Meditations
Marcus Aurelius, c. 170
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The Meditations is a set of private notes written by the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius to himself, arranged in twelve books. They return again and again to a few Stoic ideas: judge things as they are, accept change and death as part of nature, control your anger, and act for the common good. Marcus writes as a man at work, partly on military campaign, reminding himself to do the job in front of him and to bear with difficult people. He seems never to have meant the text to be published.
Where it happens
- Rome Marcus was born here on 26 April 121.2
- Sirmium Modern Sremska Mitrovica, where he may have written large parts while planning campaigns.1
- Carnuntum Where the second book was written, according to its own note.1
- Granova (Hron River) The first book was written in the country of the Quadi by the Granova, modern Hron River in Slovakia.1
- Zurich City where the first printed edition appeared in 1558 or 1559.1
Through time
- 121Marcus is born in Rome on 26 April.2
- 161He becomes emperor with Lucius Verus.2
- 170He plans campaigns at Sirmium in the years 170 to 180, where parts may have been written.1
- 180Marcus dies on 17 March and Commodus succeeds him.2
- 907Arethas has an old copy recopied, about this date.1
- 1559Xylander's first printed edition appears at Zurich, in 1558 or 1559.1
- 1862George Long publishes his translation.3
Who is in it, and behind it
George Long translator
English classical scholar best known for his Meditations of Marcus Aurelius of 1862.3
Antoninus Pius adoptive father
Adopted Marcus as heir and became emperor in 138.2
Lucius Verus co-emperor
Adoptive brother who ruled beside Marcus from 161.2
Commodus son
Marcus's son and successor in 180.2
Arethas of Caesarea copyist
Bishop who had an old copy recopied before 907 and gave the first direct mention of the work.1
Wilhelm Xylander editor
Produced the first printed edition in 1558 or 1559, with a Latin translation.1
What it is about
Judge only impressions
Do not add to what first impressions report, and do not treat a report as harm.1
A cosmic view
See everything as coming from nature and returning to it.1
Control of anger
Rage is not manly; gentleness and civility are stronger.1
The logos
A rational order runs through all things, and clear thinking lets one live in harmony with it.1
Indifference to fame and wealth
Things outside one's control are neither good nor bad.1
In its own words
Begin the morning by saying to thyself, I shall meet with the busybody, the ungrateful, arrogant, deceitful, envious, unsocial. All these things happen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and evil.
Remember how long thou hast been putting off these things, and how often thou hast received an opportunity from the gods, and yet dost not use it.
Do not act as if thou wert going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over thee. While thou livest, while it is in thy power, be good.
Thou art a little soul bearing about a corpse, as Epictetus used to say. It is no evil for things to undergo change, and no good for things to subsist in consequence of change.
Remember that to change thy opinion and to follow him who corrects thy error is as consistent with freedom as it is to persist in thy error.
From my grandfather Verus I learned good morals and the government of my temper. From the reputation and remembrance of my father, modesty and a manly character.
The shape of the book
12 chapters, 45,372 words. Point at a bar.
How it came to be here
Marcus Aurelius ruled Rome from 161 to 180, a reign marked by war on the Danube frontier and by the Antonine plague. He wrote in Greek, and two books carry notes on where they were written: among the Quadi by the river Granova, and at Carnuntum. The earliest clear mention of the book dates from about the early 900s, when Arethas of Caesarea had a worn copy recopied. Wilhelm Xylander printed the first edition at Zurich in 1558 or 1559. George Long, a classical scholar, published his English translation in 1862.
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Sources
Text: PG 2680 | translator: George Long (SE). US public domain (Project Gutenberg licence).