Back in Pune

During my last few days in Brazil, and upon reaching Pune, I have repeatedly been asking myself “how do I feel?”… I kind of knew it, but couldn’t put it into words. And then, I read a passage of Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. And, it felt appropriate.

“Characteristic of the rational soul:
Self perception, self-examination, and the power to make of itself whatever it wants.

It reaps its own harvest, unlike plants (and, in a different way, animals), whose yield is gathered in by others.

It reaches its intended goal, no matter where the limit of its life is set. Not like dancing and theater and things like that, where the performance is incomplete if it’s broken off in the middle, but at any point – no matter which one you pick – it has fulfilled its mission, done its work completely. So that it can say, “I have what I came for.”

It surveys the word and the empty space around it, and the way it’s put together. It delves into the endlessness of time to extend its grasp and comprehension of the periodic births and rebirths that the world goes through.”