Let philosophy scrape off your own faults, rather than be a way to rail against the faults of others. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “The tempest threatens before it rises upon us…”
The tempest threatens before it rises upon us; buildings creak before they fall to pieces. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “It is the mind that makes us rich and happy…”
It is the mind that makes us rich and happy, in whatever conditions we are, and money signifies no more to it than it does to the gods. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “If you are surprised at…”
If you are surprised at the number of our maladies, count our cooks. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “Why does no man confess his vices?…”
Why does no man confess his vices? Because he is still in them. It is for a waking man to tell of his dreams. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “An honest heart possess a kingdom.”
An honest heart possesses a kingdom. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “As the soil, however rich it may be…”
As the soil, however rich it may be, cannot be productive without culture, so the mind without cultivation can never produce good fruit. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “What narrow innocence it is…”
What narrow innocence it is for one to be good only according to the law. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “The mind is never right but when…”
The mind is never right but when it is at peace within itself: the spirit is in heaven even while it is in the flesh, if it be emptied of its imperfections, and taken up with divine thoughts and contemplation. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)
Seneca Quote – “The sovereign good of a man is…”
The sovereign good of a man is a mind that subjects all things to itself, and is itself subject to nothing. Such a man’s pleasures are modest and reserved, and it may be a question whether he goes to heaven or heaven comes to him. Seneca (4 B.C.E. – 65 A.D.)