"He is a slave." His soul, however, may be that of a freeman. "He is a slave." But shall that stand in his way? Show me a man who is not a slave; one is a slave to lust, another to greed, another to ambition, and all men are slaves to fear. I will name you an ex-consul who is slave to an old hag, a millionaire who is slave to a serving-maid; I will show you youths of the noblest birth in serfdom to pantomime players! No servitude is more disgraceful than that which is self-imposed.
-Seneca
As true today as when it was written.
Most of the examples are accessible and I’d like to expound a bit on the matter of all men being slaves to fear, for I think it would be easy to gloss over that. To me, that is the most powerful element of the equation.
How much of our behavior is motivated out of anticipation of future pain, whether that be physical harm or something less intense like feeling disliked or unwanted?
What forms of servitude do you impose upon yourself?
How would your life be different if you were able to stop doing that?
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[–] TrialsAndTribulation 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
Thanks for the update. I read every single one of these posts and find them very enlightening and useful. Much appreciated.
[–] FullSemiAutomatic [S] 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
REALLY appreciate the words of encouragement, goat!
I love this community and it's my pleasure to be of service.