We Are So Soon Forgotten

A few miles outside Rome, along the still-smooth stone-paved Appian Way, is a tall brick tomb that is rumored to belong to Seneca. Unfortunately, no one is certain if this rumor has any truth to it. There is no sign that marks the tomb. There is no clear archeological proof that the bones or ashes of the famous Stoic ever laid underneath it. What the tomb looked like in ancient times is uncertain as well, for no one bothered over the intervening two thousand years to paint, sketch, or describe Seneca’s grave, even as time slowly wore it away. The same is true of the many ornate and enormous monuments which line the roads to Rome. Despite the many thousands of sesterces spent to build them, despite how large their owners loomed in life, today they are but curiosities, best used as sources of much needed shade for bike-riding tourists. This would have been a surprise to many people at the time, possibly even to Seneca himself, despite the philosophical work he did to prepare himself for death. It’s almost always a surprise to powerful and important people, who fancy their reputations as immortal. In Samuel Johnson’s A Journey To The Western Islands of Scotland, he writes of a series of enormous tombs that dot Iona, known today as “the cemetery of the Scottish Kings.” As he says, “By whom the subterraneous vaults are now peopled is now unknown. The graves are very numerous and some of them undoubtedly contain the remains of men who did not expect to be so forgotten.” The same is true for Seneca--sure we remember him here in these emails, but the vast majority of the world has never even heard of him--and it will also be true for each one of us. This is why the Stoics warn against the temptation and the ego of chasing fame, living or posthumous. Because it inevitably fades away. No matter how much money we accumulate or acclaim we receive. No matter how beautiful our tomb. We will all soon be forgotten. So let that humble us today while we are still alive, let that curb selfish or toxic ambition, let that help us choose between doing the wrong thing to get ahead and the quiet thing we know is right in our heart. Memento Mori. Let that inform what we do today. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. 📢 Share | ⚙️ Manage Subscription

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:06Ryan Holiday?

  Welcome to The Daily Stoic, where each day we read a short passage designed to help you cultivate the strength, insight, wisdom necessary for living the good life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at dailystoic.com. We are so soon forgotten. A few miles outside Rome, along the still-smooth, stone-paved Appian Way, is a tall, brick tomb that is rumored to belong to Seneca. Unfortunately, no one is certain if this rumor has any truth to it. There is no sign

• 0:47Ryan Holiday?

  that marks the tomb. There is no clear archaeological proof that the bones or ashes of the famous Stoic ever laid underneath it. What the tomb looked like in ancient times is uncertain as well, for no one bothered, over the intervening 2,000 years, to paint, sketch, or describe Seneca's grave, even as time slowly wore it away. The same is true for the many ornate and enormous monuments which lined the roads to Rome. Despite the many thousands of cess stickers spent to build them, despite how large their owners loomed in life, today they are but curiosities, best used as sources of much-needed shade

• 1:28Ryan Holiday?

  for bike-riding tourists. This would have been a surprise to many people at the time, possibly even to Seneca himself, despite the philosophical work he did to prepare himself for death. It's almost always a surprise to powerful and important people who fancy their reputations as immortal. In Samuel Johnson's A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, he writes of a series of enormous tombs that dot Iona, today known as the cemetery of the Scottish kings. As he says, "By whom the subterraneous vaults are now peopled is now unknown. The graves are very numerous, and some of them undoubtedly contain the remains of men..." Who did not expect to be so forgotten.

• 2:13Ryan Holiday?

  The same is true for Seneca. Sure, we remember him here in these emails and podcasts and articles, but the vast majority of the world has never even heard of him. And it will be also true for each one of us. This is why the Stoics warn against the temptation and the ego of chasing fame, living or posthumous, because it inevitably fades away. No matter how much money we accumulate or a claim we receive, no matter how beautiful our tomb, we will all soon be forgotten. So let that humble us today while we are still alive. Let that curb selfish and toxic ambition. Let that help us choose between doing the wrong thing to get ahead

• 2:58Ryan Holiday?

  and the quiet thing we know is right in our heart. Memento mori. You could leave life right now. You are mortal. You will be forgotten. Let that inform what we do today. If you'd like a physical tangible reminder of this, maybe a limited edition print for your wall or a coin you can carry in your pocket made at the same mint that makes the Alcoholics Anonymous Recovery Chips, check out our Daily Stoic store where we have a selection of these. We handcraft and make them ourselves. We use the best materials we can. We work with the best manufacturers. I think you'll really like them. Just go to dailystoic.com/mm. Love for you to check it out and maybe get something for yourself. Enjoy and memento mori.