The Best Translation of Meditations
Meditations was written in Ancient Greek. 2 recommended editions, ranked — with Gröblé’s verdict on which to read first.
Gregory Hays
Modern Library · 2002 · 256 pages
Hays's 2002 Modern Library is the version that put Meditations back on bestseller lists. Clean contemporary English, no Victorian formality, no self-help gloss. Marcus reads like a smart friend taking notes to himself.
Every recommended edition, compared
Robin Hard's Oxford is the scholarly companion piece, with Christopher Gill's intro situating Marcus inside the Stoic tradition. Better notes, tighter translation, less of the bestseller energy.
Please support us by purchasing through these links, at no extra cost to you!
Reading Meditations in translation
Meditations was written in Ancient Greek, so unless you read Ancient Greek, the translator decides the book you actually experience — its register, its pace, how it sounds read aloud. Two editions of the same work can feel like different books.
The ranking above is Gröblé’s: one reader’s verdict on which English gets you closest, not a publisher’s blurb. Start with the top pick; reach for the others when you want a different angle on the original.