《沉思录·卷八·行事与本分》第32条
It is thy duty to order thy life well in every single act; and if every act does its duty as far as is possible, be content; and no one is able to hinder thee so that each act shall not do its duty.--But something external will stand in the way. Nothing will stand in the way of thy acting justly and soberly and considerately.--But perhaps some other active power will be hindered. Well, but by acquiescing in the hindrance and by being content to transfer thy efforts to that which is allowed, another opportunity of action is immediately put before thee in place of that which was hindered, and one which will adapt itself to this ordering of which we are speaking.
注释摘要
奥勒留在这一段里跟自己对话，用的是一种典型的内心辨析：先立定一个明确的道德命令，再设想一连串可能的反驳，然后一一化解。他追问的是，当人的行动遭遇外部阻碍时，本分到底落在哪里，一个人的满足感又该建立在什么上面。 第一句就把标准定得很高，也定得很具体：本分不是一个大而化之的理想，而是要在每一个具体行为中把生活安排得好。这种“好”不是指结果圆满、事事顺遂，而是指…