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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.