Customer Reviews

Meditations

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One should have more than one translation for Meditations. Note this difference between Maxwell Staniforth's translation in 1964 (Penguin Classics) and Hay's 2002 translation in these two passages.

1964: When force of circumstance upsets your equanimity, lose no time in recovering your self-control, and do not remain out-of-tune longer than you can help. Habitual recurrence to the harmony will increase your mastery of it.

2002: When jarred, unavoidably, by circumstances, revert at once to yourself, and don't lose the rhythm more than you can help. You'll have a better grasp of the harmony if you keep going back to it.
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1964: Adapt yourself to the environment in which your life has been cast, and show true love to the fellow-mortals with whom destiny has surrounded you.

2002: The things ordained for you - teach yourself to be at one with those. And the people who share them with you - treat them with love. With real love.
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The 1964 version is regal, while the 2002 (Hays') version is Aurelius writing, quickly, in a spiral notebook while on horseback, the equivalent of "memo to myself."

Reading this book is like taking a cold shower, or visiting a favorite bartender, who insists on serving you coffee, not drink. Hays has brought us a Marcus Aurelius who puts his hand on your shoulder, looks you in the eye, and tells you like it is: Get over yourself. You can't change the world. Do your best and realize you are of this earth. Human experience is muddy, so what? This book is best read in tough times, when you could use a little steel in your spine.

This is my favorite translation of the meditations, an opinion further solidified yesterday when I went to the book store to get a last-minute graduation gift for a young man, and all they had was "The Emperor's Handbook" by the Hicks brothers. It was good, but I think it lacked the manliness and concise clarity of the Hays translation. I have not read the original Greek, (trying to learn some now!), so I'm no authority, but I imagine this is how a man like Marcus Aurelius might write to himself in this circumstance.

As for the greatness of the original work itself, all I can add to the other fine reviews here are two quotes I have always loved from Clifton Fadiman's "The Lifetime Reading Plan":

". . . during the last ten years of his life, by the light of a campfire, resting by the remote Danube after a wearisome day of marching or battle, he set down in Greek his Meditations, addressed only to himself but by good fortune now the property of us all," and, "Through the years The Golden Book of Marcus Aurelius, as it has been called, has been read by vast numbers of men and women. They have thought of it not as a classic but as a well spring of consolation and inspiration. It is one of the few books that seem to have helped men directly and immediately to live better, to bear with greater dignity and fortitude the burden of being merely human. Aristotle one studies. Marcus Aurelius men take to their hearts."

In the introduction to his translation of the "Meditations" Gregory Hays observes that "[I]t has been a generation since [The Meditations'] last English incarnation." Hays further explains that he has attempted to present a readable, modern translation of Marcus' great work which strill captures the "patchwork character of the original." I find that Hays's translation succeeds. He translates Marcus's reflections into a colloquial, frequently earthy, English in unstitled language and idiom that will be familiar to a modern reader. I think the translation is as well faithful to Marcus's thought. The reflective, meditative character of the paragraphs come through well, as does the difficulty of the text in many places. This is a book that will encourage the modern reader to approach Marcus -- an altogether commendable result.

Professor Hays has written an excellent introduction to his translation which can be read with benefit by those coming to the "Meditations" for the first time and by those familiar with the work. There is a brief discussion of Marcus's life, his philosophical studies, and his tenure as emperor of Rome (161-180 A.D.) Hays spends more time on the philosophical background of Marcus's thought emphasizing ancient stoicism and of the philosophy of Heraclitus. He discusses the concept of "logos", a critical term for Marcus and for later thought, and argues that logos -- or the common reason that pervades man and the universe -- is as much a process as it is a substance. This is difficult, but insightful.

Hays obviously has a great love for Marcus's book and has thought about it well. He is able to offer critical observations which will help the reader focus in studying the Meditations. (For example, Hays argues that Marcus does not understand or appreciate human joy very well. He also argues that Marcus's thought takes an overly static view of the nature of society and does not see the possiblity or need for societal change.) Hays discusses briefly the reception of the Meditiations over the centuries. I enjoyed in particular his references to the essays of Arnold and Brodsky on Marcus Aurelius. I haven't read these essays, but Hays's discussion makes me want to do so.

The Meditations is one of the great book of the West and will repay repeated readings. When I read it this time, I was struck by Marcus's devotion to his duties in life as the Roman emperor. I got the distinct impression that Marcus would have rather been at his studies but kept telling himself, in his writings, that he had to persevere and be the person he was meant to be. It is a focused approach, to say the least, to the duties to which one was called.

I was also impressed with the similarities at certain points between Marcus's thought and Buddhism. Other reviewers have also noted this similarity. Marcus talks repeatedly about the changing, impermanent character of human life and about the pervasive character of human suffering. He talks about controlling and ending suffering by understanding its causes and then changing one's life accordingly. There is a need to learn patience and to control anger and desire. More specifically, Marcus' understanding of perception and how it leads to desire and can be controlled by reason (discussed well in Hays's introduction.) is very Buddhist in tone. I have become interested in Buddhism and was struck in this reading of the Meditations by the parallels it offers to Buddhist thought.

There is a wonderful paragraph in the Meditations where Marcus urges himself to persevere and not to lose hope simply because he did not become a scholar or a hero or the person of his dreams. What matters is being a good person and living in harmony with one's nature. This passage spoke clearly and poignantly to me as I reread the Meditations. Undoubtedly, the reader will find passages in this book that are addressed clearly to him or her.

This is a book that should be read and pondered many times. Hays and the Modern Library have done readers a service with this translation.

If you are at all interested in the history of philosophical or theological thought, then you will want to acquaint yourself with the writings of Marcus Aurelius. In this work addressed to himself (he originally entitled it "To Myself" and it later came to be known as the "Meditations") he distills the essence of Stoicism, one of the most important and influential schools of classical philosophy. The Staniforth translation combines elegance and clarity, and the introduction and notes are excellent, so the Penguin edition is probably the one to go for, although some reviewers here seem to favor the Hays translation, which looks to be more direct and colloquial. Staniforth argues persuasively that Stoicism formed the rational basis for the fledgling Christian theology. (Interestingly, there is one, rather disparaging, reference to Christians in the text, which I suppose illustrates how significant the movement had become, a century after the death of its founder. Many scholars believe this to be an interpolation by a later author). Indeed, the similarity of this work to the late medieval "The Imitation of Christ" is striking. Part of the fascination of "Meditations" lies, of course, in the fact that Marcus was emperor of Rome, the greatest power on Earth at that time. We thus get an insight into the mind of an important historical character. This also means that much of what occupied him is hardly relevant to you or me. How many of us are plagued with sycophantic courtiers, or need to remind ourselves that the adulation of the mob may be short-lived? Yet it is clear that, despite all his power and privilege, Marcus was a troubled and pensive soul. One might say that "Meditations" is Stoicism for monarchs, whereas "The Imitation" is Stoicism for monks. If you enjoy one of those books, the chances are you will enjoy the other.

I picked up this more modern translation of this work, and phrases like 'junk' and 'if you keep putting things off' leapt out of the text. Consternation - did the Greek original actually have words like that? It was a 'modern' translation - 'modern' as in 'dumbing down'.

So I went looking for another translation, only 40 years old, but more faithful to the original, as in 'think of your many years of procrastination' rather than 'if you keep putting things off'. I don't view it as 'colloquial', I view it as patronising.

I'm sorry, but if you can't handle good English, and need the 'dumber' versions, then you're probably too dumb to appreciate the finer points of the work in the first place. Both versions were the same price, so that didn't influence my decision.

One reviewer mentioned it was translated from the Greek, and another reviewer corrected them as he was a Roman. If the second person had actually read the book correctly, he would have discovered that this book was written in Greek - thus another mark of the man.

Then you can sit back and invest your time in truly enjoying the thoughts & the musings of this interesting man.

Meditations is the kind of book you can just open up to any page and learn from, a still-relevant lesson about how to set priorities in what Socrates called the examined life. It is also a fascinating tour of the mind of Marcus Aurelius, the military leader, emperor, educator, philanthropist, and philosopher who remains one of history's most noble protagonists, and whose writings reveal the loneliness of his soul without being bitter.

This is a must-have book for the nightstand of anyone living a contemplative life, a profound precursor to modern self-help books written by a Renaissance man who lived centuries before the Renaissance.

There is no plot to summarize here, no accurate generalizations to be made. One gets the idea that these are thoughts the author jotted down, sometimes between appointments and sometimes after months of contemplation. Often they are obvious, sometimes they are obscure. They can seem rooted in history, and at times based on today's current events. They can be funny, surprising, or sad. But they are almost always worthwhile.

A final note: I have two editions of this book, and while I think both this one and the Hicks' translation are very good, I prefer this by a small degree.

"Meditations" was originally intended as a diary for the emperor himself. Yet, over the centuries it has become one of the most influential books ever written. It is nothing short of a guidebook to life: the book where an emperor, in his solitude, attempted to present the maxims, ideals, frustrations, and questions with which he wrestled. A profound, and extremely intimate, view of the world by an ancient master, this book is a classic for all....A TRUE MUST READ!

It's long overdue that the public receives a modernernized translation of Marcus Aurelius's "Meditations". Up until now, all the translations that we had available to us in English of this intriguing work have been, well, rather dull and "dry". All that is changed. Gregory Hayes has done some fine work here. I personally congratulate him, and thank him for his efforts.

I still wouldn't necessarily call this book a thrill-a-minute, page-turner of suspense, but thanks to a more contemporary language-treatment, the experience is a whole lot less burdensome to get through. The ride may not be the best fun you've ever had reading a book, but it's considerably less painful now, thanks to this "user-friendly" updated version.

Comparison to older translations shows it to be accurate in meaning and tone, and if he were alive today, I think Marcus Aurelius would recommend this version of his work for us (as modern readers) to enjoy for years to come.

I'm awestruck - just got this today. To think it was written over 1800 years ago! Aurelius combines strict adherence to doing the right thing with a wild and dark sense of humor. The translation is right to the point and reaches me where I'm at.

If you feel as if you're pulled in too many directions by the pressures of contemporary life, this book may help anchor you. It gave me the sense that the ordeals I face have been faced in similar ways for a long, long time. Circumstances have changed since the late Roman empire, and circumstances will doubtlessly change during the course of my life. Aurelius teaches me in the most direct terms how I can keep focus.

Here's an Aurelius quote that got me laughing:

"The way people behave. They refuse to admire their contemporaries, the people whose lives they share. No, but to be admired by Posterity - people they've never met and never will - that's what they set their hearts on. You might as well be upset by not being a hero to your great-grandfather."

One Amazon reviewer did a wonderful job including some other quotes from the work. There are many from which to choose.

You'll doubtlessly find a good, cheap copy from a marketplace seller here. Snatch it!

The Meditations are terse statements, aphorisms, notes, even reminders. Some are like fragmented dialogues, which I find fascinated. Some are very hard to get a hold of. Others remarkably clear. Summarizing them is hard, and surely misleading, but they seem frequently to stand against illusions and mistaken judgments, especially in the face of frustration, desire, fear, and anger. The positive dimension of this is harder to describe (maybe because I have yet to know it firsthand): calmness, purpose, self-control, and a true reckoning of what will matter in the end, as understood in terms of the harmony and essential order of all things. He can be difficult in places, but at other times it is as though he sees into your soul.

I think Marcus Aurelius will strike readers very differently based on where they are coming from. Some readers will resonate with his insistence on self-awareness, equanimity, and responsibility for one's own mental state and reactions. Other readers will be attracted by his ethical standards, commitment to the common good, and sense of divine harmony in all events. Others will simply enjoy his sobering reflection and insightful commentary on human nature. Historians will be fascinated with a look into the mind of a Roman emperor, seemingly untouched by the affairs of state (they are hardly mentioned in the text). Philosophers will enjoy learning about Stoic thought in praxis and how he's picked up the thought of other Greek thinkers (Epictetus, Chrysippus, Heraclitus, etc). Perhaps one of the most amazing things is how he might appeal equally to readers from very different backgrounds, a testament to the complexity of his thinking.

This particular edition comes with a very good introduction that answers questions of history, religion, philosophy, and thematic ideas. I highly recommend it to those interested in Marcus Aurelius and his philosophical thought. In addition, Gregory Hays is a masterful translator who, I think, has taken care to convey the meaning of the original Greek in appropriate English counterparts.

The first chapter is a beautiful one that describes Marcus Aurelius' gratitude to the many people that have positively influenced him, in each case telling what it is that he gained from them. Might we do the same someday ourselves? Though it is highly selective for me to do so (leaving out big chunks of what the book is like, especially the more obviously Stoic in form and content--such as the fleeting transience of life), below are just a few of my favorite quotes.

"The best revenge is not to be like that."

"You can hold your breath until you turn blue, but they'll still go on doing it."

"It was for the best. So nature had no choice but to do it."

"Forget the future. When and if it comes, you'll have the same resources to draw on--the same Logos."

"Remember that our efforts are subject to circumstances; you weren't aiming to do the impossible. --aiming to do what then? --To try. And you succeeded. What you set out to do is accomplished."

"Think of yourself as dead. You've lived your life. Now take what's left and live it properly."

"...people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly. They are like this because they can't tell good from evil. But I have seen the beauty of good, and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own--not of the same blood or birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine. And so none of them can hurt me. No one can implicate me in ugliness. Nor can I feel angry at my relative, or hate him..."