Seneca - Moral Letters - 88: On Liberal and Vocational Studies

This is my own recording of a public domain text. It is not copied and I retain the copyright.
The Moral Letter to Lucilius are a collection of 124 letters which were written by Seneca the Younger at the end of his life, during his retirement, and written after he had worked for the Emperor Nero for fifteen years. (These Moral Letters are the same letters which Tim Ferriss promotes in the Tao of Seneca)
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Translated by Richard Mott Gummere: en.wikisource.org/wiki/Moral_...
Notes:
“there is only one really liberal study, - that which gives a man his
liberty.”
“Show me rather, by the example of Ulysses, how I am to love my
country, my wife, my father, and how, even after suffering
shipwreck, I am to sail toward these ends, honourable as they
are.”
“You know what a straight line is; but how does it benefit you if
you do not know what is straight in this life of ours?”
“For just as I know that all things can happen, so I know, too, that
they will not happen in every case. I am ready for favourable events
in every case, but I am prepared for evil.”
*emetic: a medicine or other substance which causes vomiting
“For what good does it do us to guide a horse and control his
speed with the curb, and then find that our own passions, utterly
uncurbed, bolt with us? Or to beat many opponents in wrestling
or boxing, and then to find that we ourselves are beaten by
anger?”
“Why, then, do we educate our children in the liberal studies?” it
is not because they can bestow virtue, but because they prepare
the soul for the reception of virtue
“This desire to know more than is sufficient is a sort of
intemperance. Why? Because this unseemly pursuit of the
liberal arts makes men troublesome, wordy, tactless, self-satisfied
bores, who fail to learn the essentials just because they have
learned the non-essentials.”
“It is at the cost of a vast outlay of time and of vast discomfort to
the ears of others that we win such praise as this: ‘What a learned
man you are!’ Let us be content with this recommendation, less
citified though it be: ‘What a good man you are!’
“…think how much superfluous and unpractical matter the
philosophers contain! Of their own accord they also have
descended to establishing nice divisions of syllables, to
determining the true meaning of conjunctions and prepositions;
they have been envious of the scholars, envious of the
mathematicians. They have taken over into their own art all the
superfluities of these other arts; the result is that they know more
about careful speaking than about careful living.”
#stoicism #seneca #LettersFromaStoic #moralletterstolucilius

[@nathangriffiths2851]

This dialog is amazing, i never really paid much attention to Seneca but hes growing on me

[@ronithestoic3702]

Thank you for covering this letter Robin , so thankful i have found ypur channel 😊😊

[@SERGE_Tech]

Regardless of the upload they are all good videos

[@Human_Evolution-]

That letter had a few parts that I liked.

[@Sakura-zu4rz]

Acceptance of morality makes me live in a more vital way. That’s just the way it is. I think when you are young you don’t think about it. Now as you get older, you take this on board and your life becomes more valuable!!😅😘❤️

[@rippingoffmyface]

👏

[@kevintierney5711]

Robin! Have you ever considered narrating the Alexiad?

[@VoxStoica]

I hadn't heard about it until now, I'll have a look. Have you read it? What do you like about it?

[@kevintierney5711]

@@VoxStoica 1.) It was written by Princess Anna, the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios (the titular character for the work). She was loosely the first female historian 2.) It stands out among byzantine literature which for the most part is completely dry. Anna was a book worm if ever there was one (she read taboo Greek epics that were technically pagan). Low key genius historical figure (she managed a hospital in Constantinople) 3.) It's an epic poem but it's also a primary source, for better or for worse. Anna is biased towards her father and she's criticized for it but I think that's also pretty interesting. The disdain against the European Crusaders provides insight. Also, she knows how to not be boring in my opinion - her words read like silk and she was there for a large portion of the periods she covers and she doesn't shy away from that. Imagine being a teenage princess with the crazy Turks on one side and the crazy Crusaders on the other. 4.) She doesn't talk about it but she came out as the loser in a coup de tat against her brother (pretty sad that her father chose her younger brother to secede him but she was completely devoted). 5.) Admittedly she's not a stoic but she got played a dirty hand - forsaken from her inheritance by her father in favor of her brother Jon. Banished by her brother Jon for plotting against him and allowed to fade into obscurity in her own lifetime. And what does she do? She writes a very important book for future generations to try to build on the successes of her family. It reminds me a little bit of the guy who wrote the Gulag Archipelago. As Jordan Peterson said about Orthodox Christians, she was able to pick up her "damn cross" and stumble uphill to do what she could for the Empire. I haven't read it but I watched a video about her for Womens' History Month which basically provided all of these bullet points Source: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5TUhJeBYsaZjas

[@prabuddh_mathur]

Any update on which audio book you are doing right now??

[@VoxStoica]

The Discourses of Epictetus, Oldfather translation

[@nathangriffiths2851]

@@VoxStoica Ahhhh!!!! cant wait

[@Stormvermin-bx1lh]

@@VoxStoica Nice!

[@prabuddh_mathur]

@@VoxStoica ttthhhhaaaannnnkkkyyyyyoooouuuuu Can't imagine how much your Encheiridion helped through my mental stability and tranquility. Today my father had been given back. Encheiridion is my backbone during this time.

[@VoxStoica]

​@@prabuddh_mathur That's a rough thing to experience early in life. You have my best wishes. Stay strong, remember philosophy and be a rock for those around you who perhaps don't have the same grounding. (It's good to know you have found the solace in Epictetus during this time. You may also find Seneca's Of Providence useful kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGOXiIica7CSfKs)

[@jnfrancoispierre3616]

First comment :)