And so with luxury, also, which sometimes seems to have departed, and then when we have made a profession of frugality, begins to fret us and, amid our economies, seeks the pleasures which we have merely left but not condemned. Indeed, the more stealthily it comes, the greater is its force.
For all unconcealed vices are less serious; a disease also is farther on the road to being cured when it breaks forth from concealment and manifests its power. So with greed, ambition, and the other evils of the mind—you may be sure that they do most harm when they are hidden behind a pretense of soundness.
Men think that we are in retirement, and yet we are not. For if we have sincerely retired, and have sounded the signal for retreat, and have scorned outward attractions, then, as I remarked above, no outward thing will distract us; no music of men or of birds can interrupt good thoughts, when they have once become steadfast and sure.
For all unconcealed vices are less serious; a disease also is farther on the road to being cured when it breaks forth from concealment and manifests its power. So with greed, ambition, and the other evils of the mind—you may be sure that they do most harm when they are hidden behind a pretense of soundness.
Men think that we are in retirement, and yet we are not. For if we have sincerely retired, and have sounded the signal for retreat, and have scorned outward attractions, then, as I remarked above, no outward thing will distract us; no music of men or of birds can interrupt good thoughts, when they have once become steadfast and sure.
—from Seneca, Moral Letters 56
They tell me you can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy. I have heard many variations over the years, some intended as compliments, and some intended as insults, though what they all have in common is the awareness that roots run deep, and a man won’t really change if you just drop him in a new place.
Any fixing that needs to be done must ultimately come from within, and an ingrained habit will not disappear by simply rearranging the furniture. As with all the best sayings, the meaning is a moral one, for it’s the presence or absence of character that will make all the difference in life. If you don’t believe me now, I assure you that you will one day need to learn this lesson.
Taking away a man’s whiskey, or his mistress, or his wallet will not make him sober, chaste, or frugal. You may have temporarily denied him an occasion to practice his foibles, yet his cravings still remain, and he will find no peace of mind until he fundamentally changes his thinking about what is good and bad. They fester inside him, however well disguised, and they will pop out once again when the stress is too great, and if the opportunity conveniently presents itself.
Vices become so much more insidious when we don’t know how deeply they are still at work. I could offer dozens and dozens of personal examples, but that would be both lengthy and tedious, so I will only add that I believe any person will quickly run out of fingers before he runs out of cases when a sin he thought he had conquered turned out to have just been taking a nap.
Our various comforts and extravagances, which we insist we can do without, are perfect instances. Yes, the environmentally conscious fellow takes the subway instead of driving his car, and the man mindful of how he spends his time throws out his television, and the good Catholic gives up this or that pleasure for Lent. Now did any of them consciously modify their deeper desires while going cold turkey? Welcome to the source of all relapses!
I am tempted to blame the “things” in my life for spoiling me, and I forget that I am using these luxuries as excuses for my own intemperance. If I have truly “retired” from a life of consumption, I wouldn’t be longing for those “things” that merely clutter my life.
They tell me you can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy. I have heard many variations over the years, some intended as compliments, and some intended as insults, though what they all have in common is the awareness that roots run deep, and a man won’t really change if you just drop him in a new place.
Any fixing that needs to be done must ultimately come from within, and an ingrained habit will not disappear by simply rearranging the furniture. As with all the best sayings, the meaning is a moral one, for it’s the presence or absence of character that will make all the difference in life. If you don’t believe me now, I assure you that you will one day need to learn this lesson.
Taking away a man’s whiskey, or his mistress, or his wallet will not make him sober, chaste, or frugal. You may have temporarily denied him an occasion to practice his foibles, yet his cravings still remain, and he will find no peace of mind until he fundamentally changes his thinking about what is good and bad. They fester inside him, however well disguised, and they will pop out once again when the stress is too great, and if the opportunity conveniently presents itself.
Vices become so much more insidious when we don’t know how deeply they are still at work. I could offer dozens and dozens of personal examples, but that would be both lengthy and tedious, so I will only add that I believe any person will quickly run out of fingers before he runs out of cases when a sin he thought he had conquered turned out to have just been taking a nap.
Our various comforts and extravagances, which we insist we can do without, are perfect instances. Yes, the environmentally conscious fellow takes the subway instead of driving his car, and the man mindful of how he spends his time throws out his television, and the good Catholic gives up this or that pleasure for Lent. Now did any of them consciously modify their deeper desires while going cold turkey? Welcome to the source of all relapses!
I am tempted to blame the “things” in my life for spoiling me, and I forget that I am using these luxuries as excuses for my own intemperance. If I have truly “retired” from a life of consumption, I wouldn’t be longing for those “things” that merely clutter my life.
—Reflection written in 5/2013
IMAGE: Jan Steen, Beware of Luxury (1663)
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