The Philosopher's Mean

Visitors in the workshop of a painter by Honore Daumier (Public domain)

Welcome to Sundays with Seneca on the Perennial Meditations podcast. Join us as we search for ancient lessons for modern life in Stoic philosophy.

Today’s selected reading comes from a letter titled On the Philosopher’s Mean. Seneca stressed to Luciulius:

“I commend you and rejoice in the fact that you are persistent in your studies and that, putting all else aside, you make it each day your endeavor to become a better man. I do not merely exhort you to keep at it; I actually beg you to do so. […]

Philosophy calls for plain living but not for penance; we may perfectly well be plain and neat at the same time. This is the mean by which I approve; our life should observe a happy medium between the ways of a sage and the ways of the world at large.” […]

—

Thank you for listening; I hope you found something useful.

Until next time, be wise and be well,

JW