Five Ancient Books of Wisdom That Everyone Should Read

We all need some inspiration and guidance when the going gets rough.

Are you looking for guidance on how to answer life’s big questions? Are you stuck and need to find a direction? Or do you just need the inspiration to take that one big step or overcome that one big hurdle that is blocking you?

Many books have recently come out purporting to hold the solution to life’s myriad problems. However, few of them provide any valuable solutions.

To avoid wasting time, one can benefit from turning to the classics. Many of the problems of today are solvable by applying the wisdom of yesterday.

Five Ancient Books of Wisdom

Countless books have survived from the ancient era (though many more have unfortunately been lost), so picking just five will be quite hard.

However, some books stand out above the rest in the lessons they teach, the perspectives they give, and the stories they tell.

No matter if you are struggling in your personal life, or if you are trying to find some strategies to boost your professional presence, you will always find some nuggets of wisdom in these books.

‘Meditations’ by Marcus Aurelius

“When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: The people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly. They are like this because they can’t tell good from evil.”

- Marcus Aurelius

This book needs no introduction. Plato once wrote that the world would be a better place if philosopher-kings ruled us, and no person in history fits that description better than Marcus Aurelius.

Ruling the vast Roman Empire when it was entering troubled times, Marcus had to keep a positive mindset to hold it all together.

Attacked from the east by Parthians, the north by Germanic tribes and facing a plague that wiped out every Roman in its path, Marcus had to extinguish one fire after another.

Luckily, he had been trained in Stoic philosophy and had some techniques up his sleeve to deploy for when the going got tough.

The “Meditations” actually started as a personal journal, in which Marcus would note down his thoughts for the day as well as motivational mantras for when he needed a boost.

These works were republished later, and even thousands of years after their writer has died, they continue to inspire the masses.

What will you learn?

By reading Meditations, your eyes will be opened up to a range of techniques and motivational quotes that you can use to guide you through tough situations.

For instance, Marcus discusses how to deal with people who are making your life miserable: Forget about them.

He talks about how to stop worrying: Work on improving the things you can control, and forget about the rest.

Marcus gives perspective on a lot of things. Fame, wealth, and power are things not worth pursuing. What’s infinitely more valuable is maintaining your own virtues.

He also advocated keeping in mind that you are just a small cog in a vast universe, and your time on this planet will pass, just like it did for billions of people before you.

“Meditations” is a book packed full of nuggets of wisdom that you can pick out whenever you feel you need a boost.

If these writings worked for an emperor of the biggest empire in the ancient world, then they will surely work for you, too.

One final thing that you can take away from “Meditations” is the act of journaling itself. Writing down your thoughts in a personal journal every day can have a healing effect, and can significantly improve your mood by helping you gather your thoughts.

‘Letters From A Stoic’ by Seneca

“It is the quality of a great soul to scorn great things and to prefer that which is ordinary rather than that which is too great.”

- Seneca

Seneca lived in the 1st century AD and became an adviser to the Roman emperor Nero, who became insane. Seneca was a wealthy man, yet also a Stoic philosopher who preached the virtue of staying humble and not letting the winds of fate sway you.

“Letters from a Stoic” is a series of letters he wrote to a man named Lucilius, and which dealt with many practical topics.

These letters advised Lucilius on his many life problems but also included many of Seneca’s philosophical musings on how to live a life according to Stoic principles.

What will you learn?

You will learn about the joy of learning and acquiring wisdom. You will discover that living a good life isn’t about being rich and famous, but instead about staying humble, working hard, and bearing life’s fortunes and misfortunes.

Many of Seneca’s lessons deal with practical problems that you might encounter through your day-to-day life.

One piece of Seneca’s advice is as simple as it is vital. That is, live life to the fullest, for it is not the length of life that matters, but the quality of it. When you are on your death bed, you don’t want to have any regrets.

Life is never too short if you spend it wisely. If you keep this mind, then you will know how you need to carry yourself at all times.

‘On Moral Duties’ by Cicero

“Let your desires be ruled by reason.”

- Cicero

Cicero was one of the Roman Republic’s greatest politicians. He lived at a time when the Republic was crumbling, and a series of civil wars had ravaged the country.

We can thank Cicero for many of the moral rules and political structures that form the basis of our societies today. For he was not only a politician, but also a thinker and a philosopher.

He wrote a series of books on law, governance, rhetoric, and philosophy, but one of the most useful canons for everyday life is his “On Moral Duties”.

This, he wrote at the end of his life. It was intended to be a series of lessons for his young son on how he should lead his life.

It included all the lessons of wisdom that Cicero had learned throughout his life and that he wanted to impart to later generations.

What will you learn?

The best way to live, according to Cicero, is to follow reason and to live in a virtuous way.

Cicero’s musings will help you not only in your personal life, but it’ll also benefit the community that you live in by extension. For if all people follow these moral precepts, then we can each live in peace and harmony.

In the book, you will learn about the four cardinal virtues (prudence, courage, temperance, justice), which Cicero discusses in detail.

Cicero’s thoughts influenced the values of later societies, and these virtues have passed onto our days as something to strive towards. In the book, you will discover how to implement them in your life.

‘Anabasis’ by Xenophon

“I have heard that you Athenians are clever hands at stealing the public moneys; and that too though there is a fearful risk for the person so employed.

But, I am told, it is your best men who are addicted to it, if it is your best men who are thought worthy to rule.

So it is a fine opportunity for yourself also, Xenophon, to exhibit your education.”

— Extract from “Anabasis” by Xenophon

Up until now, I have only referenced books that were written during Roman times, but with Xenophon, we will move four centuries into the past and into the 4th century BC, the Golden Age of ancient Greece.

However, this book, “Anabasis”, is not different only in the sense that it is much older, but also in its content.

It is an adventure book, in which Xenophon describes many incredible ordeals. Sometimes the truth, and history, is much better than any fiction.

If you liked the adventures of “The Game of Thrones” or “The Hobbit”, then this is infinitely better since it actually happened!

The book is all about heroic deeds, betrayals, wars, and hopeless marches. It is about struggle and eventual triumph.

Xenophon was part of a group of Greek soldiers that were hired by a Persian prince to help him get the Persian throne.

They marched for months until they finally made it into the heart of what is modern Iraq, where they met the armies of the current Persian ruler.

They won the battle, but the problem was that the Persian prince that they were serving died in the course of the fighting. They didn’t know what to do.

The Persian ruler invited the leaders of the Greek troops to a banquet as a peace offering, which they accepted. However, this was a trap, and all the commanders were slaughtered during the feast.

Now the Greek troops found themselves stranded in a foreign land, thousands of miles from home, and without leaders.

This is the story of how they got back.

What will you learn?

You will learn about courage, honour, and wisdom. You will read many great quotes, but also a lot of funny lines.

However, above all, you will dive into a great adventure story. I cannot describe what a feeling it is to be reading a book like this, and then taking a step back and remembering: this actually happened.

‘Parallel Lives’ by Plutarch

“By the study of their biographies, we receive each man as a guest into our minds, and we seem to understand their character as the result of a personal acquaintance, because we have obtained from their acts the best and most important means of forming an opinion about them.”

- Plutarch

Plutarch was a Greek philosopher who lived during the times of the Roman Empire and is best remembered for writing a series of biographies of great ancient Greeks and Romans.

These formed a series of books titled “Parallel Lives”. Parallel, because the structure of the series was based on pairing the life of a Greek with that of a Roman.

The idea was to read about their lives, compare them, and learn moral lessons from what happened.

What will you learn?

The goal of these books is to help improve your character by reading about the lives of great historical figures, along with their positive and negative traits.

By reading the books, you will learn about the character traits that lead to success, but also the ones that lead to a person’s downfall. It is these character flaws that determine where a person is headed.

If you can overcome them, then you will be successful. If you fall for them, then it will be your doom. As the ancients used to say — character is destiny.

Read Books to Improve Yourself

Reading books is one of the best things that you can do to improve yourself.

By reading these ancient books, you will find nuggets of wisdom, instant motivation, and learn about how to behave in different situations. But you will also experience great stories.

Many of the lessons you will learn are universal and can be applied today to many of your own problems, whether in your personal life, at work, or as a way to think about the events happening in the world around you.

Even if you are busy, I strongly recommend you find at least a bit of time for reading.

Make it a daily habit. Schedule a period every evening for reading, and pick up these great books as a way to treat yourself.

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