Aurelius' Razor?

For years, I have been quietly advancing the notion that the world would be a better place if everyone looked out for the common good. But sharing what seems to be an obvious idea has been an unexpectedly bumpy road--mostly because my words lacked the clarity of an ancient philosopher king.

Today, I stumbled upon the words 

I can now only wish I had chosen myself.

Photo by Eric Gaba
Wikimedia Commons user Sting, CC BY-SA 3.0

"Let every action aim solely at the common good."

--Marcus Aurelius

The reason my heart stopped when I read the above quote was that I had been trying to say the same thing for years, but my attempts lacked clarity and punch.

Inspired by Occam's Razor, my first attempt states that, when choosing between two courses of action, pick the one that has the best social outcome. With uncharacteristic hubris. I dubbed this idea Doane's Razor and waited for the royalty checks to come pouring in...

But of course, I never really thought Doane's Razor was sufficient. It's too vague. Actions come down to individual predictions of future outcomes, and under that "razor" nearly anything can be justified.

The next iteration came along with my re-reading of Robert Pirsig's classic, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I read it as a teenaged cyclist and rediscovered it as a motorcyclist, many years and many miles later.

"The place to improve the world is first

in one's own heart and head and hands,

and then work outward from there."  

--Robert M. Pirsig

Somehow when I was 17 I overlooked Pirsig's pearl of wisdom. But with the benefit of experience, the value of the approach became clear. If you desire to make the world a better place, start with examining your personal values. Make plans that are consistent with those values. And then spend time doing the things that will make your values come to life. The things you do and say reflect your thoughts and plans, and ultimately reveal your values.

It's my opinion that Marcus Aurelius captured the meat of this idea more succinctly than I ever did. Using the law of parsimony, I hereby suspend Doane's Razor in favor of a new, superior one which I now dub Aurelius' Razor.

"Let every action aim solely at the common good."

--Marcus Aurelius

Does this make sense to you? Are you willing to give it a try in your personal life? Share thoughts in comments!

We can learn much from the writings of the likes of a Roman soldier, statesman, orator, emperor, and Stoic philosopher named Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus (26 April 121 – 17 March 180 AD). Here is a link to a previous post featuring his timeless wisdom.

Enjoy!