The Daily Stoic - Seneca’s Warning | The Quiet Corruption of the Soul

Episode Date: April 27, 2025

We often ignore flaws in our body until they demand attention, but flaws in the soul are even harder to see—the deeper the damage, the less aware we are of it.Today’s episode is an excerpt from The Tao Of Seneca produced by Tim Ferriss’ Audio. Get the free PDF at tim.blog/senecaListen to other letters from Seneca:Seneca on Despising DeathSeneca on Conquering the ConquerorSeneca on Philosophy and FriendshipSeneca on Practicing What You PreachSeneca on The Reasons For Withdrawing From The World Seneca on Master and SlaveSeneca on Worldliness and Retirement🎙️ Follow The Daily Stoic Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dailystoicpodcast🎥 Watch top moments from The Daily Stoic Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@dailystoicpodcast✉️ Want Stoic wisdom delivered to your inbox daily? Sign up for the FREE Daily Stoic email at https://dailystoic.com/dailyemail🏛 Get Stoic inspired books, medallions, and prints to remember these lessons at the Daily Stoic Store: https://store.dailystoic.com/📱 Follow us:  Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and FacebookSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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How Do You Cope is brought to you by Audible, who make it easy to embark on a wellness journey that fits your life with thousands of audiobooks, guided meditations and motivational series. 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.

Hey it's Ryan. Welcome to another Sunday episode of the Daily Stoic Podcast. As you know, we've been slowly making our way through Seneca's letters. Tim Ferriss several years ago produced an audio edition of all of Seneca's letters, which I have always loved. I listen to him in the car sometimes, and he's been nice enough to let us excerpt that slowly and steadily on the podcast over the years. 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 then 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.seneca 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. Letters 53 Letters 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 seasickness which brought no relief was wracking 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 seasickness 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, 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 aegyo 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. Veerail, love the way. 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, keeps 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 a 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

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