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Title: Meditations (Penguin Classics)
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Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
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| Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Awful version of the Meditations | Here is what Gregory Hays, this translator, wrote:
1. MY GRANDFATHER VERSUS. Character and self-control.
This is choppy. These are sentence fragments.
Here is how Maxwell Staniforth translated the same passage in the Meditations:
1. Courtesy and serenity of temper I first learnt to know from my grandfather Versus.
Heres another verse from Hays:
2. MY FATHER (FROM MY OWN MEMORIES AND HIS REPUTATION). Integrity and manliness.
From Staniforth:
2. Manliness without ostentation I learnt from what I have heard and remember of my father.
Heaven forbid you let a young person read the sentence fragments from Hays. Fortune cookies are more eloquent than Hays.
| | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Wisdom from the Emperor-Philosopher | "Your mind will be like its habitual thoughts; for the soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts. Soak it then in such trains of thoughts as, for example: Where life is possible at all, a right life is possible." ~ Marcus Aurelius from "Meditations"
Not only is Marcus Aurelius one of my heroes, he's also one of history's leading Stoic Philosophers. Stoic philosophy. You know, one of the classic Hellenistic philosophies--right there with Epicureanism and Cynicism.
Huh?
Whether or not you've heard of Stoicism, you've probably met one of its leading thinkers: Marcus Aurelius--he's the old emperor in the movie "Gladiator." :)
Quick historical context:
It was in the 2nd Century, during battles against Barbarian tribes in the Danube region near Hungary (not unlike the opening scene of "Gladiator"), when Aurelius wrote "Meditations."
Imagine the powerful Roman Empire: encompassing vast territory from England to Spain and Africa, to Egypt, Arabia and Turkey. This is the Empire that Marcus Aurelius defended from barbarians and pestilence and plague at every border. Now, you can imagine Aurelius, the Emperor of this vast empire, trained in the Stoic philosophy, reminding himself to live the philosophy during some of the most trying times of his rule--in the battlefields of war.
Interestingly, the literal translation of the title is "To Himself"--as Aurelius was simply jotting notes to himself in his private journal. His intention was not to publish anything; rather, he used his journal to remind himself of the lessons he learned as a young nobleman being groomed to one-day rule the empire. The book is broken down into bite-size nuggets of wisdom that you can enjoy a few minutes at a time. I highly recommend you start enjoying! | | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Words of Wisdom | Marcus Aurelius was an emperor of Rome, but this is not what he is remembered for. What really draws us to him is the set of journals which he kept for himself--books which he wrote purely for himself, but which speak to millions even today. These books contained words of wisdom--words that kept him strong in times of stress and danger. One of the primary messages that runs through the book is the idea that all that occurs in life is nothing new. There are many things beyond our control which may cause us stress. However, he puts forth the idea that what causes the stress is not the things that happen to us, but the way in which we react. Instead of complaining about the things we cannot change, we should change how we react to the things that happen to us. In other words, change yourself before you try to change the world. You'll find it to be much more achievable.
I really recommend this book for everyone. In particular, if you are going through any stress in your life, this would provide some support in helping you through tough times. A must-have for every library. | | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Death and the emperor | I reread Marcus Aurelius' Meditations every five years or so, and each time I do I'm struck by the sheer pathos of the book. Here's the most powerful man in the world (of his day), the emperor Marcus Aurelius, absolute sovereign of the western world, a ruler who held the power of life and death over millions of subjects, and moreover a man steeped in philosophy and wisdom traditions--who confronts his own mortality and realizes that even he must die. The Meditations is Marcus' soul-searching, occasionally disingenuous, usually calm but sometimes panicky panicky effort to come to grips with that sobering fact. If life is ephemeral, even for the world's most powerful man, how should that life be lived?
It's this intensely human need to figure out what life is about before the inevitable night closes in that makes Marcus' journals so intensely interesting and valuable to the rest of us. His answers, coming from the philosophical tradition of Stoicism, aren't for everyone. My guess is that readers with a few years on them will find stoicism more attractive than younger readers who are full of oats and hormones. Marcus argues that that a happy life is one lived in accordance with nature; that living in accordance with nature means cultivating a "just" or rational mind and virtuous behavior that accord with the rationality of creation; that humans are interconnected both with nature and one another, such that no person who tries to deny the connection can live happily or healthily; and that human freedom and happiness is proportionate to the cultivation of apatheia or indifference to those matters over which we have no control (very much like the wisdom expressed in the Buddha's Four Noble Truths).
Ultimately, each person must face death alone, as best he or she can. But if Marcus's Meditations offer much food for thought, not only about the mortality which we all carry but also about the good life for which we all yearn. | | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Veni Vidi Vici! | Ever wondered what emperors thought of and how they lived their life? Meditations gives you great insight into the age of Marcus Aurelius and the standards he tried to live up to.
This is one of the better old books I have read and it is really accessible. If you have ever read a Plato book, you might know what I mean. You want to learn about historical people, but not at all cost.
You will definitly have your money's worth with this one as Meditations describes the thoughts, standards and intentions Marcus Aurelius had in great detail. The writings really made me connect with the book as if I wanted to live up to these standards as well. It's hard to describe, but in essence this book should appeal to many readers.
Meditations is a classic. | | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Product Description | A new translation of the philosophical journey that has inspired luminaries from Matthew Arnold to Bill Clinton
Written by an intellectual Roman emperor, the Meditations offer a wide range of spiritual reflections developed as the leader struggled to understand himself and the universe. Marcus Aurelius covers topics as diverse as the question of virtue, human rationality, the nature of the gods, and his own emotions, spanning from doubt and despair to conviction and exaltation.
* Includes an introduction, chronology, explanatory notes, general index, index of quotations, and index of names | | Meditations (Penguin Classics) by Penguin Classics Amazon.com | | One measure, perhaps, of a book's worth, is its intergenerational pliancy: do new readers acquire it and interpret it afresh down through the ages? The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, translated and introduced by Gregory Hays, by that standard, is very worthwhile, indeed. Hays suggests that its most recent incarnation--as a self-help book--is not only valid, but may be close to the author's intent. The book, which Hays calls, fondly, a "haphazard set of notes," is indicative of the role of philosophy among the ancients in that it is "expected to provide a 'design for living.'" And it does, both aphoristically ("Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what's left and live it properly.") and rhetorically ("What is it in ourselves that we should prize?"). Whether these, and other entries ("Enough of this wretched, whining monkey life.") sound life-changing or like entries in a teenager's diary is up to the individual reader, as it should be. Hays's introduction, which sketches the life of Marcus Aurelius (emperor of Rome A.D. 161-180) as well as the basic tenets of stoicism, is accessible and jaunty. --H. O'Billovich |
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