Book Summary Infographic – Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

Meditations is a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor from 161 to 180 AD, recording his private notes to himself and ideas on Stoic philosophy. He wrote the 12 books of the Meditations in Koine Greek as a source for his own guidance and self-improvement. It is unlikely that Marcus Aurelius ever intended the writings to be published and the work has no official title, so “Meditations” is one of several titles commonly assigned to the collection. These writings take the form of quotations varying in length from one sentence to long paragraphs.

Like the Bible, it can be opened to any page, and the passage will resonate with most people at various times in their life. Each passage stands by itself and is not dependent upon what had preceded it. Feel free to pick this one up sporadically, read a few passages, and not get confused about the plot and characters. Although the book was written in a manner easy to understand, it is anything but simplistic; it is profound and replete with wisdom. Furthermore, it should be read slowly so that you may absorb the words and delight in the meditations of Aurelius.

This infographic’s objective is to summarize 303 pages / ~45,700 words of this book into 8 simple points you can easily follow and digest. If you wish to dig deeper into this book after going through this infographic, click here to download this free ebook at StandardEbooks. We’ve also published other similar infographics that summarize other popular literatures, so feel free to go through any of them. Have fun!