If you’re interested in philosophy, have a penchant for Stoicism, self- improvement, or indeed maxims for living, you’ve probably come across the phrase “memento mori” a time or two. Whilst this phrase might not mean anything to you, or, on the flip side may well be a part of your daily vocabulary. We’re going to take a look at the history of what the phrase means, from the ancient societies of Egypt and Rome to Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. At the end of this piece I’ve included some exercises of how you could potentially apply them to your life with dedicated practice.
To begin with, let’s get to the heart of the translation. The words can be roughly transcribed from Latin as “Remember you will die” and this was something that the Ancient Romans coined way back when. However, if you look into it, most civilisations have an iteration of this sentiment in their own dialects and practices. For example, in Ancient Egypt, death was so commonplace in everyday life that there are many treatises written about the “Egyptian obsession with death”. If you think of the practices of burial for example: the constructing of large pyramids as shrines to the fallen pharaohs, and commemorating both their death (and life) by mummifying the dead, as well as opulent resting places for officials too. This invoked as sense of honour — even in death.
The Ancient Romans lined monuments and tombs inscribed with epitaphs alongside most of their public roads as a way to remember their dead, and were not only for the rich. Some hundreds of monuments have survived to this day, on Rome’s Via Appia, and they offer a great insight in how the Romans approached death, with a sense of fearlessness, and sometimes even an indifference to life.
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