In Meditations, we have Marcus Aurelius writing notes to himself about who he wanted to be, what he expected of himself. In Book X, he writes about how he never wants to be overheard complaining—not even to himself. In Book X, he talks about greeting death cheerfully, bravely, because what choice do we have?

But as we’ve said before, to talk about something is one thing, to do it is another. That’s what makes Marcus Aurelius so inspiring. Meditations is his private journal, one he never expected anyone to read. He could have complained to himself and gotten away with it—he had much to complain about—but the book is devoid of any such self-pity. When Marcus fell ill and neared death, it would have been perfectly common for him to be scared, to be sad, to be bitter. But we know from the historical record that he was brave. He cheered up his weeping friends. He thought only of preparing the empire for transition. He went peacefully to the other side. 

Yesterday, we talked about how Seneca wrote beautifully about Stoicism, but failed to live up to it. What makes Marcus Aurelius so impressive is that he did, more or less, live up to his beautiful writings. He didn’t just talk about his philosophy, he embodied it. In that, he is such an inspiring example. A call to us to follow in his footsteps. 

In Lives of the Stoics, we studied and wrote the life story of 26 of the most important Stoic philosophers. Did some of them fall short like Diotimus and Seneca? Yes. But for the most part, Marcus Aurelius was the rule and not the exception. Cleanthes lived Stoicism. So did Cato. So did Zeno. And so must you. Or at least, you must try.

Remember, Seneca said the goal of philosophy was to turn words into works. Even if he didn’t quite manage that himself, he’s right. To live up to these teachings, to turn their (and your) words into works? That’s what we’re trying to do here. That’s the greatness we are chasing. 

We’re very excited to announce that Lives of the Stoics is released today in all formats, and it’s available at all major online and brick and mortar retailers. We’re still offering all sorts of awesome bonus chapters and extra material—find out how to obtain those here. 

P.S. This was originally sent on September 30, 2020. Sign up today for the Daily Stoic’s email and get our popular free 7-day course on Stoicism.