Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
I was watching a video by Eckhart Tolle a few weeks ago and he mentioned Marcus Aurelius. I can’t remember the reference or video (I watch a lot of Eckhart) but it chimed with me. I first discovered Aurelius years ago when I read Montaignes essays, who was particularly fond of a quote.
That was my introduction to the stoics, and I always intended to get to Aurelius but it has taken me until now to do so.
The Philosopher King
Aurelius was both an emperor and philosopher, and this book was intended for himself. It contains his reflections on life, and there’s a simplicity to it that strikes a chord throughout. It’s a fascinating glimpse into the Greco-Roman mind, and there’s something grounding about the fact that here was one of the worlds most powerful men, and just like us he is struggling with self doubt, mortality and his place in the universe.
Even though the book was written back in 180 AD, nearly 2000 years ago, so much of it still rings true. I have written elsewhere about my battle my focus, something I know many of us struggle with .
“...because most of what we say and do is not essential. If you can eliminate it, you'll have more time and more tranquillity. Ask yourself at every moment, is this necessary…”
I’ve been reading a lot about non-dualism recently, and the work of the Stoics and Aurelius really dovetails nicely.
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”
Buddhism as well is an influence, as can be seen with these two quotes. First we have Buddha:
“We are what we think, all that we are arises with our thoughts, with our thoughts we make the world.”
And Marcus Aurelius comes up with:
“The soul becomes dyed with the colour of its thoughts.”
There may seem to be a lot of repetition in the book, but that’s because Aurelius consistently refers to the importance of virtue, rationality and self control.
Audiobook
I enjoyed the narration by Richard Armitage; it had a gravitas and calmness that made it easy to listen to. But in the end I found it annoying to listen to on audiobook, as I kept having to stop and rewind to listen again to the nuggets of wisdom contained within. I’d much prefer to enjoy lingering over the words and meaning in book form and for that reason I don’t think I’d listen to a philosophy book again. He obviously felt the same way himself :
"To read carefully, and not to be satisfied with a superficial understanding of a book."
Marcus Aurelius Meditations Summary
As much as I enjoyed this audiobook, I’ll be picking up a copy of ‘meditations’ by Marcus Aurelius. It’s not a book to be ‘consumed’ over the space of a week. I mentioned earlier that I have a collection of Montaigne’s writings, and this is a book to be enjoyed in the same way; timeless wisdom to be absorbed in small doses.
256 Pages - Penguin - 6hrs and 18 Minutes read by Richard Armitage