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Marcus
Aurelius - Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus (121-180 AD) was emperor of Rome from 161
AD till his death in 180 AD. He was notable among Roman
emperors as he was a devotee to the study and practice of philosophy. History implies that Marcus also served as a priest to the Roman state religion. The influence of the
early Christian Church became widespread during his reign and the ethics of the last pagan ruler of Europe lives
on today. The Emperors Stoic beliefs could be categorized as:
Monist Pantheism or Naturalistic Pantheism. Consider that in his
meditations, the Emperor references various venerable philosophers such as: Heraclitus, Pythagoras, Socrates,
Archimedes, Plato, Socrates, Alexander, Caius, Pompey, and multitudes of other great teachers, prophets, warriors, and gurus.
As an example, Pythagoras 570 – d. about 495 BC of Greece and later Italy, may be the oldest known living guru/prophet of his time who has been
proven to be a real and existing person in the 6th century
B.C. Notice that included in these ancient virtues and spiritual principles
are most if not all of the noble 8 fold path of Siddhārtha
Gautama Buddha approx 563 BCE to 483 BCE. It should also be noted that Alexander the Great’s campaigns and Vedic
Ethics seem to have had a powerful cross pollinating influence in North Western India 327–325 BC while Buddhism was in its infancy. As a reference, notice in the Meditations how many if not all of the concepts of the Noble Eight Fold Path are included. Because Alexander was a student of Aristotle who was
taught by Socrates and Plato, the chain and ripple effect of
knowledge, philosophy and ethics is widespread throughout Asia and upon Europe as well.
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