Expert: Maria - 11/22/2010

Question
Hello,
I heard a couple of lines that were from Marcus Aurelius, I believe they were
from his Meditations but Im not sure. Anyway, I was wondering how they
could be translated into original text, as I'm not sure if they were written in
Greek or Latin. If you could translate them into original form it would be
much appreciated. Thanks

"Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself in your way
of thinking."

"Tomorrow's life is too late: Live today.

Answer
Hello,

First of all I have to tell you that both “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself in your way of thinking" and "Tomorrow's life is too late: Live today” are not a literal translation of the original quotes from Marcus Aurelius Meditations, but  a mere adaptation of  some phrases we read in this diary entitled “Τὰ εἰς ἑαυτόν” (Greek letters), i.e. “Τà eis heautón” in Latin transliteration [literally "Thoughts  addressed to himself"], which is nothing but a series of meditations  Marcus Aurelius wrote for his self-improvement.

Such a diary was written in Greek since Marcus Aurelius (who was Roman Emperor from 161 to his death in 180 AD) knew Greek language besides Latin, which was his mother tongue, and  wrote his diary just in Greek.

That being stated, here are the original Greek quotes from Marcus Aurelius:

1-the free translation “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself in your way of thinking" derives from the following original text:
"Οὐδαμοῦ γὰρ οὔτε ἡσυχιώτερον οὔτε ἀπραγμονέστερον ἄνθρωπος ἀναχωρεῖ ἢ εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχήν" [Book IV, chapter 3, paragraph 2] whose literal translation would be  “For nowhere either with more quiet or more freedom from trouble does a man retire than into his own soul”.


2- the free translation  “Tomorrow's life is too late: Live today “derives from these  three  original passages:

- “Τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου βίου ὁ μὲν χρόνος στιγμή” [Book II, chapter 17, paragraph 1]  whose literal translation would be : “Of human life the time is a point”.

-“Μικρὸν μὲν οὖν ὃ ζῇ ἕκαστος· μικρὸν δὲ τὸ τῆς γῆς γωνίδιον ὅπου ζῇ [Book III, chapter 10, paragraph 2] whose literal translation would be :“Short then is the time which every man lives, and small the nook of the earth where he lives”.

-“Μὴ ὡς μύρια μέλλων ἔτη ζῆν. Τὸ χρεὼν ἐπήρτηται” [Book IV, chapter 17, paragraph 1] whose literal translation would be:”Do not act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Fate hangs over you”.

Best regards,
Maria