The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius are treasured today--as they have been over the centuries--as an inexhaustible source of wisdom. And as one of the three most important expressions of Stoicism, this is an essential text for everyone interested in ancient religion and philosophy. Yet the clarity and ease of the work's style are deceptive. Pierre Hadot, eminent historian of ancient thought, uncovers new levels of meaning and expands our understanding of its underlying philosophy.

Written by the Roman emperor for his own private guidance and self-admonition, the Meditations set forth principles for living a good and just life. Hadot probes Marcus Aurelius's guidelines and convictions and discerns the hitherto unperceived conceptual system that grounds them. Abundantly quoting the Meditations to illustrate his analysis, the author allows Marcus Aurelius to speak directly to the reader. And Hadot unfolds for us the philosophical context of the Meditations, commenting on the philosophers Marcus Aurelius read and giving special attention to the teachings of Epictetus, whose disciple he was.

The soul, the guiding principle within us, is in Marcus Aurelius's Stoic philosophy an inviolable stronghold of freedom, the inner citadel. This spirited and engaging study of his thought offers a fresh picture of the fascinating philosopher-emperor, a fuller understanding of the tradition and doctrines of Stoicism, and rich insight on the culture of the Roman empire in the second century. Pierre Hadot has been working on Marcus Aurelius for more than twenty years; in this book he distills his analysis and conclusions with extraordinary lucidity for the general reader.

A magisterial mappa mundi of the terrain that Pierre Hadot has so productively worked for decades, this ambitious work revises our view of ancient philosophy--and in doing so, proposes that we change the way we see philosophy itself. Hadot takes ancient philosophy out of its customary realm of names, dates, and arid abstractions and plants it squarely in the thick of life. Through a meticulous historical reading, he shows how the various schools, trends, and ideas of ancient Greek and Roman philosophy all tended toward one goal: to provide a means for achieving happiness in this life, by transforming the individual's mode of perceiving and being in the world.

Most pressing for Hadot is the question of how the ancients conceived of philosophy. He argues in great detail, systematically covering the ideas of the earliest Greek thinkers, Hellenistic philosophy, and late antiquity, that ancient philosophers were concerned not just to develop philosophical theories, but to practice philosophy as a way of life--a way of life to be suggested, illuminated, and justified by their philosophical discourse. For the ancients, philosophical theory and the philosophical way of life were inseparably linked.

What Is Ancient Philosophy? also explains why this connection broke down, most conspicuously in the case of academic, professional philosophers, especially under the influence of Christianity. Finally, Hadot turns to the question of whether and how this connection might be reestablished. Even as it brings ancient thoughts and thinkers to life, this invigorating work provides direction for those who wish to improve their lives by means of genuine philosophical thought.

This book presents a history of spiritual exercises from Socrates to early Christianity, an account of their decline in modern philosophy, and a discussion of the different conceptions of philosophy that have accompanied the trajectory and fate of the theory and practice of spiritual exercises. Hadot's book demonstrates the extent to which philosophy has been, and still is, above all else a way of seeing and of being in the world.

One of the most influential historians of ancient philosophy of the past half-century, Pierre Hadot was adept at using ancient philosophers to illuminate the relevance of their ideas to contemporary life. This new edition of The Present Alone is Our Happiness, which has been significantly revised and expanded to include two previously untranslated essays, is an ideal introduction to some of Hadot's more scholarly work. In it, we discover that to be an Epicurean is not merely to think like one; it is to adopt a way of living where limiting desires is the condition for happiness. Being an Aristotelian, similarly, is to choose a life that involves contemplation, and being a Cynic is to follow Diogenes in his refusal of quotidian convention and the mentality of ordinary people. If so many ancient philosophers founded schools, Hadot explains, it was precisely because they were proposing how to live life on a daily basis. We learn here that the history of philosophy has been something more than just that of a discourse. The founding texts of Greek philosophy, after all, were notes taken from oral exercises undertaken in concrete circumstances and contexts, most often a dialogue between students and specific interlocutors who meant to shed light on their students' real existence. The immense contribution of this book, which also traces Hadot's own personal itinerary in a touching manner, is to remind us, through direct language and numerous examples, what the theoretical aspect of philosophy often masks: its vital and existential dimensions.

The esteemed French philosopher Pierre Hadot's final work, now available in English.
With a foreword by Arnold I. Davidson and Daniele Lorenzini.

In his final book, renowned philosopher Pierre Hadot explores Goethe's relationship with ancient spiritual exercises--transformative acts of intellect, imagination, or will. Goethe sought both an intense experience of the present moment as well as a kind of cosmic consciousness, both of which are rooted in ancient philosophical practices. These practices shaped Goethe's audacious contrast to the traditional maxim memento mori (Don't forget that you will die) with the aim of transforming our ordinary consciousness. Ultimately, Hadot reveals how Goethe cultivated a deep love for life that brings to the forefront a new maxim: Don't forget to live.

In this book of brilliantly erudite and precise discussions, Pierre Hadot explains that for the Ancients philosophy was not reducible to the building of a theoretical system: it was above all a choice about how to live one's life.

One of the most influential historians of ancient philosophy in the world today, Hadot is adept at using ancient philosophers to illuminate the relevance of their ideas to contemporary life. In this book, which is an ideal introduction to Hadot's more scholarly What is Ancient Philosophy?, we learn that to be an Epicurean is not merely to think like one; it is to adopt a way of living where limiting desires is the condition for happiness. Being an Aristotelian, similarly, is to choose a life that involves contemplation, and being a Cynic is to follow Diogenes in his refusal of quotidian convention and the mentality of ordinary people. If so many Ancient philosophers founded schools, Hadot explains, it was precisely because they were proposing how to live life on a daily basis. We learn here that the history of philosophy has been something more than just that of a discourse. The founding texts of Greek philosophy, after all, were notes taken from oral exercises undertaken in concrete circumstances and contexts, most often a dialogue between students and specific interlocutors who meant to shed light on their students' real existence. The immense contribution of this book, which also traces Hadot's own personal itinerary in a touching manner, is to remind us, through direct language and numerous examples, what the theoretical aspect of philosophy often masks: its vital and existential dimensions.

This collection of writings from Pierre Hadot (1992-2010) presents, for the first time, previously unreleased and in some cases untranslated materials from one of the world's most prominent classical philosophers and historians of thought.

As a passionate proponent of philosophy as a 'way of life' (most powerfully communicated in the life of Socrates), Pierre Hadot rejuvenated interest in the ancient philosophers and developed a philosophy based on their work which is peculiarly contemporary. His radical recasting of philosophy in the West was both provocative and substantial. Indeed, Michel Foucault cites Pierre Hadot as a major influence on his work.

This beautifully written, lucid collection of writings will not only be of interest to historians, classicists and philosophers but also those interested in nourishing, as Pierre Hadot himself might have put it, a 'spiritual life'.

Since its original publication in France in 1963, Pierre Hadot's lively philosophical portrait of Plotinus remains the preeminent introduction to the man and his thought. Michael Chase's lucid translation--complete with a useful chronology and analytical bibliography--at last makes this book available to the English-speaking world.

Hadot carefully examines Plotinus's views on the self, existence, love, virtue, gentleness, and solitude. He shows that Plotinus, like other philosophers of his day, believed that Plato and Aristotle had already articulated the essential truths; for him, the purpose of practicing philosophy was not to profess new truths but to engage in spiritual exercises so as to live philosophically. Seen in this light, Plotinus's counsel against fixation on the body and all earthly matters stemmed not from disgust or fear, but rather from his awareness of the negative effect that bodily preoccupation and material concern could have on spiritual exercises.

This collection of writings from Pierre Hadot (1992-2010) presents, for the first time, previously unreleased and in some cases untranslated materials from one of the world's most prominent classical philosophers and historians of thought.

As a passionate proponent of philosophy as a 'way of life' (most powerfully communicated in the life of Socrates), Pierre Hadot rejuvenated interest in the ancient philosophers and developed a philosophy based on their work which is peculiarly contemporary. His radical recasting of philosophy in the West was both provocative and substantial. Indeed, Michel Foucault cites Pierre Hadot as a major influence on his work.

This beautifully written, lucid collection of writings will not only be of interest to historians, classicists and philosophers but also those interested in nourishing, as Pierre Hadot himself might have put it, a 'spiritual life'.

Le philosophe n'apprend pas aux hommes un metier particulier, [...] mais il cherche a transformer leur sensibilite, leur caractere, leur maniere de voir le monde ou d'etre en rapport avec les autres hommes. On pourrait dire qu'il leur apprend le metier d'homme. Si la tache de la philosophie est de former plutot que d'informer, la philosophie est precisement l'education des adultes. C'est en ces termes que Pierre Hadot evoque une conception de la philosophie comme maniere de vivre que toute son oeuvre aura brillamment contribue a reactiver. Grand lecteur des philosophes antiques, de Socrate et Platon a Epictete, Marc Aurele et Plotin, mais aussi des philosophes modernes ou contemporains, de Montaigne et Descartes a Nietzsche et Merleau-Ponty, dans ce recueil de textes - introuvables ou inedits - Pierre Hadot relit l'histoire de la pensee afin de nous aider a reorienter notre vie et a reapprendre a voir le monde. Ces textes temoignent de sa capacite de parler a la fois au public universitaire et aux non specialistes passionnes de philosophie. On y reconnait toujours la clarte et la puissance de sa pensee. Sommes-nous prets a etre (trans)formes par la philosophie?

Nearly twenty-five hundred years ago the Greek thinker Heraclitus supposedly uttered the cryptic words Phusis kruptesthai philei. How the aphorism, usually translated as Nature loves to hide, has haunted Western culture ever since is the subject of this engaging study by Pierre Hadot. Taking the allegorical figure of the veiled goddess Isis as a guide, and drawing on the work of both the ancients and later thinkers such as Goethe, Rilke, Wittgenstein, and Heidegger, Hadot traces successive interpretations of Heraclitus' words. Over time, Hadot finds, Nature loves to hide has meant that all that lives tends to die; that Nature wraps herself in myths; and (for Heidegger) that Being unveils as it veils itself. Meanwhile the pronouncement has been used to explain everything from the opacity of the natural world to our modern angst.

From these kaleidoscopic exegeses and usages emerge two contradictory approaches to nature: the Promethean, or experimental-questing, approach, which embraces technology as a means of tearing the veil from Nature and revealing her secrets; and the Orphic, or contemplative-poetic, approach, according to which such a denuding of Nature is a grave trespass. In place of these two attitudes Hadot proposes one suggested by the Romantic vision of Rousseau, Goethe, and Schelling, who saw in the veiled Isis an allegorical expression of the sublime. Nature is art and art is nature, Hadot writes, inviting us to embrace Isis and all she represents: art makes us intensely aware of how completely we ourselves are not merely surrounded by nature but also part of nature.

In this book of brilliantly erudite and precise discussions, Pierre Hadot explains that for the Ancients philosophy was not reducible to the building of a theoretical system: it was above all a choice about how to live one's life.

One of the most influential historians of ancient philosophy in the world today, Hadot is adept at using ancient philosophers to illuminate the relevance of their ideas to contemporary life. In this book, which is an ideal introduction to Hadot's more scholarly What is Ancient Philosophy?, we learn that to be an Epicurean is not merely to think like one; it is to adopt a way of living where limiting desires is the condition for happiness. Being an Aristotelian, similarly, is to choose a life that involves contemplation, and being a Cynic is to follow Diogenes in his refusal of quotidian convention and the mentality of ordinary people. If so many Ancient philosophers founded schools, Hadot explains, it was precisely because they were proposing how to live life on a daily basis. We learn here that the history of philosophy has been something more than just that of a discourse. The founding texts of Greek philosophy, after all, were notes taken from oral exercises undertaken in concrete circumstances and contexts, most often a dialogue between students and specific interlocutors who meant to shed light on their students' real existence. The immense contribution of this book, which also traces Hadot's own personal itinerary in a touching manner, is to remind us, through direct language and numerous examples, what the theoretical aspect of philosophy often masks: its vital and existential dimensions.

L'empereur philosophe eut un regne particulierement difficile: inondations, famines, epidemie se succedaient tandis qu'aux frontieres la menace des Parthes et des Germains devenait toujours plus inquietante. Entre deux batailles et deux expeditions, Marc-Aurele notait ses reflexions et ses preceptes quand l'exercice du pouvoir lui en laissait le temps. C'est ainsi que les Ecrits pour lui-meme aurait ete retrouve par un proche peu de temps apres sa mort en mars 180, pres de Vienne et des l'Antiquite les eloges ne firent pas defaut au petit livre de l'empereur Marc . D'un ton tres personnel, l'ouvrage se fait l'echo du dialogue interieur entre le politique et le philosophe, entre Cesar et Marc. Ces ecrits toutefois sont destines aux autres: l'auteur convie le lecteur a ce dialogue et n'a de cesse de lui glisser, au creux de l'oreille, ses preceptes emprunts d'une grave sagesse et d'une profonde lucidite. Le tome I de notre edition des oeuvres de Marc-Aurele contient le premier livre des Ecrits pour lui-meme, assorti de la riche introduction generale. Celle-ci, fruit de l'inestimable travail de Pierre Hadot retrace brievement la vie de Marc-Aurele ainsi que les principaux evenements de son regne, avant de proposer une analyse lumineuse et erudite du texte. Les differentes hypotheses les plus marquantes et les plus recentes sur l'auteur sont presentees et discutees, de meme que la fortune du livre dans l'Antiquite. La pensee, aussi originale que fondamentale, de Marc-Aurele, fait l'objet d'une interpretation scrupuleuse, de meme que le genre litteraire dans lequel s'inscrit le texte. L'histoire de la tradition manuscrite est brievement relatee. Vient ensuite une notice propre au livre I qui fournit le plan de celui-ci ainsi qu'une presentation des personnages evoques. Des notes, developpees en fin d'ouvrages par des notes complementaires, viennent accompagner et enrichir le texte.

Les articles rassembles dans ce recueil sont l'echo de quarante annees de recherches consacrees a Plotin et a son celebre disciple Porphyre. Ces etudes sont de style varie. Quelques-unes presentent des exposes synthetiques et generaux sur la pensee de ces auteurs, d'autres s'interessent plutot a des problemes particuliers de doctrine, notamment a la theorie de l'etre chez Plotin ou chez Porphyre, d'autres encore a des problemes psychologiques, comme celui de l'auto-erotique chez Plotin, d'autres enfin a des interpretations de texte ou a des problemes de critique textuelle. L'environnement spirituel des deux penseurs n'est pas oublie, notamment l'etrange phenomene des Oracles Chaldaiques. Pierre Hadot (1922 - 2010) a ete successivement chercheur au CNRS, Directeur d'etudes a l'Ecole pratique des Hautes Etudes (Ve section) et Professeur au College de France. Dans son oeuvre tres importante rappellons d'abord son edition-commentaire de Marius Victorinus (Sources chretiennes n69), Porphyre et Victorinus (Paris, Etudes augustieniennes 1968), ou toute la metaphysique neo-platonicienne est reconstituee; sa serie de traductions avec commentaires de traites de Plotin (Paris, Le Cerf depuis 1988), et tout un ensemble de travaux consacres a la philosophie hellenistque et romaine: Exercices spirituels et philosophie antique (1981; Albin-Michel, 2002), Introduction aux pensees de Marc-Aurele. La citadelle interieure (Paris, Fayard, 1992). Les Belles Lettres ont publie les deux premiers volumes de ses travaux et articles (Etudes et Philosophie ancienne, 1998 reimpr. 2010]; Etudes de patristique et d'Histoire des concepts, 1999 reimpr. 2010]) et le premier volume de son edition de Marc-Aurele.

Les etudes reunies ici temoignent de la decouverte de la philosophie analytique par les philosophes francais de l'apres-guerre: dans les annees 1950, Pierre Hadot fut en effet l'un des premiers a s'interesser aux rapports entre logique et langage dans la pensee de Wittgenstein. Ces etudes pionnieres sont suivies d'une lettre d'Elisabeth Anscombe a Pierre Hadot, et de la traduction d'un texte de Gottfried Gabriel sur la signification de la forme litteraire chez Wittgenstein.

Soixante-cinq tableaux - reels ou fictifs?- sont ici decrits par Philostrate, rheteur du second siecle de notre ere et auteur de la tres celebre Vie d'Apollonios de Tyane. Dans ce texte fondateur, Philostrate institue un dialogue entre le critique et le spectateur, forcant ce dernier a participer a la scene, le plus souvent d'inspiration mythologique, que montre l'oeuvre peinte: ce procede qu'utilise Diderot dans ses fameux Salons, vise, avec succes, a susciter l'emotion du visiteur. La Galerie de tableaux de Philostrate est plus qu'un document unique sur la peinture antique: elle a inspire les plus grands artistes de la Renaissance, nourri la reflexion sur l'art d'auteurs tels que Goethe, et a, surtout, veritablement cree le langage de l'esthetique. Cette edition, qui reprend, en la corrigeant, la traduction d'Auguste Bougot publiee en 1881, est illustree de quelques-unes des gravures manieristes dont fut enrichie, en 1614, la premiere traduction francaise de cette oeuvre. Francois Lissarrague est directeur de recherches au C.N.R.S. (Centre Louis-Gernet)