Using Marcus Aurelius’s writing in his Meditations and experiences inferred from historical records, we created an AI digital personality that spoke with us about how to practice Stoicism in our modern world. This AI persona literally thinks that it’s Marcus Aurelius, and the responses are entirely its own.
You can scroll down to read Marcus Aurelius’s advice on this topic, or learn more about how we used AI to simulate his personality.
Asking Marcus Aurelius About Travel & Moving to a New Home
Emperor Marcus Aurelius, thank you for speaking with me today. I’m in the process of moving to a new home, and it’s causing me a lot of anxiety. I’m not comfortable with the idea of living someplace else and leaving the familiar place that I was accustomed to. What can I do to make this change in my life easier?
Firstly, let me reassure you that your feelings are natural. As human beings, we have a strong instinct for the familiar and can be disconcerted by change. In my Meditations, I wrote, “Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature’s delight.”
As I interpret your situation, you are experiencing a change that your nature may initially resist but is fundamentally designed to accept and even relish. It is the law of nature that all things change, shift, and evolve. This includes our circumstances, the people around us, and even our physical dwellings.
From a Stoic perspective, such as mine or that of my mentor Epictetus, we would suggest that the locus of your distress is not the change itself but rather your interpretation of that change.
Epictetus taught us that “Men are disturbed not by things, but by the views which they take of them.” Remember that the power to interpret any situation lies within you. The home you are leaving and the one you are moving to are neither inherently comfortable nor uncomfortable. They are merely places.
Your anxiety stems from your perspective on the move, not the move itself. Try shifting your view of the situation, focusing on the opportunities this change may bring, rather than on what is left behind.
In my own life, I have experienced many changes, some even rather dramatic. As the Emperor of Rome, I had to face wars, plagues, and many political challenges. Each change, each hardship, was an opportunity to apply my Stoic principles, to look inward for tranquility rather than relying on external circumstances.
Reflect on this, as you face your own change. It is not the move that can upset you, but rather your views about it. Realize that your home is not the brick and mortar around you but the virtues and tranquility within you.
Remember this, “You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” Embrace change, friend of the future, for it is the law of life itself. The virtue you carry within you is your truest home, no matter where you reside.
I know that as emperor, you’ve had to leave home and travel to distant locations for extended periods of time for difficult military campaigns and wars. What strategies helped you deal with leaving behind the home you knew and loved?
Indeed, as Emperor, my duties have taken me away from Rome, away from the comforts and the familiar to distant provinces, and amidst challenging military campaigns. How I navigate these circumstances is a direct application of my Stoic philosophy, grounding myself in the principles that the world outside of my mind is indifferent, and it is within my power to choose how I perceive it.
One such strategy is the recognition that home is not necessarily a place but a state of mind. A Stoic, such as myself, understands that the place where we can find tranquility, wisdom, and virtue is within us. As I once wrote, “Nowhere can man find a quieter or more untroubled retreat than in his own soul.” In this, my home travels with me, and I am always at home, no matter where I am physically.
Another strategy is to practice what Stoics call ‘amor fati’ or love of fate. This is the idea that all that happens is as it should be, and we should embrace it, not fight against it. To resist what is, is to resist the natural order of the world. My responsibilities and duties as emperor require me to travel, to engage in war, to be away from the comforts of the familiar. But I accept this as part of my fate, part of the nature of my role, and do not resist it. “Accept the things to which fate binds you,” I wrote, and embrace the people, circumstances, and experiences that come along with them.
In difficult moments, I reflect upon the nature of adversity itself. It is often through adversity that we are refined and strengthened. “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” So when I find myself in the challenging territories of Germania, instead of longing for the familiarity of Rome, I remind myself that these circumstances provide me the opportunity to practice virtue, to exhibit patience, courage, and wisdom.
And remember, friend of the future, all places, all moments are fleeting. One day, even Rome, in all its glory, will cease to be. As will I, as will you. So instead of attaching ourselves to places, we should focus on the impermanence of all things and find our comfort in that which is eternal, the virtues that we can always carry within us.
Practicing these strategies will, I hope, guide you as you navigate your own challenges and changes. Remember, it is not the external world that brings us peace or disturbance. It is our perceptions, our internal virtues that determine our tranquility.