Dr. Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs advises Clarice Starling to read Marcus Aurelius. Only a few people know that Aurelius' meditations was not a book, but a note – a personal diary of the emperor who commanded the whole known world at the time.
The last good Roman emperor's diary, and Stoicism in general, is currently promoted a lot by Ryan Holiday and other entrepreneurs alike. The stoic mindset doesn't seem special to me, it doesn't imply a strong or better character, and just like many other forms of philosophy, I approach it as a good enough framework to live by. Nevertheless, after nine years, grabbing the little repetitive diary, I understood something new about myself.
I realized that I had skipped and never read Book One, which seemed to be very boring back then. Why would I bother reading who Aurelius was grateful to, when I could read practical tips? My rushed mind didn't even understand that the first book served many purposes in addition to gratitude: there was self-analysis, historical perspective, simple character traits of the powerful emperor worth imitating. I paraphrase a portion of the content below:
From my grandfather I learned good morals and the government of my temper. From my father, modesty and a manly character. From my mother, piety and beneficence, abstinence from evil thoughts, simplicity in my way of living far removed from the habits of the rich. From my great-grandfather, to have good teachers and spend on education liberally.
These are simple building blocks revealing to us the subtleties of the emperor's character and his clear understanding of its sources. How many of us have taken the time to analyze the beginnings of our character? Why are we who we are? How did we emerge and what is good in us? A deep glimpse into our development could at least increase our self-esteem.
Additionally, studying the precise vocabulary could drastically improve our comprehension of the text. We may strive for not just checking a direct translation of the words manly or beneficence, but aim at exploring what exactly the original Latin or ancient Greek words connoted.
From Rusticus, not to be led astray to writing on speculative matters, nor to delivering little honorary orations, nor to show myself off as a man who practices much discipline, or does benevolent acts in order to make a display; and to abstain from rhetoric and poetry, and fine writing; and not to walk about in the house in my outdoor dress.
At this point, a good reader should stop and ask: Who was Rusticus? Aurelius dedicated one of the bigger paragraphs to him, continuing:
To write my letters with simplicity and with respect to those who have offended me by words, or done me wrong. To read carefully, and not to be satisfied with a superficial understanding of a book.
I only now truly understand the importance of re-reading. Following Aurelius, I will paraphrase Heraclitus and Flaubert: A man cannot step twice into a river, and one can become a scholar by correctly reading half a dozen books. This conclusion may seem abrupt but it is not superficial.
There are a few blogs I find useful and visit occasionally. Below is my curated list sorted alphabetically. Blogs may be active or dormant. I may be biased towards computer science. I may dislike and be against the ideas in some of their writings:
Testing out pin, tags, and image. Refreshing note publication dates dynamically now. Sharing still does not work properly.
Testing Notes. Didn't want to open X or Threads account. Inspired by KQ. I will occasionally update or delete the notes. This format is proper for short writings.