rock against which the waves are constantly striking: it stands, and the swollen waters around it do not subside.”

MARK AURELIUS Antoninus (April 26, 121, Rome - March 17, 180, Sirmium, Lower Pannonia), Roman emperor, representative of late Stoicism, author of philosophical "Reflections"

The main ideas of the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius include:

A deep personal respect for God;

Recognition of the highest world principle of God;

Understanding of God as an active material-spiritual force that unites the whole world and penetrates all its parts;

Explanation of all events happening around by Divine Providence;

Seeing as the main reason for the success of any government undertaking, personal success, the happiness of cooperation with Divine forces;

Separation of the external world, which is beyond human control. and the inner world, subject only to man;

Recognizing that the main reason for an individual's happiness is bringing his inner world into conformity with the outer world;

Separation of soul and mind;

Calls for non-resistance to external circumstances, for following fate;

Reflections on the finitude of human life, calls to appreciate and make the most of life’s opportunities;

Preference for a pessimistic view of the phenomena of surrounding reality.

“Reflections” (“To Himself”), written by Marcus Aurelius in Greek and found after his death in a camp tent (first published in 12 books in 1558 with a parallel Latin translation), formulate the Stoic views of this philosopher in brief, sometimes aphoristic statements on the throne: “The time of human life is a moment; its essence is an eternal flow; sensation is vague, the structure of the whole body is perishable; the soul is unstable, fate is mysterious; glory is unreliable. Everything related to the body is like a stream, everything related to the soul is a dream and smoke. Life - struggle and wandering in a foreign land. But what can lead to the path? Nothing but philosophy. To philosophize means to protect the inner genius from reproach and flaw, to ensure that it stands above pleasure and suffering..."

When reading the notes, one immediately notices the persistent theme of the frailty of all things, the fluidity of everything worldly, the monotony of life, its meaninglessness and worthlessness. The ancient world was collapsing, Christianity began to conquer the souls of people. The most enormous spiritual revolution deprived things of their ancient and seemingly eternal meaning. In this situation of revaluation of values, a person was born with a feeling of insignificance of everything that surrounded him.

Marcus Aurelius, like no one else, keenly felt the passage of time, the brevity of human life, and human mortality. “Look back - there is an immense abyss of time, look forward - there is another infinity.” Before this infinity of time, both the longest and the shortest life are equally insignificant. “In comparison, what is the difference between someone who has lived three days and someone who has lived three human lives?”

Marcus Aurelius was also acutely aware of the insignificance of everything: “Everyone’s life is insignificant, the corner of the earth where he lives is insignificant.” A vain hope to remain long in the memory of posterity: “The longest posthumous glory is also insignificant; it lasts only in a few short-lived generations of people who do not know themselves, let alone those who have long since died.” “What is glory? Sheer vanity." These examples of pessimism can be multiplied. The disappointment and fatigue of the emperor is the disappointment and fatigue of the Roman Empire itself, which bent and collapsed under the weight of its own immensity and power.

However, despite all the pessimism, the worldview of Marcus Aurelius contains a number of high moral values. The best things in life, the philosopher believes, are “justice, truth, prudence, courage.” Yes, everything is “sheer vanity,” but there is something in life that should be taken seriously: “Righteous thoughts, generally beneficial activities, speech incapable of lies, and a spiritual mood that joyfully accepts everything that happens as necessary, as foreseen, as arising from a common principle and source.”

Man, in the understanding of Marcus Aurelius, is threefold: he has a body - it is mortal, there is a soul - “a manifestation of life force” and there is a mind - the guiding principle.

The reason in man Marcus Aurelius calls him a genius, his deity, and therefore, one cannot insult a genius by “ever breaking a promise, forgetting shame, hating someone, suspecting, cursing, being a hypocrite, wishing for something that is hidden behind walls and castles." The philosopher calls on a person to throughout his life not allow his soul to descend to a state unworthy of a rational being called to citizenship. And when the end of life comes, “parting with it is as easy as a ripe plum falling: praising the nature that gave birth to it, and with gratitude to the tree that produced it.”

This is the right path that a person should follow. Only philosophy can help to find this path: “To philosophize means to protect the inner genius from reproach and flaw. To ensure that he stands above pleasure and suffering. So that there is no recklessness or deception in his actions, so that it does not concern him whether his neighbor does or does not do anything. So that he looks at everything that happens and is given to him as his destiny as if it stems from where he himself came from, and most importantly. So that he resignedly awaits death, as a simple decomposition of those elements from which every living being is composed. But if for the elements themselves there is nothing terrible in their constant transition into each other, then where is the reason for anyone to be afraid of their reverse change and decomposition? After all, the latter is in accordance with nature, and that which is in accordance with nature cannot be bad.”

Glossary:

Being- Objective reality (matter, nature), existing regardless of human consciousness or the totality of material conditions of society. Life existence.

Matter- objective reality, existence outside and independent of human consciousness. The basis (substrate) from which physical bodies are composed. The subject of speech and conversation.

Time- a form of coordination of changing objects and their states. One of the forms (along with space) of the existence of endlessly developing matter is the consistent change of its phenomena and states.

Movement- a way of existence of things. The form of existence of matter, the continuous process of development of the material world. Moving someone or something in a certain direction.

Form- devices, structure of something, system of organizing something.

Neoplatonism (Sufiyarova)

Marcus Aurelius was born in 121 into a wealthy patrician family. At an early age he lost his father. His grandfather becomes Mark's main educator. The formation of character was influenced by the mother. “To Grandfather Vera,” wrote Marcus Aurelius, “I owe my balance and gentleness; the glory of memory - modesty and masculinity; mother - by piety, generosity and abstinence not only from bad deeds, but also from bad thoughts, and moreover, a simple way of life, far from any love of luxury.” From a young age, Marcus Aurelius gained an understanding of the duties of a ruler, the rights and freedom of citizens, and the outstanding political figures and philosophers of his time. He received a good family education. He was particularly influenced by the Stoic philosopher. Under the influence of the teacher, Mark began to accustom himself to a harsh lifestyle.

During his campaigns, Marcus Aurelius made his philosophical notes, which after his death were published under the title “Alone with Oneself.”

Man, Marcus Aurelius believed, is a complex entity. All the components of living space merged in it. In a person, one should first of all distinguish the body, soul and mind. The body is a combination of fire, water, air and earth. This combination allows the body to have the properties of perceiving and feeling. Death destroys this combination, and the destroyed human body merges into the general material mass of nature. The human soul is a particular manifestation of the world soul or pneuma. The soul is the vital force of a person, performing in the human body the same function that the fire-breathing pneuma or world soul performs in nature. After the death of a person, his soul merges with the world soul. Reason is the “I” of a person, the conscience of a person, his “inner genius”. Reason is a particle of the world mind. The world mind and the mind of man are the guiding principle.

Emperor-philosopher: Marcus Aurelius

Our life is what we think about it.
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus.

The figure of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus is attractive not only to historians. This man won his fame not with the sword, but with the pen. Two thousand years after the death of the ruler, his name is pronounced with trepidation by researchers of ancient philosophy and literature, because Marcus Aurelius left invaluable wealth to European culture - the book “Reflections on Oneself,” which to this day inspires philosophers and researchers of ancient philosophy.

The path to the throne and to philosophy

Marcus Aurelius was born in 121 into a noble Roman family and received the name Annius Severus. Already in his youth, the future emperor received the nickname Most Just.

Very soon, Emperor Hadrian himself noticed him, calm and serious beyond his years. Intuition and insight allowed Adrian to guess the future great ruler of Rome in the boy. When Annius turns six years old, Adrian bestows on him the honorary title of horseman and gives him a new name - Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Verus.

At the dawn of his career, the future emperor-philosopher held the position of quaestor - assistant consul in the legal state archive.

At the age of 25, Marcus Aurelius became interested in philosophy, his mentor in this was Quintus Junius Rusticus, the famous representative of Roman Stoicism. He introduced Marcus Aurelius to the works of the Greek Stoics, in particular Epictetus. His passion for Hellenistic philosophy was the reason that Marcus Aurelius wrote his books in Greek.

In addition to philosophical notes, Marcus Aurelius wrote poetry, the listener of which was his wife. Researchers report that Marcus Aurelius’s attitude towards his wife was also unlike Rome’s traditional attitude towards a woman as a powerless being.

VIEN Joseph Marie
Marcus Aurelius Distributing Bread to the People (1765) Picardy Museum, Amiens.

Emperor-philosopher

Marcus Aurelius becomes Roman Emperor in 161, at the age of 40. The beginning of his reign was relatively peaceful for the Empire, which is perhaps why Emperor Marcus Aurelius had time not only for exercises in philosophy, but also for real affairs that mattered to the entire Roman people.

The state policy of Marcus Aurelius went down in history as an amazing attempt to create a “kingdom of philosophers” (here the Greek philosopher Plato and his “State” became the authority for Marcus Aurelius). Marcus Aurelius elevated prominent philosophers of his time to high government positions: Proclus, Junius Rusticus, Claudius Severus, Atticus, Fronto. One of the ideas of Stoic philosophy - the equality of people - is gradually penetrating into the sphere of public administration. During the reign of Marcus Aurelius, a number of social projects were developed aimed at helping the poor sections of society and education for low-income citizens. Shelters and hospitals are opened, operating at the expense of the state treasury. The four faculties of the Athens Academy, founded by Plato, also operated under the funding of Rome. During the years of civil unrest in the Empire, the Emperor decided to involve slaves in the defense...

However, the emperor was not understood by wide sections of society. Rome was accustomed to brutal gladiator fights in the Colosseum; Rome wanted blood, bread and circuses. The Emperor's habit of giving life to a defeated gladiator was not to the taste of the nobility of Rome. In addition, the status of emperor still required military campaigns. Marcus Aurelius had successful wars against the Marcomanni and Parthians. And in 175, Marcus Aurelius had to suppress a rebellion organized by one of his generals.

Sunset

Marcus Aurelius remained a lonely humanist among the Roman nobility, accustomed to blood and luxury. Although he also had suppressed uprisings and successful wars, Emperor Marcus Aurelius did not pursue fame or wealth. The main thing that guided the philosopher was the public good.

The plague came to the philosopher in 180. According to his doctor, before his death, Marcus Aurelius said: “It seems that today I will be left alone with myself,” after which a smile touched his lips.

The most famous image of Marcus Aurelius is a bronze statue of him on horseback. It was originally installed on the slope of the Capitol opposite the Roman Forum. In the 12th century it was moved to Piazza Laterana. In 1538, Michelangelo placed it on. The statue is very simple in design and composition. The monumental nature of the work and the gesture with which the emperor addresses the army suggests that this is a triumphal monument, erected on the occasion of victory, probably in the wars with the Marcomanni. At the same time, Marcus Aurelius is also depicted as a philosopher-thinker. He is wearing a tunic, a short cloak, and sandals on his bare feet. This is a hint at his passion for Hellenic philosophy.

Historians consider the death of Marcus Aurelius to be the beginning of the end of ancient civilization and its spiritual values.

Bronze. 160-170s
Rome, Capitoline Museums.Illustration ancientrome.ru

Marcus Aurelius and Late Stoicism

What are the services of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius to world philosophy?

Stoicism is a philosophical school created by Greek thinkers: Zeno of Citium, Chrysippus, Cleanthes in the 4th century BC. The name "Stoa" (stoá) comes from the "Painted Portico" in Athens, where Zeno taught. The ideal of the Stoics was the imperturbable sage, fearlessly facing the vicissitudes of fate. For the Stoics, all people, regardless of family nobility, were citizens of a single cosmos. The main principle of the Stoics was to live in harmony with nature. It is the Stoics who are characterized by a critical attitude towards themselves, as well as the search for harmony and happiness within themselves, regardless of external circumstances.

Among the Greek Stoics, Epictetus, Posidonius, Arrian, and Diogenes Laertius are famous. Roman philosophy dating back to the late Stoa, besides Marcus Aurelius, names the famous Seneca.

As illustrations, we can cite a number of quotes that will allow us to feel the strength of spirit of the only philosopher emperor in the history of Rome. It should be remembered that the author in his writings addresses himself primarily to himself. Stoicism as a whole cannot be called a moralizing teaching, although it appears so at first glance. However, the Stoic considered it his duty to begin changes with himself, so the notes of Marcus Aurelius are closer to a personal diary than to a teaching.

Nothing happens to anyone that he cannot bear.
The most despicable form of cowardice is self-pity.
Perform every task as if it were the last in your life.
Soon you will forget about everything, and everything, in turn, will forget about you.
Change your attitude towards the things that bother you, and you will be safe from them.
Do not do what your conscience condemns, and do not say what is not in accordance with the truth. Observe this most important thing and you will complete the whole task of your life.
If someone insulted me, that’s his business, that’s his inclination, that’s his character; I have my own character, the one that was given to me by nature, and I will remain true to my nature in my actions.
Does it matter if your life lasts three hundred or even three thousand years? After all, you live only in the present moment, no matter who you are, you only lose the present moment. We cannot take away either our past, because it no longer exists, or our future, because we do not have it yet.