Marcus Aurelius - The Meditations of an Emperor? Documentary 

Marcus Aurelius' writings helped me through boot camp, helped me through my suicidal thoughts, and even help me through my moments of self doubt. He is truly one of a kind

“When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love…” Marcus Aurelius

it will never not blow my mind, having read his book meditations, that a guy sitting on a field bed on campaign 2000 years ago thought about a lot of similar things , even in a similar way.

It’s amazing that one man’s notes that were never intended to be read by others is now inspiring so many people today!

"Go to the rising sun, for I am setting.” *-Last words of Marcus Aurelius and the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire*

I am 68 and have discovered that I have been, in many ways, living a stoic life without knowing anything about stoicism. I have over my years discovered many of the concepts by observing and thinking for myself, this was/is helped by my sigma type personality which allowed me to stand back from the crowd and not be swept up in latest fashions, crazes or just do what the group expects as normal. I did consider the possibility that I had sociopath or even psychopathic tendencies as I could be so detached from traumas. Watching videos like these has helped me clarify my thinking and understand myself

When Marcus Aurelius took on the job, he did it to the best of his ability…that I respect!! Sets a sound precedent for us all to live by. Do a job, do it well.

I think that Marcus grasped the idea that wealth was a tool and not an entitlement.

We need a documentary of Seneca and Epictetus. Please.

marcus aurelius philosophies helped me discover my inner strength, hail the late emperor, your words showed me the strength to govern how i feel and act was within me and my perception all along, and i took my power back. now i live free by one of marcus other great quotes, "wealth is unnecessary for he who has understood existence."

Congratulations on hitting 400k subs! Your content is fantastic! ⭐️

Marcus was really an amazing man, the only thing you can criticize him about is having raised such a horrible son. The two spent much time traveling together, how could he not see who Commodus was?

Love the man. What a great human. Power didn’t corrupt him. He was very in tune with the self. A real leader.

Not the greatest, but the wisest. The only real philosopher on an empires throne.

My favorite part is the first part. How they came to be is often overlooked in many historical documents. Congratulations!

"The best revenge is not be your enemy"

My favorite part was the early bit. So often overlooked HOW they became in many historical documentations. Cheers!

One of my favourite figures in history.

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He absolutely is somebody who any and all leaders in the world could use his leadership skills as a way to improve there country and indeed the world ! And I would go so far to say he is better than any of them !

The meditation is such a masterpiece, but also sad. It was made by a dying man in a place that can only be described as hell

Without any doubts one of the great minds in the ancient times is performed by Marcus Aurelius, even though he only wrote The Meditations and is considered the last of Stoics, his thoughts have come across to whom need a fresh air of hope and wisdom. He lived in accordance with he thought, even though he was a man with power, he did not lose how to deal against vanity, selfish, ego and authorities. Thak you for share.

I love listening to your voice. It’s incredibly soothing and holds my attention. Thank you. I have learned so much watching your videos. I turn on your videos all the time - though, admittedly, I watch some videos constantly because…well, I suppose we each have a particular part of history we all enjoy immensely.

Marcus is one of the GOATs of Philosophy. His positive influence on my life and the lives of billions of other people transcended millenia, and will hopefully continue to do so.

He was a just ruler in the time he lived, he cannot be judged by today's standards as we cannot be judged by standards of 4000ad

Marcus Aurelius wisdom shines brightly in this video. The last great emperor indeed. Thank you for sharing!

Marcus's son Commodus was so bad that the Gauls called the pits they defecated in by his name......(present day term commode).

I just read "Meditations" this past weekend on a business trip. Such a great read.

Wow thanks so much for this. Stoic philosophy concepts helped inspire contemporary psychology tools like CBT and REBT. Its amazing that people thousands of years ago had many of the same anxieties people today have. Theres an awful lot to admire about stoicism.

I mostly read the books of Eastern "sadhus" and "Gurus". The only western philosophy that I had read is Marcus. I liked it..

A great mind and a great emperor.

He liked Greece and wrote in Greek language so he was definitely one of the greatest...

Excellent, gentlemen. Very well done and filled with tons of factual detail. 👍👍

Thanks for a very interesting documentary! I find Marcus Aurelius fascinating, as he talked of an honourable way of living in "Mediations", and yet carried on with horrendous wars and campaigns, apparently seeing no contradictions in a beautiful way of thinking and a somewhat more violent life.

Marcus Aurelius had a vision of Rome: It was him. Emperors Julian, Aurelian, & Constantinople Palaeologus XI will always be in my fav's list; however, MA was the very MIND of the Roman Emperor.

Thorough and terrific. Thanks PP

Thank you, For Sharing all This Great data about Marcus Aurelius, I respect his Mindset he held a lot of Wisdom., 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾💎👑👍🍾

Came for Joe Wilkinson dressed in a Toga, stayed for the wisdom.

I really liked this video and I hope that you do a video on Emperor Commodus.

How exciting. Thanks.

Thank you for this piece.

*Fun fact:* Speaking of Marcus Aurelius, the Dokuha manga adaptation of his book "Meditations" magnificently depicted the Emperor's life from his youth as a student of Stoicism to his death in Pannonnia. Something really good about that manga was how it reduced the sensationalism and the black legend when it came to depicting Commodus (who is represented here as a normal boy and not as a madman who believes himself to be Hercules reincarnated) and Faustina (who dies of old age and being a faithful wife instead of being killed by her husband for betraying him in order to crown a general)

Inspirational philosopher/genius. Great share, thanks..

Thank you for your effort.

Been worded a bit differently depending on which website you visit, but this is one of my favorites of the Great Emperor.... "A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions" -Marcus Aurelius

Inspirational

Really aurelius writings are the most encouraging

Great video for a great man. I named my daughter Aurelia after this man because he was and is still a great idol.

Thank you.. 🌼

Seriously how the hell did his son end up so opposite to him?

Very good thanks.

I love this channel

Lovely video

Amazing Video! Can you make one on Oliver Cromwell?

At 20:50 that shephard is making a joke. He said "the horsemen steal the most" but in Latin "Horsemen" - Is Equite, the same word the romans uses for rich people. He is telling Marcus Aurelius that the rich people of Rome are the real thieves!

The Bull, anointed by Mars. A man of fine sensibilities, tact, and assessments. It is as if he realized in his writings that he was reaching out across many future centuries to instill the common with the uncommon observations as reference notations to any man willing to keep his own ego in check.

"To be like the rock that the waves keep crashing over. It stands unmoved and the raging of the sea falls still around it." This quote changed my life

If every Emperor were as skilled, intelligent, and level-headed as Marcus Aurelius, The Roman line of Emperors would have been just fine. Problem is, virtually none were. Seemed like Rome ended up with a dozen or so shitbag Emperors for every Marcus Aurelius or Augustus Caesar.

Thank you very much

40:29 I was waiting on that sleeve 🔥 🔥

This is awesome 👌

Marcus was a brilliant mind whose foresight and penchant for introspection allowed him to peer into a well of understanding deeply embedded in all human beings, and in that regard, was nothing special. the understanding of oneself and the perception of the cyclical nature of life is no more admirable or remarkable than the performance of a skilled mathematician or a trained musician. skill is the fruit of training and determination, training is made possible by skill and determination. therefore, all that can be said about the man is that he was determined and executed his role faithfully unto the end, performing the task as ably as he could given what he had. his skill and training were inextricable, and mutually arose out of the comingling of a deeply felt sense of duty and honor alongside an environment which fostered it. it should be noted that he was not a very insightful philosopher at all, even by the standards of his time. this is surely in part due to him not having much time to dedicate to the craft, but also because he eschewed formality and rhetoric in his private mind. there are no formative arguments or logical deductions as one might find in Plato or Aristotle's works, no dialectics as the Greek sages who frequented the Stoa of Athens had formed for him to study, he just skipped right to the conclusion and wrote aphorisms as they gestated from the crucible of his life experience. how remarkable it is then that such a terse and comparatively rustic man should have inspired so many great and powerful minds to aspire to fulfill their potential and advance the field of philosophy in the humanistic dimension as Marcus was so utterly enthralled and committed. I'm sure if he were alive today, he would be immensely proud of the achievements of those who bore the fruits of his insight, but regard his own work as Bertrand Russel once did stoic philosophy in general: "We can't be happy, but we can be good; let us therefore pretend that, so long as we are good, it doesn't matter being unhappy." Marcus lived and died denying himself for the glory of the Empire, perhaps falsely believing that by being utterly devoted to living a temperate and modest life, others would see it and be moved to reform their excesses and look to the Logos for inspiration and altruism to take their place. he mentions multiple times in his meditations that it doesn't matter what others think or how they react, so long as he remains committed to virtue and service, but he cared deeply about the reformation of others and elevating their consciousness to a "cosmic perspective", which is to say, help them understand how small and insignificant their individual ambitions and perceptions are when compared to the enormity of complexity in every dimension of all life on Earth- Commodus saw fit to immediately dispel such lofty notions, and formalized Christianity would later rise to steal and warp this concept with the fashioning of the catholic church into a tool of yet still more domination and slavery. it is ironic that, had he instead sought to coopt the burgeoning faith that he had allowed through inaction to be slaughtered mercilessly, but with which he shared so many deeply rooted convictions, perhaps the direction of Christianity might have taken a different path. Imagine if the Roman state syncretized the volatile politics of that tumultuous Jewish cult into an official state college of Gnostic thought which was completely compatible with the stoic philosophy Marcus embodied. many gnostic groups were popular in Greece at the time, and it was not until Trent, and more so Nicaea, that the potential for cultural inclusivity would be utterly rejected and persecuted into damnatio memoriae. this is a haphazard essay that doesn't really discuss the things he did right- mostly because the video already did that for us. still though, it should be said that, perhaps the greatest evidence to support his reign as the greatest of all Roman emperors is that he never dipped his toga in the purple, despite countless decades of precedent providing him opportunities. rather than judge such a claim by merit of conquest or wealth, it should always and forever be so by depth of virtue and commitment to serving humanity. thanks for reading.

Very interesting

Thanks.

Allowing the Pretorian guard to dictate who becomes emperor is equivalent to allowing the media to determine who wins elections: traderjoes

Super videos, I wonder from what country you are from?

As a balanced approach to the ending question, I believe that Marcus Aurelius, while objectively speaking was generally an upstanding person, especially by the standards of history going for thousands of years before and after his life, he was still at the end of the day human, with flaws and beliefs that while today we would disagree with, were popular and widely accepted at the time, and a case could be made for them with their knowledge of how the world worked. Marcus Aurelius as the last of the 5 good emperor's probably embodies this the most, while for the most part an outstanding ruler, he was flawed in his beliefs surrounding and dealing with contemporary Christians, as Christians and other religious practitioners would do later. As a Christian myself, I will recall that we are called to love all despite their flaws and their hatred of us, and pray for their souls, that does not mean however that I condone or agree with their actions, only that I can make an effort to understand and appreciate the realities of their lives.

Great choice guys, & plenty more Romans please 🙏 keep up great work 👍

My Mentor. My ruler that made me straight. The greatest king to ever live

A reluctant ruler, similar to so many of our founding fathers in America, such as John Adams, George Washington, john Quincy Adams etc.. unfortunately, it is over.

Legend !

good video

Interesting! Didn’t know that Marcus Aurelius was taking medication that had opium in it. I have yet to read his meditations but now I’m curious as to why people think that the medication may have influenced some of his imagery and themes of his writings.

“You knew Marcus Aurelius”

It’s sad how many people have no idea about him other than the movie Gladiator

I agree! A pillar of humanity!

I thought i knew everything about him and yet i still learned something new. But he would definitely would have been killed off in today’s time.

"The impediment to action advances action ,what stands in the way becomes the way" Marcus aurelius

I think you're mistaking Marcus Aurelius Antoninus for Joe Wilkinson...?

Salute Princepts, You Approached Those She(e)pards In Peace, Who Took Umbrage, Offence Cause: A loose word (defamatory), Pursued Affect: Would See It's Issuer Humbled! Be Nice! Lol 🙏🏾 It's Nice2bNice! Highly Respect His Handling Of Bereavement nee Loyalty, In The Former Not Bringing It To Bear Until Aptly In The Meditations! Saddened! A Seemingly Judicious Likeable Lacking Any Form Of Emphathy, Recognise Bravery In faithful Humans Sincere Kind Says Much Decried Death On A Whim Whose Pride, Would Could He Denied! 🙏🏾

Book Recommendation: "THE WISDOM OF MARCUS AURELIUS: Selected Thoughts and Quotes for a Fulfilled Life"

5:27 student with laptop??

you memtion he had some trouble with the Moors !! please re-clarify?? as best i know the Moors only rose to power after the 630. so how is this possible ??

Excellent. But I do think that's Paul McCartney with a beard.

You really turned the life of one of histories greatest men into one of histories greatest snorefests

33:58 - marcus stays by a sick lucius' side

Quite interesting Stoicism and seems to be a kind of pantheism but with elements of panentheism too although with weak pantheism and strong panentheism they sort of flow into each other.Shame that our plutocrats today couldn't learn humility bang goes my invite to Necker Island or Space X HQ!

Is the thumbnail of Paul mccartney? Haha

Reflections. Occidental people don't know the difference between Meditations and Reflections. This problem hurts many people including the military that develop lots of stress.

It’s warms my heart to to know that one of the best Roman emperors ever also had a weak pull out game.

My name is Marcus to

The great Marcus Aurelius big respect and admiration i like him and Julius Caesar very smart guys

Augustus is the greatest

1:03 what's the age of his mother again?

Aurelius Dumbledore, I also heard another name mentioned which was Septimus Severus. Septimus was the name of Arthur Weasley's father and we all know of Severus Snape. Minerva McGonagall was named after her witch grandmother. Minerva was a Roman Goddess. They had actually found a temple dedicated to the Goddess Minerva in Britain not too long ago

At highly speed are mentioned all the years A. D. but It would be very nice and useful to know the age of each one of them when developments occurred. Not only in what year things happened. I couldn’t be in the speaker narrator shoes… He deserves what he got Paid 😅 until the last cents

Please make a documentary on Bruce Lee😊

The thumbnail looks like Paul McCartney 😁

Just imagine being born into this society

Looks like Paul McCartney...