WHY WORRY?  CHAPTER III - THE PSYCHOTHERAPY OF MARCUS AURELIUS

WHY WORRY?

BY: GEORGE LINCOLN WALTON, M.D.
CONSULTING NEUROLOGIST TO THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL

III.

MARCUS AURELIUS

Such a body of teachers distinguished by their acquirements and character
will hardly be collected again; and as to the pupil, we have not had
another like him since.

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, the philosopher-Emperor, showed by practice as
well as by precept that the tranquil mind is not incompatible with a life
of action. Destined from birth to stand at the head of a great empire
engaged in distant wars, threatened by barbaric invasion, and not without
internal dissention, he was prepared not only to command armies but to
govern himself. Fortunately we are not without a clue to his methods--he
not only had the best of teachers, but continued his training all through
his life. When we consider his labors, the claim of the busy man of to-day
that he has "no time" seems almost frivolous.

The thoughts of Marcus Aurelius (of which the following citations are
from Long's translation) were written, not for self exploration, nor from
delight in rounded periods, but for his own guidance. That he was in fact
guided by his principles no better illustration offers than his magnanimity
toward the adherents of one who would have usurped the throne of the
Cæsars. The observation of Long that fine thoughts and moral dissertations
from men who have not worked and suffered may be read, but will be
forgotten, seems to have been exemplified in the comparative oblivion into
which the philosophy of Epicurus has fallen.

It is with the ethical side of the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius that we
are concerned, and with that portion only which bears on the question of
mental equipoise.

"Begin the morning," he says, "by saying to thyself, I shall meet with the
busybody, the ungrateful, arrogant, deceitful, envious, unsocial. All these
things happen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and
evil."

With regard to the habit of seclusion common among the self-conscious, he
says:

"If thou didst ever see a hand cut off, or a foot, or a head, lying
anywhere apart from the rest of the body, such does a man make himself, as
far as he can, who is not content with what happens, and separates himself
from others, or does any thing unsocial. Suppose that thou hast detached
thyself from the natural unity--for thou wast made by nature a part, but
now thou hast cut thyself off--yet here there is this beautiful provision,
that it is in thy power again to unite thyself. God has allowed this to no
other part, after it has been separated and cut asunder, to come together
again. But consider the kindness by which he has distinguished man, for he
has put it in his power not to be separated at all from the universal; and
when he has been separated, he has allowed him to return and to resume his
place as a part."

On the futile foreboding which plays so large a part in the tribulation of
the worrier, he says:

"Do not disturb thyself by thinking of the whole of thy life. Let not thy
thoughts at once embrace all the various troubles which thou mayest expect
to befall thee; but on every occasion ask thyself, What is there in this
which is intolerable and past bearing? for thou wilt be ashamed to confess.
In the next place remember that neither the future nor the past pains thee,
but only the present. But this is reduced to a very little, if thou only
circumscribest it, and chidest thy mind, if it is unable to hold out
against even this." Again: "Let not future things disturb thee, for thou
wilt come to them, if it shall be necessary, having with thee the same
reason which now thou usest for present things."

On the dismissal of useless fret, and concentration upon the work in hand,
he says:

"Labor not as one who is wretched, nor yet as one who would be pitied or
admired; but direct thy will to one thing only, to put thyself in motion
and to check thyself, as the social reason requires."

Regarding senseless fears he counsels:

"What need is there of suspicious fear, since it is in thy power to inquire
what ought to be done? And if thou seest clear, go by this way content,
without turning back: but if thou dost not see clear, stop and take the
best advisers. But if any other things oppose thee, go on according to thy
powers with due consideration, keeping to that which appears to be just.
For it is best to reach this object, and if thou dost fail, let thy failure
be in attempting this. He who follows reason in all things is both tranquil
and active at the same time, and also cheerful and collected."

On irritation at the conduct of others:

"When thou art offended with any man's shameless conduct, immediately ask
thyself, Is it possible, then, that shameless men should not be in the
world? It is not possible. Do not, then, require what is impossible. For
this man also is one of those shameless men who must of necessity be in the
world. Let the same considerations be present in thy mind in the case of
the knave and the faithless man, and of every man who does wrong in any
way."

Regarding the hypochondriacal tendency he reverts to Epicurus, thus:

"Epicurus says, In my sickness my conversation was not about my bodily
sufferings, nor did I talk on such subjects to those who visited me; but I
continued to discourse on the nature of things as before, keeping to this
main point, how the mind, while participating in such movements as go on in
the poor flesh, shall be free from perturbations and maintain its proper
good.... Do, then, the same that he did both in sickness, if thou art sick,
and in any other circumstances;... but to be intent only on that which thou
art now doing and on the instrument by which thou doest it."

These quotations will serve to show the trend of the reflections of this
remarkable man. After reviewing this epitome of ethical philosophy I might
stop and counsel the worrier to study the thoughts of Marcus Aurelius
and other philosophers, whose practical suggestions are similar,
notwithstanding their diversity of views regarding the ultimate object of
the training. I shall venture, however, to elaborate the subject from the
present view-point, even though the principles of Marcus Aurelius are as
applicable now as they were in the days of the Roman Empire.

No reminder is needed of the wealth and efficacy of suggestion in the Book
which contains the statement that "the Kingdom of God is within you," and
that "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine; but a broken spirit drieth
the bones." One of its suggestions was paralleled by the philosopher-poet
when he wrote:

  "Latius regnes avidum domando
  Spiritum, quam si Libyam remotis
  Gadibus iungas et uterque Poenus
    Serviat uni."

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Preface

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Why Worry - The Psycho-Therapy of Marcus Aurelius