💀 Dying Every Day
Dying Every Day (Stoicism in a Year) is a podcast by the Perennial Leader Project. Each episode turns a selected passage from Stoic philosophy into a guided meditation designed to help you (and me) learn how to live.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube
Seeking “Better Things” with Seneca
Welcome to Dying Every Day (Stoicism in a Year). This is Day 63, and we’re exploring how to seek “better things” with Seneca.
In a letter to his friend Lucilius, he wrote,
… You have many authors whose works will presumably keep your ideas sufficiently in order. Pick up the list of philosophers; that very act will compel you to wake up, when you see how many men have been working for your benefit. You will desire eagerly to be one of them yourself, for this is the most excellent quality that the noble soul has within itself, that it can be roused to honorable things. …
Seneca continues,
Just as the flame springs straight into the air and cannot be kept down any more than it can repose in quiet, so our soul is always in motion, and the more ardent it is, the greater its motion and activity. But happy is the man who has given it this impulse toward better things!
+Adapted from On Noble Aspirations
Interestingly, the “better things” that Seneca is referring to are those that are ordinary rather than those that are too great. He warns his friend Lucilius to avoid the excess and unnecessary.
According to Seneca, we tend to become slaves to our pleasures. When we are not only attracted but even pleased by shameful things, there is no longer any room for a cure—those things that once were vices have become habits.
Reflection Prompt
Consider reflecting (or journaling) on what it means to wake up to honorable things. You could ask yourself, “What are my habits?” or, more specifically, “Are my habits aligned with virtues or vices?” Seneca stressed the need to reflect often; he asked Lucilius, “By what standard can you check the unnecessary?”
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube
—
Thank you for reading/listening; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
J.W.
P.S. I greatly appreciate your time, attention, and support!