Seneca · c. 4 BCE – 65 CE
On Providence 5 ¶4–8 — Seneca
Translation by Aubrey Stewart (1889)
Seneca, On Providence 5 ¶4–8
When the spirited youth heard this, he said, “I have no fault to find with the road: I will mount it, it is worthwhile to go through these places, even though one fall.” His father did not cease from trying to scare his brave spirit with terrors:— “Then, too, that thou may’st hold thy course aright, And neither turn aside to left nor right, Straight through the Bull’s fell horns thy path must go, Through the fierce Lion, and the Archer’s bow.” After this Phaethon says:— “Harness the chariot which you yield to me, I am encouraged by these things with which you think to scare me: I long to stand where the Sun himself trembles to stand.” It is the part of grovellers and cowards to follow the safe track; courage loves a lofty path.
Cite this passage
Seneca, On Providence 5 ¶4–8, tr. Aubrey Stewart (1889)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/on-providence/5.4
Seneca, Dialogues, tr. Aubrey Stewart (1887–1889). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesIn the myth of young Phaethon warned about the perils of driving the sun's chariot, the warnings only excite him. The lesson is that a brave person is drawn to the hard and lofty path, while only the timid choose the safe track.
Older wording
- “grovellers”
- — people who cringe and crawl timidly
- “fell”
- — fierce and deadly
Themes and situations
- Courage
- Adversity and hardship
- Ambition and success
- Fear and anxiety
- Fear of failure
- A hard decision
- A career setback
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