Friendship is the only thing in the world concerning the usefulness of which all mankind are agreed.
Advice in old age is foolish; for what can be more absurd than to increase our provisions for the road the nearer we approach to our journey's end.
Interpretation
What this quote means
As we near the end of life, seeking more advice can be pointless since our journey is almost complete.
Cicero reflects on the nature of life and wisdom, suggesting that as we age and approach the end of our journey, it becomes less beneficial to gather advice or prepare for the future. Instead, he implies that we should focus on living in the present and utilizing the knowledge we have already accumulated, as the culmination of experiences should guide us in our final days rather than adding new provisions or considerations at a late stage in life.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be shared during a retirement speech to emphasize the importance of living fully in one's later years.
More from Marcus Tullius Cicero
All quotes βThose wars are unjust which are undertaken without provocation. For only a war waged for revenge or defence can actually be just.
Orators are most vehement when their cause is weak.
Nothing contributes to the entertainment of the reader more, than the change of times and the vicissitudes of fortune.
No one has the right to be sorry for himself for a misfortune that strikes everyone.
Loyalty is what we seek in friendship.
Similar quotes
I'll give you some symptoms of a sign that your faith is deteriorating-whenever you face all of your problems and you trust only your plans to get you out-it is a sign that your faith is deteriorating.
A little consideration of what takes place around us every day would show us that a higher law than that of our will regulates events; that our painful labors are unnecessary and fruitless; that only in our easy, simple, spontaneous action are we strong . . . . Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom which animates all whom it floats, and you are without effort impelled to truth, to right, and a perfect contentment.
The next time you find yourself alone in a dark alley facing the undeniables of life, don't cover them with a blanket, or ignore them with a nervous grin. Don't turn up the TV and pretend they aren't there. Instead, stand still, whisper his name, and listen. He is nearer than you think.
When you resolve to become pious, the devil in your nature cries out at you, "Tread not those paths, O confused one; distress and poverty will overcome you. You will be despised, let down by friends, you will regret it." Dread of the devil has bound their souls; the cries of the devil are the drover of the damned; the call of the Lord is a guardian of the saints.
One cannot really argue with a mathematical theorem.
When our actions create discord in another person, we, ourselves, in this lifetime or another, will feel that discord. Likewise, if our actions create harmony and empowerment in another, we also come to feel that harmony and empowerment.