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October 10th

REVERENCE   AND JUSTICE

“Leave  the past    behind, let the grand   design  take    care    of  the future, and instead only    rightly guide

the present to  reverence   and justice.    Reverence   so  that    you’ll  love    what    you’ve  been    allotted,

for nature  brought you both    to  each    other.  Justice so  that    you’ll  speak   the truth   freely  and without

evasion,    and so  that    you’ll  act only    as  the law and value   of  things  require.”

—MARCUS AURELIUS,   MEDITATIONS,    12.1

ulus Gellius relates that Epictetus once said, “If anyone would take two words to heart and take
pains to govern and watch over themselves by them, they will live an impeccable and immensely
tranquil life. The two words are: persist and resist.” That’s great advice. But what principles should
determine what we persist in and what we ought to resist?
Marcus supplies that answer: reverence and justice. In other words, virtue.