51 Memento Mori

The idea has been central to art philosophy literature architecture and more throughout history.

Memento mori. Memento mori is a latin phrase that means remember that you will die. Memento mori or translated in english remember you must die the point of this reminder isn t to be morbid or promote fear but to inspire motivate and clarify. Memento mori literally means remember you must die. The early puritan settlers were particularly aware of death and fearful of what it might mean so a puritan tombstone will often display a memento mori intended for the living. It is meant to remind you of your own mortality and of the brevity and fragility of human life. In medieval europe when plagues abounded a particular philosophy that took hold asked people to meditate on objects that reminded them of life and death. These death s heads or skulls may strike us as ghoulish but they helped keep the living on the straight and narrow for fear of eternal punishment.

Memento mori has been mentioned as an important principle by many people throughout history and implementing it in your own life can benefit you in various ways. As such in the following article you will learn more about this principle and see how you can implement it in practice.