Seneca the Younger was one of many Greek stoics, and wrote his now famous letters towards the end of his life in retirement. Given that the letters have survived since 65 AD, there is much popular fanfare with his thinking and observations on life. They are quite counter intuitive to how life is approached by the masses. Many times, I’ve found the words of the wise tend to escape the majority, until folly takes place for too long leading bad judgment to bad experiences. This then gets a person in a drive to become better. That leads to the issue of being old too soon and wise too late. After seeing the many unhappy faces of the elder, I would rather spend some time reading and receiving wise counsel upfront then to suffer the same mistakes.

-considered suicide but didn’t because of his father; poor health

-exiled by Claudius; wrote letters in those 8 years

-Nero ruled with Seneca’s tutelage that Nero’s mom instructed

-called a hypocrite

-Seneca writes, what matters is one’s attitude to wealth. He could lose all he had immediately and not lose any sleep or happiness

-jealous competitors influenced Nero away from Seneca, who asked for and was granted retirement from Nero amicably

-Seneca had good principles but not as good practises

-Nero wrongly ordered Seneca to commit suicide for a alleged crime of plotting to murder Nero

-ambition, luxury and greed are the great obstacles to true peace and contentment

-happiness is attained through virtue

-four ideal qualities: wisdom (or moral insight), courage, self-control, justice

-the philosopher and the wise man were the same person

-to not be too elated or disappointed with anything

-tearing from one place to another constantly is a sign of restlessness, and the sign of a sick mind

-the sign of a well ordered mine is the ability to pass some time in his own company

-to be everywhere is to be nowhere

-contentment is the real wealth, not endless riches

-have friends only with those you trust. Before you befriend, judge. After you befriended, trust.

-think for a long time whether or not you should admit a given person to your friendship

-be capable of taking things easily and capable of action

-Certain individuals have retreated so deeply into shadows that objects illuminated by bright daylight appear blurred and indistinct to them

-everyday strive to improve yourself

-do not follow those who crave for attention as the reason for doing things

-avoid unkept beard, long hair, and any other self-advertisement

-Considering wealth as an unbearable burden indicates an unsettled state of mind

-Abandon hope, and fear will subside; Seneca

-you may not be lacking a friend but friendship. Mutual inclination

-The enjoyment of anything valuable is incomplete without someone to share it with

-personal converse and daily living will benefit more than discourse. See someone’s character than just hearing them say it

-the larger the crowd we associate, the greater the fools we make of ourselves. We become worse, stupider, act badly

-an impressionable mind will easily go with the majority

-do not hate or imitate others; associate with those you will become better around, that you can better others too

-try to learn not solely for yourself but for the benefit in service of others

-avoid whatever is approved of by the crowd, and whatever fortunate crosses you, be suspicious. You may be ensnared.

-what fortune has made yours is not your own

-the wise man is self-sufficient but still desires trusted companions

-the wise man can quickly make friends to fill the place of someone he has lost

-if you wish to be loved, love

-great pleasure is found in not only keeping up an old friendship but also starting new ones

-anyone who is thinking of their own interests seeking out friendship is making a great mistake; things will end as they began. These are called fair-weather friendships

-a person adopted for his usefulness will be friends for only as long as he’s useful

-if there is anything particular about someone other than the friendship itself, then the relationship is conditional and will end once that benefit is gone. These are called business transactions not friendships

-the other person needs to be an end, not a means to an end. If someone views you as a means to an end, they are looking to take advantage of you and don’t consider you as a friend

-the wise man needs many things but lacks nothing. The fool needs nothing but lacks many

-the wise man is self-content but seeks true friendship

-any man who does not think what he has is ample, is unhappy, even if he is the master of the world. Socrates: those not contented with what he has will not be contented with what he will have

-what matters is what someone feels at all times, not in one occasion

-all men blush when they see women they like, turning red. Blushes cannot be faked and are genuine

-misdeeds are diminished if we feel we are watched by people we respect; hence, the photo effect of pictures of those you respect watching you

-you have to have a standard to measure character otherwise the crooked won’t be straight

-live each day as your last

-without wisdom, the mind is sick. A healthy mind contains wisdom

-exercise the body, but more the mind to age well into old life

-the life of folly is empty of gratitude but full of anxiety

-desire brings us to activities that likely bring harm and lack of true satisfaction

-no one can live a happy life where one does not pursue wisdom. The beginning of wisdom makes life bearable, and the perfection of wisdom is what makes for a happy life

-fortify your resolve so that your will to good becomes a disposition towards good

-have you advanced in wisdom or just in age?

-Epicurus; if you shape your life according to nature, you’ll never be poor. If you shape your life according to people’s opinions, you’ll never be rich

-to be taken of what we have leads to gratitude of what we have

-anger carried to excess begets madness

-The avoidance of anger is not solely for the purpose of moderation, but rather for the preservation of one’s sanity

-the person who has learned how to die has unlearned how to be a slave

-retain your love of life that you had in childhood

-many pleasures are dangerous; the devil lies in cheap dopamine

-A virtuous character is the sole assurance of enduring, worry-free happiness

-count your years and you’ll be ashamed of wanting and working for the same things you wanted when you were a boy

-improve on your faults

-How can you be surprised that your journeys yield no benefit when you carry yourself along? You are burdened by the very thing that prompted you to depart

-live with the conviction, “I wasn’t born for one particular corner, the whole worlds my home country”

-the wise man prefers a state of peace over a state of war; he will not choose unfavorable conditions but if he encounters them, he will not be disturbed

-a person who is not aware that he is doing anything wrong will not have a desire to be put right

-When poverty aligns with the laws of nature, it transforms into wealth – Epicurus

-diversity of scene will not enable you to throw off melancholy and depression. A change of character is what you need, not a change of scenery

-be harsher with yourself than others

-once someone becomes wise from others, they need to produce their own sayings and own resources. The student needs to then lead his own life rather than be a spiritless NPC lot. Of course, cloning is always still an option

-avoid fast talkers and those who are worried more about the quantity of their words than quality

-praise a man on what can’t be taken away from him, like his character, not his possessions

-treat your inferiors the way you would want to be treated by your superiors

-value each person according to their character, not their jobs

-a man who examines the saddle and not the horse is a fool; a man who judges a man by his clothes or social position is a total fool

-we are all slaves to our desires or self-imposed slavery to something else. Today, that is our phones and internet

-love and fear do not mix. If someone fears you, they cannot not love you

-our mental attitudes are that of tyrants

-friendship creates a community of interest between people for the well-being of others. If someone does not take concern with you, they will not be an ally of yours

-no one can live a happy life if they think only of themselves and their own purposes

-a person who shares much with a fellow human is the one who would share everything with a friend

-who does no one admit their failings? Recognizing one’s shortcomings is an indicator of well-being

-attain a sound mind by removing other distractions

-the wise man He evades compulsion by desiring what compulsion will inevitably impose upon him

-some people may not be living for themselves but just hiding from the world, depressed, not able to live anymore. They cannot stand the sight of, let alone, be in the company of those more successful than him

-we are often absent from our friends even in their company

-silence is meaningless if the emotions are in turmoil

-when the impression of men loving power and money is abated, that is when its at its strongest

-choose the frugal, simple life

-we weep to show grief; they may not feel it though. The worst are people who ignore you when you are alive, but then cry when you are dead. Then move on right away and forget you instantly

-don’t grieve lost people, instead, find the time and energy to make new connections

-every journey has its end

-is the kind of life you lead any different from being dead?

-do not fret; everything hinges on one’s thinking

-pleasures will lead you astray

-people become soft through a life of luxury; leading to more ailments of the mind than the body

-an idle life is one that leads to people being tired of living

-people who seek pleasure as the primary purpose of life have an empty nature

-never give in to adversity and do not trust prosperity

-the good man will not get drunk. The person who becomes drunk is not entrusted with a secret

-drunkenness is nothing but a state of self-induced insanity

-no respect for any study if its end is making money

-What purpose does it serve me to divide a piece of land into equal portions if I cannot share it harmoniously with a sibling?

-the cynic knows the price of everything and the value of nothing

-learn how to measure a person’s soul

-what’s the use of becoming strong if you can’t overcome your temper?

-in words, in actions, in emotions she reveals herself as kind and good-natured towards all

-you can find wisdom outside of books

-people spend so much time learning things they will never need

-being in power or governance means to serve, not to rule

-the wise man follows a simple way of life

-follow nature and you will feel no need of craftsmen

-philosophy guides the mind

-do not listen to false opinions

-the man who needs no luck is the luckiest of all

-the man who has mastered himself is the master of all

-greed and luxury split people up from partnership to plunder

-nowadays peoples homes give a feeling of insecurity

-attaining luxury or success does not lead to the attaining of wisdom

-nature does not give wisdom or virtue; becoming a good man is an art and a process

-growth is slow, undoing happens rapidly

-what could be more foolish than a man being afraid of other people’s words?

-the utterances of the foolish is worthless, regardless of where it comes from. Like the bible said, like the crackling of thorns under a pot, so too are the words of a fool. This too is worthless

-no one has power over us when death is within our own power

-The individual who doesn’t esteem their spouse or friend enough to prolong their time in life, who persists in passing away despite their presence, exhibits a truly self-indulgent disposition

-your wife can lead to you to have increased anxiety as well as theirs on your behalf; your fates become intertwined

-if you want to escape the things that bother you, instead of changing places, change yourself

-ambitious people can be super envious

-the ravages of time are easier to see in others than in yourself

-travel doesn’t seem to improve people besides temporarily satisfy a pursuit of pleasure, and a temporary escape

-travel does not make a person better or saner

-spending time in study and the writings and words of wise people makes us more wise

-the things you’re running away from are with you all the time

-when traveling, make sure you have a good companion to be around

-Cruelty remains a constant companion as long as you coexist under the same roof as a tormentor

-if you wish to get away from vices you must get away from those who do them

-we don’t rise to the level of our thinking, we fall to the level of our fears. Some may doubt their own capabilities when they do have said ability

-through your ups and downs, maintain a good attitude in spite of your terrible blows, and keep a level temperament

-reject the life of pleasures

-if you want freedom, you have to place little value on everything else

-people who are undisciplined live busy lives, always stressed, impulsive, cannot sit still

-don’t take in more than you can handle

-the mind expands

-many go to listen to philosophy just for entertainment, they don’t have any interest to become better

-teach people how to live instead of how to argue

-our pursuit of the happy life; this is an underrated part of life

-no one lets humanity down than the one whose actions differ from their words

-decline of morals and luxurious forms of expression go hand in hand

-watch for someone’s self-indulgent nature, passion for self-display, his reluctance to show his own faults

-some will do anything for attention, even negative attention

-take care of your spirit, for your thoughts and words will come from it

-those who are lazy and stay up late at night, have dark looks and darkness in their souls

-some people want attention so badly they will make calculated moves to get others to talk about them; this belongs to those who live extravagantly

-Dedication to righteousness is straightforward, whereas dedication to wrongdoing is intricate and exhibits countless variations. This is the same with people’s character too. Straightforward and uncomplicated people have good character.

-the cause of bad character is a disdain for normal, everyday existence

-the talk of snobs and parasites stays in our ears long after we have heard it; so, we must shut our eyes against mischievous talk

-ignore moral tutors; critics, the self-righteous. Live a good life than having a good reputation

-we should avoid being attracted to wealth, good looks, pleasure, status

Disclaimer

This is not Financial Advice. This article is meant only for educational and perhaps entertainment purposes.