Marcus Aurelius Meditations
Marcus Aurelius: For if thou shalt not be sensible of…
For if thou shalt not be sensible of thine innocence; if that also shall be gone from thee, the comfort of a good conscience, that thou doest all things according to reason: what shouldest thou live any longer for? All things that now thou seest, are but for a moment.
The passage follows a public-domain translation of Meditations. The reading beside it is ours.
A good conscience is not a small comfort. It is one of the main reasons life remains worth living through uncertainty and loss. Marcus asks what would be left if you could no longer know that you had tried to live rationally and honorably. Everything visible is brief: possessions, praise, beauty, even the people around us. That is why the invisible record you keep with yourself matters so much. Can you meet your own eyes after the decision? Did you do what you believed was right, even when it cost you? A clear conscience does not require perfection. We make mistakes, apologize, repair, and learn. It requires refusing to betray your deepest standards for convenience or approval. Today, protect that inner peace more carefully than your image. You may not control how others interpret your life, but you can make your conduct something you do not need to hide from.
Related passages
- Marcus Aurelius As for that which is truly good, what can it stand in need of more than either justice or truth; or more than either…
- Marcus Aurelius Continue then to take notice of it, as thou hast begun, and whatsoever thou dost, do it not without this proviso, that…
- Marcus Aurelius Let us do our best endeavours to persuade them; but however, if reason and justice lead thee to it, do it, though they…