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The Wisdom of Marcus Aurelius

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It is said that the collected sayings of Marcus Aurelius are the best treatise on practical philosophy ever written. Living in Rome at a time when Stoicism and the legacy of Socrates' wisdom were resounding through the marketplace and Senate, Emperor Marcus Aurelius composed a series of meditations, designed to help people get through the stresses and strains of daily life.

Previous translations of Aurelius' aphorisms have often been somewhat archaic however Alan Jacobs' new `transcreation' is an easily accessible and yet deeply profound interpretation of Aurelius' work. Using free verse in modern-day language, Jacobs has skilfully translated Aurelius' insights into a smooth and exquisite exposition on the Truth and the meaning of life. And in the manner of the Stoics, Jacobs has successfully woven into his text the immortal strands of reason and mysticism:

So what will guide us?

I answer unequivocally -

Philosophy!

So keep your `will' free

from violence,

superior to pain and pleasure.

Never drift aimlessly

nor hypocritically,

but accepting all that

happens wholeheartedly

with a big yea-say!

Await death cheerfully

so the elements may be dissolved

and consciousness

return to its source.

Nothing is ever wrong if it follows

the `Nature of Things'.

To read regularly one or two verses from `The Spiritual Wisdom of Marcus Aurelius' is to remove oneself from the transitory nature of the day-to-day and be immersed in a transcendent wisdom, one which is as true for the Romans as it is for us today.

Alan Jacobs has published many books on the themes of mysticism and nondualist teachings, including, `The Wisdom of Balsekar: The Essence of Enlightenment from the World's Leading Teacher of Advaita', Watkins Publishing, 2004

just read any page when you are feeling depressed and you will see what Aurelius saw as the essential meaning of life and the gift of it all.