Marcus Antonius
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Marcvs Avrelivs Antoninus, the Roman emperor : His meditations concerning himselfe: treating of a natvrall mans happinesse; wherein it consisteth, and of the meanes to attaine unto it
The Dial's edition: London, 1534
"At what time soever thou wilt, it is in thy power to retire into thyself, and to be at rest. A man cannot any whither retire better than to his own soul."
Meditations is Marcus Aurelius's Greek-language hypomnēmata—a set of personal philosophical 'notes to self' composed largely during the Danubian campaigns (c. 170s CE) and not intended for publication. Written within the tradition of Stoic moral pedagogy, it functions as a disciplined exercise in askēsis: Marcus rehearses core doctrines (the rule of judgment, the governance of impressions, providence/nature, cosmopolitan duty) in order to stabilize the self amid contingency, pain, and political responsibility.
Read by Emerson (see Emerson's Reading) & Emerson (see Emerson's Library)
