76+ Best Seneca Quotes: Exclusive Selection

Seneca the Younger, fully Lucius Annaeus Seneca and also known simply as Seneca, was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and—in one work—satirist of the Silver Age of Latin literature. Profoundly inspirational Seneca quotes will encourage you to think a little deeper than you usually would and broaden your perspective.

If you’re searching for quotes from greatest philosophers that perfectly capture what you’d like to say or just want to feel inspired yourself, browse through an amazing collection of profound Schopenhauer quotes, amazing William James quotes and top Montesquieu quotes.

Famous Seneca Quotes

The best answer to anger is silence

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. 

The more we value things outside our control, the less control we have

Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.

How ridiculous and how strange to be surprised at anything which happens in life

We suffer more in imagination than in reality.

You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.

As long as you live, keep learning how to live.

The best revenge is not to be like your enemy

The bravest sight in the world is to see a great man struggling against adversity.

Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart

All cruelty springs from weakness.

Confine yourself to the present

Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.

When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love

Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by rulers as useful.

You can commit injustice by doing nothing

Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.

Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that things are difficult.

Each day provides its own gifts

Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.

Give yourself a gift, the present moment

Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.

The only wealth which you will keep forever is the wealth you have given away

Throw me to the wolves and I will return leading the pack.

Have I been made for this, to lie under the blankets and keep myself warm?

Ignorance is the cause of fear.

Conceal a flaw, and the world will imagine the worst

If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.

Life is neither good or evil, but only a place for good and evil

As for old age, embrace and love it. It abounds with pleasure if you know how to use it. The gradually declining years are among the sweetest in a man’s life, and I maintain that, even when they have reached the extreme limit, they have their pleasure still.

I cannot escape death, but at least I can escape the fear of it

As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.

How trivial the things we want so passionately are

Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart.

Settle on the type of person you want to be and stick to it, whether alone or in company

The good things of prosperity are to be wished; but the good things that belong to adversity are to be admired.

Consider at what price you sell your integrity, but please, for God’s sake, don’t sell it cheap

Silence is a lesson learned through life’s many sufferings.

We suffer more often in imagination than in reality

You act like mortals in all that you fear, and like immortals in all that you desire.

Ignorance is the cause of fear

While we wait for life, life passes

He suffers more than necessary, who suffers before it is necessary.

Life is long, if you know how to use it

Consult your friend on all things, especially on those which respect yourself. His counsel may then be useful where your own self love might impair your judgment.

Hurry up and live

One of the most beautiful qualities of true friendship is to understand and to be understood.

Cease to hope and you will cease to fear

Hang on to your youthful enthusiasm,  you’ll be able to use them better when you’re older.

Wealth is the slave of a wise man and the master of a fool

Every night before going to sleep, we must ask ourselves  what weakness did I overcome today? What virtue did I acquire?

Only time can heal what reason cannot

Associate with people who are likely to improve you.

While we are postponing, life speeds by

True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future.

Life, if well lived, is long enough

Wealth is the slave of the wise. The master of the fool.

Hang on to your youthful enthusiasm, you will be able to use them better when you are older

It does not matter what you bear, but how you bear it.

He who is brave is free

It is the power of the mind to be unconquerable.

It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness

We learn not in the school, but in life.

It is more civilized to make fun of life than to bewail it

Associate with people who are likely to improve you. Seneca

Difficulty comes from our lack of confidence

All cruelty springs from weakness. Seneca

Life is very short and anxious for those who forget the past, neglect the present, and fear the future

We learn not in the school, but in life.

What really ruins our character is the fact that none of us looks back over his life

Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by rulers as useful

There is no genius without a touch of madness.