《沉思录·卷六·宇宙即变化》第47条
Think continually that all kinds of men and all kinds of pursuits and of all nations are dead, so that thy thoughts come down even to Philistion and Phoebus and Origanion. Now turn thy thoughts to the other kinds [of men]. To that place then we must remove, where there are so many great orators, and so many noble philosophers, Heraclitus, Pythagoras, Socrates; so many heroes of former days, and so many generals after them, and tyrants; besides these, Eudoxus, Hipparchus, Archimedes, and other men of acute natural talents, great minds, lovers of labor, versatile, confident, mockers even of the perishable and ephemeral life of man, as Menippus and such as are like him. As to all these consider that they have long been in the dust. What harm then is this to them; and what to those whose names are altogether unknown? One thing here is worth a great deal, to pass thy life in truth and justice, with a benevolent disposition even to liars and unjust men.
注释摘要
这条札记是奥勒留对自己进行的死亡冥想练习，也是一种典型的斯多葛派心灵训练。他先让自己把目光投向那些或许曾在某个时刻留下过名字、但如今早已无人记起的普通人——Philistion、Phoebus、Origanion这三个名字我们今天已经无从考证，很可能是当时社会上略有声名却注定湮没的人物。从这些人开始，他迅速把思绪拉升到另一个层面：那些名垂青史的演说家、哲学…