Meditations — Page 13
Public spirit was the most splendid political virtue of the ancient world, and it is here made cosmopolitan.
Gemeinschaftssinn war die glänzendste politische Tugend der alten Welt, und hier wird er zum Kosmopolitismus erhoben.
It is again instructive to note that Christian sages insisted on the same thing.
Es ist wiederum aufschlussreich festzustellen, dass christliche Weise auf demselben Gedanken beharrten.
Christians are taught that they are members of a worldwide brotherhood, where is neither Greek nor Hebrew, bond nor free and that they live their lives as fellow-workers with God.
Die Christen werden gelehrt, dass sie Mitglieder einer weltweiten Bruderschaft sind, in der es weder Griechen noch Hebräer, weder Gebundene noch Freie gibt, und dass sie ihr Leben als Mitarbeiter Gottes führen.
Such is the system which underlies the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius.
Dies ist das System, das den Meditationen des Marcus Aurelius zugrunde liegt.
Some knowledge of it is necessary to the right understanding of the book, but for us the chief interest lies elsewhere.
Ein gewisses Wissen davon ist für das richtige Verständnis des Buches notwendig, doch liegt für uns das hauptsächliche Interesse anderswo.
We do not come to Marcus Aurelius for a treatise on Stoicism.
Wir wenden uns nicht an Marcus Aurelius, um eine Abhandlung über den Stoizismus zu finden.
He is no head of a school to lay down a body of doctrine for students; he does not even contemplate that others should read what he writes.
Er ist kein Schulhaupt, das Schülern ein Lehrgebäude vorschreibt; er denkt nicht einmal daran, dass andere lesen sollen, was er schreibt.
His philosophy is not an eager intellectual inquiry, but more what we should call religious feeling.
Seine Philosophie ist keine eifrige intellektuelle Untersuchung, sondern eher das, was wir religiöses Empfinden nennen würden.
The uncompromising stiffness of Zeno or Chrysippus is softened and transformed by passing through a nature reverent and tolerant, gentle and free from guile; the grim resignation which made life possible to the Stoic sage becomes in him almost a mood of aspiration.
Die kompromisslose Strenge eines Zenon oder Chrysippos wird gemildert und verwandelt, indem sie durch eine ehrfurchtsvolle und geduldige, sanfte und arglose Natur hindurchgeht; die düstere Resignation, die dem stoischen Weisen das Leben erträglich machte, wird bei ihm beinahe zu einer Stimmung des Strebens.
His book records the innermost thoughts of his heart, set down to ease it, with such moral maxims and reflections as may help him to bear the burden of duty and the countless annoyances of a busy life.
Sein Buch hält die innersten Gedanken seines Herzens fest, niedergeschrieben, um ihm Erleichterung zu verschaffen, zusammen mit jenen moralischen Maximen und Betrachtungen, die ihm helfen mögen, die Last der Pflicht und die unzähligen Verdrießlichkeiten eines geschäftigen Lebens zu tragen.
It is instructive to compare the _Meditations_ with another famous book, the _Imitation of Christ_.
Es ist aufschlussreich, die _Meditationen_ mit einem anderen berühmten Buch zu vergleichen, der _Nachfolge Christi_.
Vocabulary
- Gemeinschaftssinn
- Sense of community or communal spirit
- war
- Was; past tense of 'sein' (to be)
- die
- The; definite article for feminine or plural nouns
- glänzendste
- Most brilliant or most outstanding
- politische
- Political; relating to politics or governance
- Tugend
- Virtue; a moral quality or excellence
- der
- The; definite article for masculine or genitive nouns
- alten
- Old; adjective in inflected form
- Welt
- World; the earth or human society
- und
- And; coordinating conjunction
- hier
- Here; in this place or context
- wird
- Becomes or is; present tense of 'werden'
- er
- He; third-person singular masculine pronoun
- zum
- To the; contraction of 'zu dem'
- Kosmopolitismus
- Cosmopolitanism; belief in universal human community
- erhoben
- Elevated or raised; past participle of 'erheben'
- Es
- It; third-person singular neuter pronoun
- ist
- Is; third-person singular of 'sein'
- wiederum
- Again or in turn; conversely
- aufschlussreich
- Revealing or informative; providing useful insight
- festzustellen
- To note or establish; to ascertain a fact
- dass
- That; subordinating conjunction introducing a clause
- christliche
- Christian; relating to Christianity or its followers
- Weise
- Wise men or sages; also manner or way
- auf
- On or upon; preposition indicating position or direction
- demselben
- The same; demonstrative pronoun in dative case
- Gedanken
- Thought or idea; mental concept or reflection
- beharrten
- Persisted or insisted; past tense of 'beharren'
- Die
- The; definite article for feminine or plural nouns
- Christen
- Christians; followers of the Christian faith
- werden
- Are or become; infinitive or plural of 'werden'
- gelehrt
- Taught or learned; past participle of 'lehren'
- sie
- They or she; third-person pronoun
- Mitglieder
- Members; individuals belonging to a group
- einer
- A or one; indefinite article in genitive feminine
- weltweiten
- Worldwide; extending across the entire world
- Bruderschaft
- Brotherhood; fellowship or fraternal community
- sind
- Are; third-person plural of 'sein'
- in
- In or within; preposition indicating location
- es
- It; third-person neuter pronoun
- weder
- Neither; used in 'weder…noch' construction
- Griechen
- Greeks; people of ancient or modern Greece
- noch
- Nor or still; used in negation or continuation
- Hebräer
- Hebrews; ancient Israelite people
- Gebundene
- Bound ones; those who are enslaved or constrained
- Freie
- Free ones; those who are free or liberated
- gibt
- Gives or there are; third-person of 'geben'
- ihr
- Their or her; possessive or personal pronoun
- Leben
- Life; existence or the course of living
- als
- As or than; comparative or descriptive conjunction
- Mitarbeiter
- Coworker or collaborator; fellow worker
- Gottes
- Of God; genitive form of 'Gott'
- führen
- To lead or conduct; to carry out a life
- Dies
- This; demonstrative pronoun referring to something
- das
- The or that; neuter definite article or pronoun
- System
- System; an organized set of principles or ideas
- den
- The; definite article in accusative or dative plural
- Meditationen
- Meditations; reflective writings or contemplations
- des
- Of the; genitive definite article for masculine/neuter
- zugrunde
- Underlying; forms basis in 'zugrunde liegen'
- liegt
- Lies or is based; third-person of 'liegen'
- Ein
- A or one; indefinite article, masculine nominative
- gewisses
- A certain; indefinite adjective indicating some degree
- Wissen
- Knowledge; understanding or awareness of something
- davon
- Of it or thereof; referring to something mentioned
- für
- For; preposition indicating purpose or beneficiary
- richtige
- Correct or proper; appropriate understanding
- Verständnis
- Understanding or comprehension; grasp of meaning
- Buches
- Of the book; genitive form of 'Buch'
- notwendig
- Necessary or essential; required for a purpose
- doch
- But or yet; contrastive or emphatic particle
- uns
- Us; first-person plural accusative/dative pronoun
- hauptsächliche
- Main or principal; most important or primary
- Interesse
- Interest; attention or concern for something
- anderswo
- Elsewhere; in another place or context
- Wir
- We; first-person plural nominative pronoun
- wenden
- Turn; to direct attention or address something
- nicht
- Not; negation particle in German sentences
- an
- At or to; preposition indicating direction or contact
- um
- In order to; preposition or part of infinitive clause
- eine
- A or one; indefinite article feminine nominative
- Abhandlung
- Treatise or essay; systematic scholarly discussion
- über
- About or over; preposition indicating topic or position
- Stoizismus
- Stoicism; ancient philosophy emphasizing virtue and endurance
- zu
- To or too; preposition or infinitive marker
- finden
- To find; to discover or locate something
- Er
- He; third-person masculine singular pronoun
- kein
- No or not a; negating article or adjective
- Schulhaupt
- Head of a school or sect; philosophical school leader
- Schülern
- To pupils; dative plural of 'Schüler'
- ein
- A or one; indefinite article masculine/neuter
- Lehrgebäude
- Doctrinal system; structured body of teaching
- vorschreibt
- Prescribes or dictates; third-person of 'vorschreiben'
- denkt
- Thinks; third-person singular of 'denken'
- einmal
- Once or ever; indicating a single occurrence
- daran
- At it or about it; contracted prepositional adverb
- andere
- Others; other people or different individuals
- lesen
- To read; to look at and understand written text
- sollen
- Should or shall; modal verb of obligation
- was
- What; interrogative or relative pronoun
- schreibt
- Writes; third-person singular of 'schreiben'
- Seine
- His; possessive adjective third-person masculine
- Philosophie
- Philosophy; system of thought and intellectual inquiry
- keine
- No or not a; negating article feminine form
- eifrige
- Eager or zealous; enthusiastic in pursuit
- intellektuelle
- Intellectual; relating to the mind or reasoning
- Untersuchung
- Investigation or examination; systematic inquiry
- sondern
- But rather; corrective conjunction after negation
- eher
- Rather or sooner; indicating preference or comparison
- wir
- We; first-person plural nominative pronoun
- religiöses
- Religious; relating to faith or spiritual devotion
- Empfinden
- Feeling or sentiment; personal emotional perception
- nennen
- To call or name; to designate something
- würden
- Would; conditional form of 'werden'
- kompromisslose
- Uncompromising; without concession or moderation
- Strenge
- Strictness or severity; rigorous discipline
- eines
- Of a; indefinite article in genitive masculine/neuter
- oder
- Or; disjunctive coordinating conjunction
- gemildert
- Softened or moderated; past participle of 'mildern'
- verwandelt
- Transformed or changed; past participle of 'verwandeln'
- indem
- By doing; subordinating conjunction of means
- durch
- Through; preposition indicating passage or means
- ehrfurchtsvolle
- Reverent; full of deep respect and awe
- geduldige
- Patient; tolerant and calm under difficulty
- sanfte
- Gentle or mild; soft in manner or character
- arglose
- Guileless or innocent; without suspicion or malice
- Natur
- Nature; innate character or the natural world
- hindurchgeht
- Passes through; third-person of 'hindurchgehen'
- düstere
- Gloomy or somber; dark in mood or appearance
- Resignation
- Resignation; calm acceptance of hardship
- dem
- The; definite article in dative masculine/neuter
- stoischen
- Stoic; relating to Stoic philosophy or endurance
- Weisen
- Wise man; sage who embodies philosophical wisdom
- erträglich
- Bearable or tolerable; able to be endured
- machte
- Made; past tense of 'machen'
- bei
- With or at; preposition indicating proximity
- ihm
- Him or it; third-person dative singular pronoun
- beinahe
- Almost or nearly; close to but not quite
- Stimmung
- Mood or atmosphere; emotional tone or feeling
- Strebens
- Of striving; genitive of 'Streben' (aspiration)
- Sein
- His or being; possessive pronoun or infinitive noun
- Buch
- Book; a written or printed literary work
- hält
- Holds or keeps; third-person singular of 'halten'
- innersten
- Innermost; deepest or most private part
- seines
- Of his; genitive of 'sein' possessive pronoun
- Herzens
- Of the heart; genitive of 'Herz'
- fest
- Fast or firm; also used in separable verbs
- niedergeschrieben
- Written down; past participle of 'niederschreiben'
- Erleichterung
- Relief or alleviation; easing of burden or distress
- verschaffen
- To provide or procure; to obtain something for oneself
- zusammen
- Together; in combination or jointly
- mit
- With; preposition indicating accompaniment
- jenen
- Those; demonstrative pronoun in dative plural
- moralischen
- Moral; relating to ethics or right conduct
- Maximen
- Maxims; concise statements of guiding principles
- Betrachtungen
- Reflections or contemplations; thoughtful observations
- helfen
- To help; to assist or support someone
- mögen
- May or might; modal verb of possibility or liking
- Last
- Burden or load; weight or responsibility
- Pflicht
- Duty or obligation; moral or professional responsibility
- unzähligen
- Countless or innumerable; too many to count
- Verdrießlichkeiten
- Vexations or annoyances; petty troubles and irritations
- geschäftigen
- Busy or bustling; active and occupied with tasks
- Lebens
- Of life; genitive form of 'Leben'
- tragen
- To carry or bear; to endure a burden
- einem
- A or one; indefinite article in dative masculine/neuter
- anderen
- Another or other; referring to a different one
- berühmten
- Famous or renowned; well-known and celebrated
- vergleichen
- To compare; to examine similarities and differences
- _Nachfolge
- Imitation; title word meaning 'following' or 'imitation'
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