Meditations
Translated by George Long
Marcus Aurelius records reflections on duty, judgment, mortality and living with other people. The twelve books repeatedly return to how a person can act according to reason amid change and uncertainty.
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The opening
Book I
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.
From my mother, piety and beneficence, and abstinence, not only from evil deeds, but even from evil thoughts; and further, simplicity in my way of living, far removed from the habits of the rich.
From my great-grandfather, not to have frequented public schools, and to have had good teachers at home, and to know that on such things a man should spend liberally.
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About this edition
- The words
- George Long's English translation, copied word for word.
- Copied from
Standard Ebooks; Meditations was written between 170 and 180 by Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus, Emperor of Rome.
It was translated from Koine Greek in 1862 by George Long. The creators of, and contributors to, this ebook dedicate their contributions to the worldwide public domain via the terms in the CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
- Left out
- The title page and opening pages before chapter 1
- Pictures and their captions
- Standard Ebooks' imprint
- Notes and pages added by translators, editors or publishers, in 2 places
- Notes about a stage production
- Standard Ebooks' public-domain dedication page
- Kept as written
Its references to slavery, warfare and the social and religious distinctions of its time are kept as the author wrote them.