“How much progress shall I make?” you ask.
Just as much as you try to make. Why do you wait? Wisdom comes haphazard to no man. Money will come of its own accord; titles will be given to you; influence and authority will perhaps be thrust upon you; but virtue will not fall upon you by chance. Neither is knowledge thereof to be won by light effort or small toil; but toiling is worthwhile when one is about to win all goods at a single stroke.
For there is but a single good—namely, that which is honorable; in all those other things of which the general opinion approves, you will find no truth or certainty.
Why it is, however, that there is but one good, namely, that which is honorable, I shall now tell you, inasmuch as you judge that in my earlier letter, I did not carry the discussion far enough, and think that this theory was commended to you rather than proved. I shall also compress the remarks of other authors into narrow compass.
Just as much as you try to make. Why do you wait? Wisdom comes haphazard to no man. Money will come of its own accord; titles will be given to you; influence and authority will perhaps be thrust upon you; but virtue will not fall upon you by chance. Neither is knowledge thereof to be won by light effort or small toil; but toiling is worthwhile when one is about to win all goods at a single stroke.
For there is but a single good—namely, that which is honorable; in all those other things of which the general opinion approves, you will find no truth or certainty.
Why it is, however, that there is but one good, namely, that which is honorable, I shall now tell you, inasmuch as you judge that in my earlier letter, I did not carry the discussion far enough, and think that this theory was commended to you rather than proved. I shall also compress the remarks of other authors into narrow compass.
—from Seneca, Moral Letters 76
How much of this self-improvement can I manage? I sometimes find myself doubting my capacities, and I tremble at the thought of what Fortune might send my way.
But what is truly holding me back, except for my very own hesitation? My character will unfold, however gradually, through my judgments, and the circumstances are never what make the man. If I am brutally honest with myself about my motives, the slightest progress is one more step in the right direction.
If I were planning to conquer the world instead of myself, I would be right to question the prospects. Even when the schemes of an Alexander, or a Ceasar, or a Napoleon happened to converge with a state of affairs, they still weren’t completely satisfied, because they remained at the mercy of Fate. It is the fruits of wisdom, and not armies or treasuries, that offer liberation.
The real achievement of a lifetime will perhaps appear paltry to the grasping man, since he remains fixated on everything else beyond himself. He believes honor is about public glory, when it is really about private virtue. I have long noticed how arrogance is a symptom of a deeper insecurity, a failure to find dignity in the unadorned simplicity of a just soul. Seek what is great in what is humble, for it is an endless source of peace.
Being so accustomed to a shallow standard of acquisition and consumption, the Stoic claim that the only human good is a moral good will make us feel uncomfortable. That Lucilius believes Seneca has not yet made the best case for virtue is a sign of how radical a transformation this philosophy demands, a total reversal of priorities.
But I need not fear taking the plunge, as it is firmly supported by sound reason. The old habits will slip away, if I sincerely wish it to be so.
How much of this self-improvement can I manage? I sometimes find myself doubting my capacities, and I tremble at the thought of what Fortune might send my way.
But what is truly holding me back, except for my very own hesitation? My character will unfold, however gradually, through my judgments, and the circumstances are never what make the man. If I am brutally honest with myself about my motives, the slightest progress is one more step in the right direction.
If I were planning to conquer the world instead of myself, I would be right to question the prospects. Even when the schemes of an Alexander, or a Ceasar, or a Napoleon happened to converge with a state of affairs, they still weren’t completely satisfied, because they remained at the mercy of Fate. It is the fruits of wisdom, and not armies or treasuries, that offer liberation.
The real achievement of a lifetime will perhaps appear paltry to the grasping man, since he remains fixated on everything else beyond himself. He believes honor is about public glory, when it is really about private virtue. I have long noticed how arrogance is a symptom of a deeper insecurity, a failure to find dignity in the unadorned simplicity of a just soul. Seek what is great in what is humble, for it is an endless source of peace.
Being so accustomed to a shallow standard of acquisition and consumption, the Stoic claim that the only human good is a moral good will make us feel uncomfortable. That Lucilius believes Seneca has not yet made the best case for virtue is a sign of how radical a transformation this philosophy demands, a total reversal of priorities.
But I need not fear taking the plunge, as it is firmly supported by sound reason. The old habits will slip away, if I sincerely wish it to be so.
—Reflection written in 10/2013
IMAGE: Frans Floris the Elder, Minerva (c. 1566)
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