Quotes About Intention

In a sense, people are our proper occupation. Our job is to do them good and put up with them. But when they obstruct our proper tasks, they become irrelevant to us—like sun, wind, animals. Our actions may be impeded by them, but there can be no impeding our intentions or our dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting. The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.

Since it is possible that you might depart from life this very moment, regulate every act and thought accordingly.

Do every act of your life as if it were your last.

Let no act be done without a purpose, nor otherwise than according to the perfect principles of art.

Why should any of these things that happen externally, so much distract thee? Give thyself leisure to learn some good thing, and cease roving and wandering to and fro. Thou must also take heed of another kind of wandering, for they are idle in their actions, who toil and labour in this life, and have no certain scope to which to direct all their motions, and desires.

Why all this guesswork? You can see what needs to be done. If you can see the road, follow it.

You have a mind? —Yes. Well, why not use it? Isn't that all you want—for it to do its job?

19. Everything is here for a purpose, from horses to vine shoots. What's surprising about that? Even the sun will tell you, "I have a purpose," and the other gods as well. And why were you born? For pleasure? See if that answer will stand up to questioning.

But Marcus Aurelius knows that what the heart is full of, the man will do. 'Such as thy thoughts and ordinary cogitations are,' he says, 'such will thy mind be in time.' And every page of the book shows us that he knew thought was sure to issue in act. He drills his soul, as it were, in right principles, that when the time comes, it may be guided by them. To wait until the emergency is to be too late.

it will help you a great deal to keep the gods in mind as well. What they want is not flattery, but for rational things to be like them. For figs to do what figs were meant to do—and dogs, and bees Ã¢â'¬Â¦ and people.

Each thing has come into existence for a specific purpose, like a horse or a grapevine. Even the sun would say: "I exist for a purpose," and also the other gods.18 What, then, is your purpose? To feel pleasure? See if the mind will allow such a thought.

Don't imagine that something is good for you if, in pursuing it, you must break a promise, harm anyone else, lose self-respect, act hypocritically, or hide in shame.

Concentrate on what you're doing, and what you're doing it with.

To undertake nothing: i. at random or without a purpose; ii. for any reason but the common good.

No pointless actions.

Neither must he use himself to cut off actions only, but thoughts and imaginations also, that are unnecessary for so will unnecessary consequent actions the better be prevented and cut off.

Thou must also take heed of another kind of wandering, for they are idle in their actions, who toil and labour in this life, and have no certain scope to which to direct all their motions, and desires.

And thou wilt give thyself relief, if thou doest every act of thy life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy, and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given to thee.

13. You have a mind? —Yes. Well, why not use it? Isn't that all you want—for it to do its job?

If it be not fitting, do it not. If it be not true, speak it not. Ever maintain thine own purpose and resolution free from all compulsion and necessity

En primer lugar, nada hagas sin reflexionar ni sin fin alguno, y en segundo, no lleves otro fin sino el bien de la sociedad.

Since it is possible that thou mayest depart from life this very moment, regulate every act and thought accordingly

Never act without purpose; make sure that all your actions conform to the philosophical principles that constitute the art of living.

Que lhe resta senão aproveitar o que lhe resta da vida, encadeando uma boa ação à outra, de modo a não permitir o mais breve intervalo entre elas?