"All of us are chained to Fortune. Some are bound by a loose and golden chain, others by a tight chain of baser metal; but what difference does it make? The same captivity holds all men in its toils, those who have bound others have also been bound--unless perhaps you think that a chain on the left hand a is a lighter one.
"Some are chained by public office, others by wealth; some carry the burden of high birth, some of low birth; some bow beneath another's empire, some beneath their own; some are kept in one place by exile, others by priesthoods.
"All life is a servitude. And so a man must become reconciled to his lot, must complain of it as little as possible, and must lay hold of whatever good it may have; no state is so bitter that a calm mind cannot find in it some consolation. Even small spaces by skillful planning often reveal many uses; and arrangement will make habitable a place of ever so small dimensions. Apply reason to difficulties; it is possible to soften what is hard, to widen what is narrow, and burdens will press less heavily upon those who bear them skilfully.
"Moreover, we must not send our desires upon a distant quest, but we should permit them to have access to what is near, since they do not endure to be shut up altogether. Leaving those things that either cannot be done, or can be done only with difficulty, let us pursue what lies near at hand and allures our hope, but let us be aware that they all are equally trivial, diverse outwardly in appearance, within alike vain.
"And let us not envy those who stand in higher places; where there appeared heights, there are precipices. Those, on the other hand, whom an unkind lot has placed in a critical position, will be safer by reducing their pride in the things that are in themselves proud and lowering their fortune, so far as they shall be able, to the common level.
"While there are many who must necessarily cling to their pinnacle, from which they cannot descend without falling, yet they may bear witness that their greatest burden is the very fact that they are forced to be burdensome to others, being not lifted, but nailed on high. By justice, by kindness, by courtesy, and by lavish and kindly giving let them prepare many safeguards against later mishaps,in hope whereof they may be more easy in their suspense."
--Seneca the Younger, On Tranquility of Mind 10 (tr Basore)
I recall finding this passage dark and depressing when I first read it a decade ago. It seemed like it was dwelling on all of the inevitable burdens of fortune, and that we can only begrudgingly grin and bear it. That I thought so, however, came precisely from the fact that I still measured my life through fortune, and I was saddened by the prospect of losing what I considered her blessings.
As unpleasant as it may seem, the circumstances of our lives and positions are not within our power. Even when we think we have achieved them by our merits, that illusory hold depends entirely upon things outside of us. Facing this fact, I might seek to conquer fortune, and then I will be sorely disappointed. Or I could feel resentment, and then I will have made myself miserable. Or, like a Stoic I could come to terms with the reality, and find what is good within it.
With a calm mind, I can learn to not only accept, but be peaceful and happy in my situation. This requires, of course, making the Stoic Turn, of recognizing that my happiness rests in what I do, not in what happens to me. This flips the values we are we have grown so accustomed.
I have experienced directly, time and time again, what Seneca describes. The analogy of finding comfort in a small space was especially insightful and amusing. I have indeed found myself in situations that seemed like they would be unbearable, and sometimes I have made them more burdensome by fighting against them. But with patience I have learned to find contentment in some of the most sparse of circumstances, and I have only been able to do so by remembering what really makes my life worth living.
The less I want from the world, the less I need from the world, and if I ask for nothing, I won't be disappointed by losing anything that isn't truly my own. Why should I envy those in lofty positions? They only have that much further to fall.
Written on 11/30/2003
Image: Albrecht Dürer, The Wheel of Fortune (1494)
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