Modern Library 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.
In the tradition of The Art of Living and Marcus Aurelius' Meditations-a practical book of timeless advice from one of the most powerful individuals in history-available for the first time in a highly accessible translation, including several unique features for contemporary readers and users of daily wisdom guides. Essayist Matthew Arld described the man who wrote these words as the most beautiful figure in history. Possibly so, but he was certainly more than that. Marcus Aurelius ruled the Roman Empire at its height, yet he remained untainted by the incalculable wealth and absolute power that had corrupted many of his predecessors.
Emperor Handbook Meditation New Translation Quran Online
Marcus knew the secret of how to live the good life amid trying and often catastrophic circumstances, of how to find happiness and peace when surrounded by misery and turmoil, and of how to choose the harder right over the easier wrong without apparent regard for self-interest. The historian Michael Grant praises Marcus's book as the best ever written by a major ruler, and Josiah Bunting, superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute, calls it the essential book on character, leadership, duty. Never intended for publication, the Meditations contains the practical and inspiring wisdom by which this remarkable emperor lived the life t of a saintly recluse, but of a general, administrator, legislator, spouse, parent, and judge besieged on all sides. The Emperor's Handbook offers a vivid and fresh translation of this important piece of ancient literature. It brings Marcus's words to life and shows his wisdom to be as relevant today as it was in the second century. This book belongs on the desk and in the briefcase of every business executive, political leader, and military officer. It speaks to the soul of anyone who has ever exercised authority or faced adversity or believed in a better day.