Carry thy thoughts then to the objects themselves, and consider how short-lived they are and worthless, and that they may be in the possession of a filthy wretch or a whore or a robber.
In his private meditations, Marcus Aurelius instructs himself to contemplate the fleeting and indiscriminate nature of material possessions.
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More from Marcus Aurelius
As thou intendest to live when them art gone out, ... so it is in thy power to live here.
There was in him nothing harsh, nor implacable, nor violent, nor, as one may say, anything carried to the sweating point; but he examined all things severally, as if he had abundance of time, and without confusion, in an orderly way…
In the morning when thou risest unwillingly, let this thought be present,--I am rising to the work of a human being.
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