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What I Learned From...Seneca

The master of time and purveyor of wisdom.

By Robert WebbPublished 3 years ago Updated 3 years ago 5 min read
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“True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not.” - Seneca

Take what you need, leave what you don’t. I live by this motto. Not always easy to do, the inspiration and motivation often felt when reading or listening to a fantastic thinker discuss topics at length, can often lead one to celebritize a single individual and accept all they say. Balance is necessary here. So we must take what others say with a pinch of salt because we want to ensure we are enacting our own fate, and not falling victim to another’s mistake. Trust me, it's much better to make your own mistakes than someone else’s.

The second in my “What I Learned From…” series is all about Seneca, another of the great stoics. This man helped shape my understanding of time along with that tricky yet subtle knowledge of the interplay of patience and impatience. He also taught me how to hold a balanced perspective, what to focus my energy on, and helped me to understand the role fate plays in our lives and a deeper meaning to reality.

Who was this man? Lucius Seneca lived around 50 AD and grew up in Rome. He lived a varying life, from isolation on an island to an advisor to emperor Nero, Seneca at one point in another went from nothing to everything, and back again, as he was ordered to take his own life after a series of unfortunate events. Seneca is most notable for his philosophical work in Stoicism, and this is where we join the story.

Two Books

“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.” - Seneca

The wisdom I sought was offered up in the form of two books. The first of which is a little diddy, a tiny little book, a powerhouse packed into a small package, the name of which is “On The Shortness Of Life”. This book is all about time, and how we use it or don’t use it. It is invaluable for anyone looking for a kick in the butt to wake up in the morning, anyone who uses the word “but” too often, and anyone that thinks it's best to just wait a little longer to see. The second book, “Letters from a Stoic” is a compilation of 124 letters sent to Seneca’s friend Lucilius. Within these letters is specific guidance from Seneca on how to become a better stoic, how to deal with expectations and loss and love and betrayal etc.

As I read these books, my mind expanded. As I turned the pages, my perspectives changed. I was becoming a bit more stoic with each word, a bit more resilient, a bit more authentic. And as I read, I learned.

Balance

“You act like mortals in all that you fear, and like immortals in all that you desire” . - Seneca

Seneca taught us that it is not that we do not get what we want, it is that we simply want the wrong things. We fear the mundane, the gossip, the opinions of others. We love fame, money, and riches. He helps us to see that if we actualize our deep needs and act according to nature, void of the vanity of social construct, that we can bring balance into our lives.

Focus

“If a man knows not to which port he sails, no wind is favorable”. - Seneca

If you work all day long digging tunnels in the wrong direction, why didn’t you take the day off? We will wait, until the last moment, to do what is needed of us. This, Seneca teaches us is because we are focused on the wrong things in life. Correct our focus, correct course, and let the wind take you there.

Fate/Understanding

Seneca educated the reader as to the inner workings of fate and the acceptance of a power that governs the universe that is intelligent and omnipotent. This acceptance gives me faith, it gives me faith to use as a foundation to build upon. If earth can give rise to intelligence like ours, why would the universe not be made of the same?

Reality/Understanding

“We suffer more often in imagination than in reality ". - Seneca

Everything you ever needed, everything that is essential and worth striving for, is already inside each of us. Seneca taught us to see this, that you need no equipment, no time nor place to achieve that which you are destined to achieve.

Time/Patience/Impatience

The central theme of this man’s work. A deeper understanding of time. You see, Seneca believed we were allotted adequate time here on earth. We have been granted more than our fair share. The problem with human life is that we squander and waste so much of our time on the pointless, fruitless ambitions of the ego. There has been no other work I have ever read that has instilled in me such a strong sense of time management, not to be anal, but to empower myself with reality. We will all die, we only have this one life to live, why wait, why waste, get to work now, live now.

Conclusion

If there is anything you take away, I hope it is that your time is the most precious thing you have. The most valuable resource. Your time, your attention, is currently being fought for in an epic war on digital and physical proportions we cannot see. Do not give in. Do not surrender. Take back your most important resource before it's all gone for good.

“It is not that we have a short space of time, but that we waste much of it. Life is long enough, and it has been given in sufficiently generous measure to allow the accomplishment of the very greatest things if the whole of it is well invested”. Seneca

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About the Creator

Robert Webb

Freelance writer.

I write about all walks of life, from fiction to non-fiction, self-help to psychology, travel to philosophy.

I like to bring a sense of humor to serious topics, a splash of philosophical thinking, and a dash of weirdness.

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