Marcus Aurelius

Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher (121–180 AD), the last of the so-called 'Five Good Emperors', educated from a young age in the Stoic tradition by teachers such as Junius Rusticus, who introduced him to Epictetus's Discourses, a work that forever shaped his thought. He ruled the Roman Empire from 161 until his death, one of the most demanding reigns in imperial history, marked almost without pause by wars on the Danubian frontier against Germanic and Sarmatian tribes, a devastating plague that decimated the empire's population, and the internal political strains of a colossal government. He wrote the Meditations — the original Greek title, Ta eis heauton, literally means 'to himself' — as a personal philosophical journal, probably during his military campaigns, with no intention of publishing it, which gives it a unique authenticity and intimacy among ancient philosophical texts: it is not a systematic treatise but a collection of exhortations, reminders and spiritual exercises the emperor addressed to himself in order to remain faithful to Stoic principles amid the overwhelming pressures of power. He repeatedly insists on the ephemeral nature of fame, wealth and even life itself; on serene acceptance of what does not depend on us; on the duty to fulfil one's social role with virtue, without expecting recognition; and on the rational unity of the universe (the logos) of which all beings form a part. Rediscovered and first published in the sixteenth century, the Meditations are today one of the most widely read texts of practical philosophy in all history, admired both for their moral depth and for the moving contrast between the most powerful man in the known world and his intimate struggle for humility and self-mastery.

3 works

• Meditations
• The Meditations of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
• Thoughts of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus