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Gedaan op FB.A very interesting read which provides a lot of food for thought.Marcus Aurelius' spiritual teachings is the type of book you want to keep lying around and read a page or two at a time. His stoic type of philosophy is very clean and concise, his ideas are easy to understand and give us new insights. They are usable in daily life, at home as well as at work.
The assorted notes and reflections of the great Stoic emperor, Marcus Aurelius, with an introduction and notes on Marcus' brand of Stoicism. An interesting selection, which could be much improved by reference to the original Greek text.
Forstater gives a great introduction to Aurelius' meditations.
Interesting, and some powerful quotes, but I feel like one needs to have read the Meditations first to get the full benefit, which I unfortunately hadn't. Hopefully that will change soon and I'll give this book another go.
Excellent!
I am not loving this Roman emperor.His writings were referred to in the last two novels I read, East of Eden and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. One character in Potato Peel book, referring to this book of thoughts, says:"Marcus Aurelius was an old woman---forever taking his mind's temperature---forever wondering about what he had done, or what he had not done. Was he right--or was he wrong? Was the rest of the world in error? Could it be him instead? No, it was everybody else...
maybe i like the author's foreword more than the Emperor's wise words - but it's quite remarkable that his majesty had time to ponder and wrote all these in between fighting wars against the barbarians at the borders. To think that modern day leaders of free nations like Dubya can send troops abroad, had time for holidays, and can't be bothered to even contemplate his own decisions. The book provides quick relief to those who sometimes feel "lost" in the fast pace of life in the 21st century.
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/14338731
Men like Marcus Aurelius come along once in a lifetime. Our leaders today would do well to look to him for inspiration.
Enjoyed reading these quotes. This is one of those books that is nice to have on your bookshelf to refer to and flick through from time to time.
This is a good book if you don’t yet intend to read the entire of ‘Meditations’ because this book has the introduction to start and then a collection of lines from ‘Meditations’. I recommend to get the most out of this book that you read the first 100 pages and then go on to reading the official copy of ‘Meditations’.
This book is a lot more enjoyable to read if you don't know much about Marcus Aurelius' thinking and writing than if you do. The author, who obviously is far more fond of stoicism than I am and of the delusion that the ancient and sterile and self-contradictory worldview is relevant to contemporaries in a way that biblical religion is not, does not make this book an easy one to enjoy. On the one hand, Marcus Aurelius is certainly an enjoyable philosopher to read regardless of one's background,...
Una edición de textos seleccionados por Forstater con un cuidado exquisito para hacer especialmente pertinente y penetrante el mensaje estoico del emperador.Un libro de cabecera para vivir y morir.Existe una magnífica y cuidada edición española de RBA, aunque hasta donde sé es dificilísima de conseguir.
This books is calming and good to read when you feel stressful. It teaches you that it’s ok to be human and to be kind especially to yourself.
This book gives an overview of stoicism and then catalogues short-to-medium length quotes from the roman emperor's personal journals. So you're basically getting life advice from the philosopher king, but it's in the form of him trying to psyche himself up, which is kind of adorable. The translation and the book's format are not the most amazing, but it's great material and a good book to have for quick reference.
I had high expectations for this classic book and did get a few useful quotes from it, (e.g. "If it's not right, don't do it: If it's not true, don't say it. Keep your impulses in reserve."), but was generally underwhelmed.
A lot of philosophy that I have been reading seems to have been written by people who really, really, really like math. I really like math, but not enough to want to have to revisit high school algebra and geometry to understand what they are trying to say. Marcus Aurelius doesn't say anything about math, and that alone makes this a good book. Very well edited, easy to read, certainly the type of book to keep handy and flip through a few pages at a time. Obviously the book is more enjoyable if y...
I'm trying to read as many incarnations of Meditations as possible, so as to internalize them. When did I get so interested in philosophy?"If it's not right, don't do it: if it's not true, don't say it." (p. 144)"For the power of mind is as universal and pervasive to the person willing to draw it in, as is the power of air to the person able to breathe." (p. 172)"Remember that to change your mind and to follow someone who corrects your error is not to be less free. For this change is your own, a...
This book consists of two parts. First, there is a section that lines out how the book came to be, how it is structured, the life of Marcus Aurelius and the basic tenets of the Stoic philosophy. Second, there is a selection of about half the meditations Marcus Aurelius wrote, which have been re-categorized and are in updated language. Section One seemed somewhat overlong and in need of tighter organization, but fulfilled its role with a light touch that is beneficial to newcomers. The actual med...
A collection of musings in the stoic tradition. Some wise others mysterious, but not a cogent philosophy or even organized in anyway. Some good quotes, but if your looking for sustained dialogue, this isn't it.