Sextius used to say that Jupiter had no more power than the good man.
Of course, Jupiter has more gifts which he can offer to mankind; but when you are choosing between two good men, the richer is not necessarily the better, any more than, in the case of two pilots of equal skill in managing the tiller, you would call him the better whose ship is larger and more imposing.
In what respect is Jupiter superior to our good man? His goodness lasts longer; but the wise man does not set a lower value upon himself, just because his virtues are limited by a briefer span.
Or take two wise men; he who has died at a greater age is not happier than he whose virtue has been limited to fewer years: similarly, a god has no advantage over a wise man in point of happiness, even though he has such an advantage in point of years. That virtue is not greater which lasts longer.
Jupiter possesses all things, but he has surely given over the possession of them to others; the only use of them which belongs to him is this: he is the cause of their use to all men.
The wise man surveys and scorns all the possessions of others as calmly as does Jupiter, and regards himself with the greater esteem because, while Jupiter cannot make use of them, he, the wise man, does not wish to do so.
Let us therefore believe Sextius, when he shows us the path of perfect beauty, and cries: "This is 'the way to the stars'; this is the way, by observing thrift, self-restraint, and courage!"
Of course, Jupiter has more gifts which he can offer to mankind; but when you are choosing between two good men, the richer is not necessarily the better, any more than, in the case of two pilots of equal skill in managing the tiller, you would call him the better whose ship is larger and more imposing.
In what respect is Jupiter superior to our good man? His goodness lasts longer; but the wise man does not set a lower value upon himself, just because his virtues are limited by a briefer span.
Or take two wise men; he who has died at a greater age is not happier than he whose virtue has been limited to fewer years: similarly, a god has no advantage over a wise man in point of happiness, even though he has such an advantage in point of years. That virtue is not greater which lasts longer.
Jupiter possesses all things, but he has surely given over the possession of them to others; the only use of them which belongs to him is this: he is the cause of their use to all men.
The wise man surveys and scorns all the possessions of others as calmly as does Jupiter, and regards himself with the greater esteem because, while Jupiter cannot make use of them, he, the wise man, does not wish to do so.
Let us therefore believe Sextius, when he shows us the path of perfect beauty, and cries: "This is 'the way to the stars'; this is the way, by observing thrift, self-restraint, and courage!"
—from Seneca, Moral Letters 73
It is fitting that any discussion on philosophers and kings will ultimately turn to the highest authority of the Divine. Those who choose to make themselves the center can, of course, have no place for God, but those who see themselves as but a part of the whole are always in search of the Absolute.
Sometimes we deny God because we think too much of ourselves, while sometimes we seek a diversion in God because we think too little of ourselves, and in either case the mistake is from assuming some impassable divide between the human and the Divine.
No, the creature should never be confused with the Creator, and yet the human participates directly with the Divine, just as the cause is present in every effect, and the fullness of the One is expressed in the variety of the many.
What is infinite and perfect does not exclude what is finite and imperfect—the former includes the latter. The difference in degree, however vast, still admits of an equivalence in kind, such that there is no vanity or blasphemy in stating that the good in man is like the good in God.
As Sextius observed, a good man has the same power as Jupiter to be the master of himself, even as the breadth of their might cannot be compared. At a level closer to home, I may recognize how wealth, or fame, or any sort of worldly influence do not increase or decrease our moral worth, and so the virtue of a king is no better than the virtue of a pauper.
Similarly, there is no greater excellence in something being of a longer duration, because the very same excellence, complete in itself, is simply being repeated. I am a mortal, and Jupiter is immortal, and it remains an identical virtue that is present in both of us. They say it is such a shame when someone dies young, though the real shame is when someone dies wicked.
I am especially taken by the further insight that Jupiter might “have” everything, while he has no “need” for any of those things, already being complete in his own nature. What does he then do with them? He passes them on to man, whose nature remains in the process of becoming complete.
I am reminded of an old Thomistic exercise, where the question is “Why would God create the Universe, if it adds nothing to Him?” The answer is then that “God created the Universe for the sake of His creatures.” That is surely the ideal form of love, which we are called to imitate, and it is that sort of self-giving for which we should always be grateful.
It is fitting that any discussion on philosophers and kings will ultimately turn to the highest authority of the Divine. Those who choose to make themselves the center can, of course, have no place for God, but those who see themselves as but a part of the whole are always in search of the Absolute.
Sometimes we deny God because we think too much of ourselves, while sometimes we seek a diversion in God because we think too little of ourselves, and in either case the mistake is from assuming some impassable divide between the human and the Divine.
No, the creature should never be confused with the Creator, and yet the human participates directly with the Divine, just as the cause is present in every effect, and the fullness of the One is expressed in the variety of the many.
What is infinite and perfect does not exclude what is finite and imperfect—the former includes the latter. The difference in degree, however vast, still admits of an equivalence in kind, such that there is no vanity or blasphemy in stating that the good in man is like the good in God.
As Sextius observed, a good man has the same power as Jupiter to be the master of himself, even as the breadth of their might cannot be compared. At a level closer to home, I may recognize how wealth, or fame, or any sort of worldly influence do not increase or decrease our moral worth, and so the virtue of a king is no better than the virtue of a pauper.
Similarly, there is no greater excellence in something being of a longer duration, because the very same excellence, complete in itself, is simply being repeated. I am a mortal, and Jupiter is immortal, and it remains an identical virtue that is present in both of us. They say it is such a shame when someone dies young, though the real shame is when someone dies wicked.
I am especially taken by the further insight that Jupiter might “have” everything, while he has no “need” for any of those things, already being complete in his own nature. What does he then do with them? He passes them on to man, whose nature remains in the process of becoming complete.
I am reminded of an old Thomistic exercise, where the question is “Why would God create the Universe, if it adds nothing to Him?” The answer is then that “God created the Universe for the sake of His creatures.” That is surely the ideal form of love, which we are called to imitate, and it is that sort of self-giving for which we should always be grateful.
—Reflection written in 9/2013
IMAGE: Nicolai Abildgaard, Jupiter Weighing the Fate of Man (1793)
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