Meditations
Read Meditations by Marcus Aurelius in German and English, a parallel text graded reader with audio. Available in CEFR levels A2, B1, and B2.
About this book
Written by lamplight in a campaign camp, among the Quadi by the river Granua, Meditations is the private notebook of a Roman emperor talking to himself. Marcus Aurelius never meant these pages for readers. He opens the first book by settling his debts, cataloguing what he owes to a grandfather who taught self-control, a mother who taught piety and plain living, teachers who first turned him toward philosophy, and a father whose steady temperament he describes at length, trait after unhurried trait.
Available editions
Read a sample
Von meinem Großvater Verus habe ich gute Sitten gelernt.
I learned good morals from my grandfather Verus.
Von ihm habe ich auch gelernt, meine Wut zu kontrollieren.
I also learned how to control my temper from him.
Mein Vater hatte einen guten Namen.
My father had a good name.
Die Menschen erinnerten sich gut an ihn.
People remembered him well.
Von ihm lernte ich, bescheiden zu sein.
From him, I learned to be modest.
Ich lernte auch, stark und mutig zu sein, wie ein echter Mann.
I also learned to be strong and brave, like a real man.
Von meiner Mutter habe ich gelernt, nett und fürsorglich zu sein.
From my mother, I learned to be kind and caring.
History
- Written by Marcus Aurelius in Ancient Greek
- Adapted by Line by Line Publishing in 2026