Seneca’s Warning | The Quiet Corruption of the Soul
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Welcome to the weekend edition of the Daily Stoic Podcast. On Sundays, we take a deeper dive into these ancient topics with excerpts from the Stoic texts, audiobooks that we like here or recommend here at Daily Stoic, and other long-form wisdom that you can chew on on this relaxing weekend. We hope this helps shape your understanding of this philosophy, and most importantly, that you're able to apply it to your actual life.

Thank you for listening.

And today we are going to hear letter 53. This is Seneca talking about seasickness, which as always, he sort of takes an event from his life and uses it as like a metaphor, right? He's talking about how we sometimes overlook ailments until they worsen and that philosophy is also a treatment for what ails us.

and for sticking to the treatment plan. Seneca says it better than I can, so I'll just get into it. But you can grab a free PDF of Seneca's letters at tim.blog.com. And if you want to listen to some of the other episodes that we have done, we've got Seneca on despising death, Seneca on philosophy and friendship, Seneca on conquering the conqueror, Seneca on practicing what you preach.

Seneca on worldliness and retirement, a bunch of other letters. I'll link to that in today's show notes. And enjoy. Here it is straight from, well, not exactly Seneca himself, but here's Seneca directly in your ears. Letter 53, On the Faults of the Spirit. You can persuade me into almost anything now, for I was recently persuaded to travel by water.

we cast off when the sea was lazily smooth the sky to be sure was heavy with nasty clouds such as usually break into rain or squalls still i thought that the few miles between puttioli and your dear parthenope might be run off in quick time despite the uncertain and lowering sky

so in order to get away more quickly i made straight out to sea for nessus with the purpose of cutting across all the inlets but when we were so far out that it made little difference to me whether i returned or kept on the calmer weather which had enticed me came to naught the storm had not yet begun but the ground swell was on and the waves kept steadily coming faster

i began to ask the pilot to put me ashore somewhere he replied that the coast was rough and a bad place to land and that in a storm he feared a lee shore more than anything else but i was suffering too grievously to think of the danger since a sluggish sea-sickness which brought no relief was racking me the sort that upsets the liver without clearing it therefore i laid down the law to my pilot forcing him to make for the shore willy-nilly

when we drew near i did not wait for things to be done in accordance with virgil's orders until prow faced seaward or anchor plunged from bow i remembered my profession as a veteran devotee of cold water and clad as i was in my cloak let myself down into the sea just as a cold-water bather should

what do you think my feelings were scrambling over the rocks searching out the path or making one for myself i understood that sailors have good reason to fear the land it is hard to believe what i endured when i could not endure myself you may be sure that the reason why ulysses was shipwrecked on every possible occasion was not so much because the sea-god was angry with him from his birth he was simply subject to sea-sickness

and in the future i also if i must go anywhere by sea shall only reach my destination in the twentieth year when i finally calmed my stomach for you know that one does not escape sea-sickness by escaping from the sea

and refreshed my body with a rub-down i began to reflect how completely we forget or ignore our failings even those that affect the body which are continually reminding us of their existence not to mention those which are more serious in proportion as they are more hidden a slight ague deceives us

but when it has increased and a genuine fever has begun to burn it forces even a hardy man who can endure much suffering to admit that he is ill there is a pain in the foot and a tingling sensation in the joints but we still hide the complaint and announce that we have sprained a joint or else are tired from over-exercise then the ailment uncertain at first must be given a name

and when it begins to swell the ankles also and has made both our feet right feet we are bound to confess that we have the gout the opposite holds true of diseases of the soul the worse one is the less one perceives it

Mens sana in corpore sano, a strong mind in a strong body. I think we sometimes think of philosophy as this mental thing, which it is, but it's also a physical thing. The Stoics were active. I try to be active. You should try to be active. You've got to have a physical practice of

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You need not be surprised, my beloved Lucilius, for he whose sleep is light pursues visions during slumber and sometimes, though asleep, is conscious that he is asleep. But sound slumber annihilates our very dreams and sinks the spirit down so deep that it has no perception of self. Why will no man confess his faults? Because he is still in their grasp.

only he who is awake can recount his dream and similarly a confession of sin is a proof of sound mind let us therefore rouse ourselves that we may be able to correct our mistakes philosophy however is the only power that can stir us the only power that can shake off our deep slumber devote yourself wholly to philosophy you are worthy of her she is worthy of you

greet one another with a loving embrace say farewell to all other interests with courage and frankness do not study philosophy merely during your spare time if you were ill you would stop caring for your personal concerns and forget your business duties you would not think highly enough of any client to take active charge of his case during a slight abatement of your sufferings

you would try your hardest to be rid of the illness as soon as possible what then shall you not do the same thing now throw aside all hindrances and give up your time to getting a sound mind for no man can attain it if he is engrossed in other matters philosophy wields her own authority she appoints her own time and does not allow it to be appointed for her

she is not a thing to be followed at odd times but a subject for daily practice she is mistress and she commands our attendance alexander when a certain state promised him a part of its territory and half its entire property replied i invaded asia with the intention not of accepting what you might give but of allowing you to keep what i might leave

philosophy likewise keep saying to all occupations i do not intend to accept the time which you have left over but i shall allow you to keep what i myself shall leave turn to her therefore with all your soul sit at her feet cherish her a great distance will then begin to separate you from other men

you will be far ahead of all mortals and even the gods will not be far ahead of you do you ask what will be the difference between yourself and the gods they will live longer but by my faith it is the sign of a great artist to have confined a full likeness to the limits of a miniature the wise man's life spreads out to him over as large a surface as does all eternity to a god

there is one point in which the sage has an advantage over the god for a god is freed from terrors by the bounty of nature the wise man by his own bounty what a wonderful privilege to have the weaknesses of a man and the serenity of a god the power of philosophy to blunt the blows of chance is beyond belief no missile can settle in her body she is well protected and impenetrable

She spoils the force of some missiles and wards them off with the loose folds of her gown, as if they had no power to harm. Others, she dashes aside and hurls them back with such force that they recoil upon the sender. Farewell. Thanks so much for listening. If you could rate this podcast and leave a review on iTunes, that would mean so much to us and it would really help the show. We appreciate it. I'll see you next episode.

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