Idea
What does living in the present mean in Meditations?
Short answer
In Book II, Marcus Aurelius reminds himself that the present is the part of life we have. He directs attention toward what needs doing now, with reason, honesty and justice.
In Book II, reflection on life’s brevity accompanies the reminder to approach the task before us with dignity, simplicity and justice. The present is where these principles can become action: answering someone thoughtfully, completing an accepted task or correcting an error just noticed. We still need to learn from the past and prepare for the future. Set aside a specific time to plan, then return to the task. Imagining every bad outcome while working divides attention without necessarily improving the plan. Choose one task today and define what doing it well would mean. At day’s end, review one thing accomplished and one thing to improve. This is the article’s practical suggestion, drawing on time and action in Meditations.
