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Apr 22, 2009

Gary rated it:

I view this work as a valuable resource, after all, it's not often one knows the private thoughts of an individual, let alone one of the more successful Roman Emperors. Only occasionally does it feel like the work of a Roman Emperor. Never do we get the feeling that it's written mid battle and amid the varied intrigue attending empire maintenance. Most often it's a welcome blend of philosophical pondering and practical advice.

My favorite Books were One, Eight, and Eleven.

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3 comments like (13 people liked it)

Dec 03, 2007

Walter rated it:

Another great influence in my life; this was the personal philosophical diary of the last "good emperor" of the Roman Empire. In this work Marcus Aurelius draws a picture Stoicism as a philosophy that I call "Buddhism with balls". It is a harsh self discipline that trains its practitioners to be champions (of a sort). Champions of what? Mastery of the self.

The heart of the book is that in order to make oneself free, they must train themselves to become indifferen More...

4 comments like (8 people liked it)

Aug 28, 2007

Richard rated it:

By today's standards, a bog-standard blog.

The only reason that this was preserved in the first place is that the author happened to be a Roman emperor. (That, and that ancient Rome didn't have LiveJournal.)

The only reason that Meditations is still being published today is that once a book gets labeled "classic," hardly anyone who reads it has the grapes to admit that it just wasn't that good. Well...the emperor has no clothes.

12 comments like (7 people liked it)

Aug 03, 2010

Abailart rated it:

Or 'reading' again. I don't usually bother to find the actual edition of a book, but although I'd already five starred this one that rating was a familiarity with the book over 20 years. Something to return to.

I am now actually in possession of this particular and fairly recent edition. Very good introduction, excellent notes with cross-referencing, and a very useful index of key words, concepts and ideas.

The Meditations still has, I believe, something to offer us, more More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 15, 2009

Evan rated it:

Like the Tao Te Ching, this is a collection of short, powerful statements. If only Aurelius had as much humor as Lao Tzu, or as generous a view of life. Still, some of Aurelius's reflections have a cold, wintery beauty about them. Best read as poetry rather than any philosophy to take to heart. Only readable in small bites, which makes it perfect for the subway.

0 comments like (11 people liked it)

Jun 05, 2011

Mel rated it:

This is truly one of the finest and best philosophical books that I have ever come across. This book has all the Mitch Albom books plus the Art of War of Sun Tzu plus the Machiavelli's the prince, Hobbes, Plato, Socrates, Aristotle's political and humanistic view points times the values and lessons of the Last Lecture.

A remarkable book that narrates and explains the different viewpoints in the natural life of Marcus Aurelius. This book is one of the most complex yet simple philosophy More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 09, 2008

Rachel rated it:

I give a four to Marcus Aurelius (since he seemed like a pretty fascinating dude but I don't totally agree with him on everything) and a five to translator Gregory Hays for his readable, immediate translation as well as his thoughtful and unpretentious introduction. You can tell he really likes Aurelius, thinks of him as a buddy almost, but is willing to admit that he doesn't completely have his shit together. There's a warmth to his writing as well as a critical eye. It's easy to assume that More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Jul 20, 2009

Vanja rated it:

Marcus Aurelius was a good emperor, and also a good philosopher. He is fundamentally a Stoic, but he is not a typical Stoic (see Epictetus). Instead, Aurelius is a Stoic with inner turmoil and conflict. He is not sure at times whether he can follow the Stoic path, and also seems to have a less extreme philosophy. In other words, Aurelius seems to be more humane, and you will not catch him saying anything like this:

"Never say of anything, "I have lost it"; but, "I More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Oct 17, 2007

Anand rated it:

It reads like a long affirmation and reaffirmation of Aurelius's beliefs, punctuated by very clever and thoughtful moments. A majority of it felt like a rather painful slog through repetitive discourses on Stoic philosophy. I certainly can't blame the author - it's clear that he never intended for this to be read by anyone other than himself. Nevertheless, there's clearly value in reading this book - I just wouldn't call it a page-turner.

I think the two most interesting parts of the More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 15, 2011

Jon rated it:

I don't think I've read so short a book that took me so long to read. The form (aphorism upon aphorism) makes for a slow but memorable digestion.

Wisdom from a moral Roman leader!:

"Display those virtues which are wholly in your own power: integrity, dignity, hard work, self-denial, contentment, frugality, kindness, independence, simplicity, discretion, magnanimity. Do you not see how many virtues you can already display without any excuse of lack of talent or aptitude More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 23, 2008

J4 rated it:

Bury me with this book. Written in AD 121 to 180 this book is a collection of thoughts, short essays and quotes. Almost 2000 years old, the words of Marcus Aurelius echo through to this day.

From book 5, 22 - This reminded me of Hurricane Catrina and our failure in New Orleans.
"What is not harmful to the city, cannot harm the citizen. In every fancied case of harm, apply the rule, 'If the city is not harmed, I am not harmed either.' But if the city should indeed be harmed, More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 25, 2011

Brendan rated it:

How lucky I am to have found a job requiring me to read the classics in light of social and political philosophical concerns. In turn students are then asked to relate these lessons to contemporary politics and existence.
Chris Hedges EAT YOUR HEART OUT.
Aurelius' Meditations, just into my second reading, is a wonderful statement of stoicism by an Emperor late in life , on campaign in the Empire. His articulations of cosmopolitanism, the rhythms and reason of nature, and the essentia More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 26, 2011

Nick rated it:

Downloaded the free Kindle version of this onto my iPod and had it as a backup subway read for those times when I happened to be without my current book. It's written in a perfect format for reading this way--the title is pretty accurate; it's just a collection of thoughts, so it's OK to read just every once in a while. Most of its content was familiar to me and would be to anyone with a little knowledge of Stoic philosophy. Still, there were some striking passages, and it's good stuff to be rem More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 19, 2008

Samantha rated it:

i recommend the reader go over each verse with a fine tooth comb; it is amazing what you can learn.

not something that you can read in a day, and for all of those "i am a fast reader" people out there, slow down and actually understand what you are reading. marcus' philosophies are so simple they are complex. he follows stoic teachings, with heavy reliance on nature, fate, and natural goodness. i didn't really derive any answers as to why people aren't, then, inherentl More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 23, 2009

Nicholas added it

"http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1340839.html[return][return]It is rather a remarkable book. It's not totally clear that Marcus Aurelius wanted it to be published, or if this was basically his commonplace book (or books) for Deep Thoughts which his admirers circulated after his death. It's a bit jumbled thematically, so I'm inclined to the latter - I think he was a good enough stylist that he'd have organised it a bit better if he was interested in publishing it, and also I don't think he par More...

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Jan 17, 2012

Mommalibrarian rated it:

I am continuing to read through books I own and have never read. This is another book from the Classics Club. It is based on a translation by George Long. There is a good introduction: Marcus Aurelius was the emperor of Rome and the leader of Rome’s armies. I imagine him keeping these brief journal entries in some camp far from his home. Trying to make sense of his life, his actions and his ability to live up to his beliefs. According to the introduction Marcus was a stoic and stoics believ More...

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Dec 13, 2011

Lance rated it:

First the cons. The main theme of this book can be summed up in one of my least favorite platitudes: Everything happens for a reason. The corollary is: There’s no reason to ever get upset about anything. But then wouldn’t an attitude like this lead to apathy? No, because even though nothing really matters, and everything is essentially predestined from the beginning of time, and no living thing can overcome its nature, one must still always do one’s duty and try real hard to understand others an More...

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Aug 21, 2011

Hal rated it:

Roman Emperor and Stoic Marcus Aurelius Antoninus' (121-180 AD) MEDITATIONS in 12 books (chapters) on Living, Dying and the Good Life is a collection of his personal reflections and aphorisms while in long campaigns on the crumbling eastern frontier of the Empire. It starts with the observation that life repeats itself - Nothing new under the sun and nothing to you can do to change it. Everything reverts back to fire and restarts. Once you accept it - Life becomes acceptable. He follows wit More...

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Jun 11, 2011

Evelyn rated it:

The version I read had only 61 pages, and even then there was a lot of repetition. As far as I can see, Marcus Aurelius recommends only a few basic tenets: that to look within yourself is enough, that you can't let obstacles stand in your way, that everything must go according to nature, that death is not to be feared, that arrogance/affectation are bad, that you should not be distracted, etc. However, I disagree that people should have no imagination/passion and that everything individual mus More...

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Jan 02, 2011

Ugh rated it:

I thought this might inspire me to some worthwhile New Year's resolutions, but "don't be repetitive to the point of enormous tedium" probably isn't going to make my list to be honest.

There are several hundred meditations here, but I wonder whether Marcus Aurelius had late-stage Alzheimer's or something, because actually there are only about 8 different thoughts, which are repeated in one form or another ad nauseum. And even among those, a couple are of no use to an atheist, a More...

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Nov 16, 2010

Michael rated it:

In preperation for a potential hardship post, I decided to pick up Marcus Aurelius' Meditations- good thing it was unnecessary!

That said, a little background on Aurelius- he was the last in the series of the Five Good Emperors. He has a reputation as a philosopher from the Stoic tradition, although Meditations has a few Epicurian and Socratic references, two other "rival" schools at the time.

Meditations was written while Aurelius was on campaign- something he wa More...

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Oct 06, 2010

Brad rated it:

When I was a freshman in college, I lived in a dorm. My roommate was on the football team. He would write inspiring things on poster board and hang them in our room often on the ceiling above his bed to motivate himself. He favored straightforward sentiments like "never give up."

Meditations is an entire book of motivational advice to inspire us in the ways of stoicism. It is a manual for being a complete, mature adult. It is a guide for living a dignified, thoughtful life. More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 15, 2010

Bob rated it:

The striking part of Meditations is that Marcus Aurelius is determined to accept the world as it is and not to let it get the better of him. Doing the right thing, as guided and disciplined by reason, is what these meditations are about.

His thoughts are based on a view about how the world and reality works. The world is governed by universal laws and so there's a rational structure to it. What happens is meant to happen. The role of the human mind is to understand it and, throu More...

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Jul 20, 2010

Laura rated it:

This is the collection of the private thoughts of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, who wrote them (I imagine) under conditions both conducive and dangerous. I haven't the foggiest notion how the words survived, but if I close my eyes I can see him bowed over a camp desk, small quill in hand, castigating the weaknesses of mind and body through words. They call him the philosopher-king, but to me that implies a kind of lolling about in some gorgeous Roman courtyard, while Marcus Aurelius fought alon More...

4 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 02, 2010

Billie rated it:

Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and a Stoic. Stoicism as a practical form of life can be summed up in the following paraphrase from Epictetus, another Stoic: Don't wish for things to happen as you would like them to happen; rather, wish for things to happen as they do happen. (Incidentally, Epictetus came to Stoicism when he was a slave, a world of contrast away from Marcus Aurelius's coming to Stoicism as an emperor.) Marcus Aurelius's Meditations is an intriguing book, because it is his st More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 05, 2009

Bruce rated it:

The writing in the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, written by this wise Roman Emperor, is very flowing, personable, and readable, almost like a personal letter in tone, easy to understand as a man’s journal and thoughts for himself. Reading it makes me wish that I could have sat in Aurelius’s presence and listened to him, talked with him. Having his writings is the next best thing, and one can read him as if one were in his presence.

“Constantly regard the universe as one living bei More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jul 27, 2009

Miguel rated it:

Video Review at BookVIM -> Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
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Meditations is a book that doesn't age.

Written almost two millennia ago, it is today just as relevant as in the times of Roman splendor it was written.

Marcus Aurelius was an emperor with a hard life: his wife died, his relationship with some was troublesome, he endured war during most of his reign. During his 50s, he decided to write a code for living a good life, a sort of self-prescription More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Nov 18, 2011

اویس rated it:

After reading Russell's section on stoicism from his "History of western Philosophy".I have to change my view (but not my rating!) about Marcus Aurelius.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 27, 2011

Frank rated it:

Reading The Meditations, you can really tell that Marcus Aurelius understood how the mind worked and how to achieve the kind of deep, consistent happiness that is virtually independent of external circumstances.

There's a lot of overlap with Buddhism, in that both recognize that nearly all of people's suffering comes from desiring what they don't have and from resisting reality instead of understanding and accepting it to the best of their ability (though this does not in any way precl More...

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Dec 04, 2010

Michael rated it:

I read this because the author was referenced in an episode of "Law and Order: Criminal Intent." It was "Dictates of a Warrior," not this one.

Granted, I've probably been exposed to derivative works before getting to this one, so I won't comment on its originality beyond it offering me nothing to chew on. If it were a modern work, I could see it on the shelf (or in the bin) with the self-important memoirs of politicians and CEOs, reflecting on their shallow grasp of More...

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