Nearly two thousand years after it was written, Meditations remains
profoundly relevant for anyone seeking to lead a meaningful life.
Few ancient works have been as influential as the Meditations of Marcus
Aurelius, philosopher and emperor of Rome (A.D. 161-180). A series of
spiritual exercises filled with wisdom, practical guidance, and profound
understanding of human behavior, it remains one of the greatest works of
spiritual and ethical reflection ever written. Marcus's insights and
advice--on everything from living in the world to coping with adversity
and interacting with others--have made the Meditations required reading
for statesmen and philosophers alike, while generations of ordinary
readers have responded to the straightforward intimacy of his style. For
anyone who struggles to reconcile the demands of leadership with a
concern for personal integrity and spiritual well-being, the Meditations
remains as relevant now as it was two thousand years ago.
In Gregory Hays's new translation--the first in thirty-five
years--Marcus's thoughts speak with a new immediacy. In fresh and
unencumbered English, Hays vividly conveys the spareness and compression
of the original Greek text. Never before have Marcus's insights been so
directly and powerfully presented.
With an Introduction that outlines Marcus's life and career, the
essentials of Stoic doctrine, the style and construction of the
Meditations, and the work's ongoing influence, this edition makes it
possible to fully rediscover the thoughts of one of the most enlightened
and intelligent leaders of any era.
