Seneca Moral essays
Seneca: But come! let virtue lead the way: then every…
But come! let virtue lead the way: then every step will be safe. Too much pleasure is hurtful: but with virtue we need fear no excess of any kind, because moderation is contained in virtue herself.
The passage follows a public-domain translation of Seneca’s moral essays. The reading beside it is ours.
A life directed by values is safer than a life directed by mood. When virtue leads, you do not have to fear success, comfort, or enjoyment. You can take the promotion, eat the good meal, enjoy praise, and use money without becoming their servant, because you know what comes first. The problem is not having nice things. It is needing them to tell you who you are. Virtue contains its own brakes: courage does not become recklessness, generosity does not become vanity, ambition does not become greed. Pleasure has no such built-in limit. It always asks whether there might be a little more. Build your decisions on character first—honesty, courage, fairness, self-command—and the rest of life can be enjoyed without panic. Today, let your standards set the pace, not your appetite.
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