We should every night call ourselves to an account: What infirmity have I mastered today? What passions opposed! What temptation resisted? What virtue acquired?
Seneca The ElderRead
The courts of kings are full of people, but empty of friends.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True friendship is rare in positions of power and authority.
Seneca the Elder highlights the emptiness of royal courts, suggesting that while they may be crowded with people seeking favor, genuine friendships are scarce. This reflects a philosophical viewpoint on the nature of relationships in environments where power dynamics overshadow authentic connections.
Themes
FriendshipKingsCourtsPowerRelationships
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about networking in business, I may say, 'Remember, the courts of kings are full of people, but empty of friends.'
More from Seneca The Elder
All quotes βWe can be thankful to a friend for a few acres or a little money; and yet for the freedom and command of the whole earth, and for the great benefits of our being, our life, health, and reason, we look upon ourselves as under no obligation.
Seneca The ElderRead
True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing.
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The sun also shines on the wicked.
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Let us be brave in the face of adversity.
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What you think about yourself is much more important than what others think of you.
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