Meditations

Who it's for

These are private notes a Roman emperor wrote to himself, partly while on military campaign along the Danube, never meant for publication.

Feelings it meets

• Anxiety
• Resentment
• Existential Anxiety
• Stress
• Mortality
• Overthinking
• Burnout

What it is

Meditations is a series of private notes written in Koine Greek by the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, roughly between 170 and 180 CE, partly while he was on military campaigns.

Where to find it

Public domain in older translations: George Long's translation is free on Project Gutenberg and Standard Ebooks. Gregory Hays's modern translation (Modern Library) is in print; libraries (Libby/Hoopla.

Before you start

Heads up: Blunt reflections on death.

Age: Ages 14+

And if it is a fear you would dispel, the seat of that fear is in your heart and not in the hand of the feared.Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet, “On Freedom”