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
We 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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
We often express gratitude for material gifts, but we tend to overlook our deeper obligations for life's fundamental blessings.
In this quote, Seneca the Elder highlights the irony of human gratitude, suggesting that while we readily appreciate minor gifts from friends, we take for granted the more profound aspects of existence, such as life, health, and the faculties that allow us to reason. He encourages us to recognize the greater responsibilities and gratitude we owe for these essential aspects of our lives, instead of just focusing on superficial or tangible assets.
Themes
GratitudeLifeHealthFreedomObligationPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about appreciating the essentials of life.
More from Seneca The Elder
All quotes →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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The courts of kings are full of people, but empty of friends.
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What you think about yourself is much more important than what others think of you.
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