XXXV. SENECA LUCILIO SUO SALUTEM
By Spencer Curry, thoroughly revised by Jacques Bailly
[1] Cum te tam valde rogo ut studeas, meum negotium ago: habere
amicum volo, quod contingere mihi, nisi pergis ut coepisti excolere
te, non potest. Nunc enim amas me, amicus non es. 'Quid ergo? haec
inter se diversa sunt?' immo dissimilia. Qui amicus est amat; qui
amat non utique amicus est; itaque amicitia semper prodest, amor
aliquando etiam nocet. [2] Si nihil aliud, ob hoc profice, ut amare
discas. Festina ergo dum mihi proficis, ne istuc alteri didiceris.
Ego quidem percipio iam fructum, cum mihi fingo uno nos animo
futuros et quidquid aetati meae vigoris abscessit, id ad me ex tua,
quamquam non multum abest, rediturum; sed tamen re quoque ipsa esse
laetus volo. [3] Venit ad nos ex iis quos amamus etiam absentibus
gaudium, sed id leve et evanidum: conspectus et praesentia et
conversatio habet aliquid vivae voluptatis, utique si non tantum
quem velis sed qualem velis videas. Affer itaque te mihi, ingens
munus, et quo magis instes, cogita te mortalem esse, me senem. [4]
Propera ad me, sed ad te prius. Profice et ante omnia hoc cura, ut
constes tibi. Quotiens experiri voles an aliquid actum sit, observa
an eadem hodie velis quae heri: mutatio voluntatis indicat animum
natare, aliubi atque aliubi apparere, prout tulit ventus. Non
vagatur quod fixum atque fundatum est: istud sapienti perfecto
contingit, aliquatenus et proficienti provectoque. Quid ergo
interest? hic commovetur quidem, non tamen transit, sed suo loco
nutat; ille ne commovetur quidem. Vale.
Introduction
A very short letter urging Lucilius to make progress so that he can
be Seneca's equal and a true friend.
Commentary
[1] Cum te tam valde rogo ut studeas, meum negotium ago:
habere amicum volo, quod contingere mihi, nisi pergis ut coepisti
excolere te, non potest. Nunc enim amas me, amicus non es. 'Quid
ergo? haec inter se diversa sunt?' immo dissimilia. Qui amicus est
amat; qui amat non utique amicus est; itaque amicitia semper
prodest, amor aliquando etiam nocet.
cum: the conjunction (not the preposition), introduces a
temporal clause. | rogo ut studeas: ut + subjunctive
in indirect command.
- habere amicum volo, (main clause)
- quod contingere mihi ..., ( beginning of relative clause,
which is also the apodosis to nisi clause: habere
amicum is antecedent of quod)
- nisi pergis ... (beginning of protasis to quod
contingere clause)
- ut coepisti (clause of comparison)
- ... excolere te, (end of protasis: complementary
infinitive with pergis)
- ... non potest (end of relative clause)
amas ... amicus: consonance of amas and
amicus makes the formulation memorable,
something Seneca strives for. Later repeated with amicus
... amat ... amat amicus
... amicitia ... amor.
quid haec: note that Seneca introduces a nameless
conversation partner for liveliness.
immo: "On the contrary ..." In German, doch is
used like immo in Latin.
qui... est ... qui... est: repeated structure adds emphasis
and pithiness. Neither qui has an expressed antecedent.
etiam: can mean "also" or "even": context must decide.
nocet: normally, noceo takes a dative, but here it is
used "absolutely" (which means it lacks its normal object or other
complements).
[2] Seneca views friendship as a mutually beneficial
union of souls, no matter the age difference. The benefit in
his friendship with Lucilius is that Seneca draws new life from
Lucilius' youth.
[2]Si nihil aliud, ob hoc profice, ut amare discas. Festina
ergo dum mihi proficis, ne istuc alteri didiceris. Ego quidem
percipio iam fructum, cum mihi fingo uno nos animo futuros et
quidquid aetati meae vigoris abscessit, id ad me ex tua, quamquam
non multum abest, rediturum; sed tamen re quoque ipsa esse laetus
volo.
si nihil aliud (sc. facis): supply an appropriate
nondescript verb like facis for this brachylogy (aka
telegraphic speech). Or perhaps we are supposed to understand this
as si ob nihil aliud ... . This expression is eerily similar
to English "If nothing else, ... " and seems just as ambiguous
grammatically. | ob hoc: although this expression could have
been omitted without loss of intelligibility, it prepares for the
purpose clause, because hoc refers to the purpose clause.
| profice: imperative, “make progress towards”, takes an
internal accusative - nihil aliud. | ut amare
discas: purpose clause, primary sequence. | dum:
introduces a temporal clause , usually with an indicative verb. |
ne ... didiceris: negative purpose clause. Primary
sequence. | istuc: "thither," "to that place" is a spatial
word, but here it is used figuratively of reaching a certain
"place" in one's learning. | alteri: dative of advantage: alter
means "the other" (of two), but sometimes, as here, it means "the
next fellow" and is practically equivalent to "another."ego
quidem: more often equidem is used instead of ego
quidem. Seneca uses equidem 17 times (4 in prose),
while he uses ego quidem 4 times (all in prose, twice in
the Epistulae). For comparison, Cicero uses equidem 246
times (118 further instances occur in his Epistulae, some
of which are by his correspondents) and ego quidem only 10
times, 8 of which are in his Epistulae (5 further uses
are by his correspondents), and equidem is found 1081
times on the PHI disk, while ego quidem is found 89 times.
- Ego quidem percipio iam fructum, (main clause)
- cum mihi fingo (temporal cum clause)
- uno nos animo futuros (sc. esse) (1st indirect
speech infinitive clause dependent on fingo)
- et (joins 1st and 2nd indirect speech clauses)
- quidquid aetati meae vigoris abscessit, (indefinite
relative clause: id is antecedent)
- id ad me et ex tua ..., (begin 2nd indirect speech
clause dependent on fingo)
- quamquam non multum abest, (concessive clause)
- rediturum (sc. esse) (end of 2nd indirect speech
clause dependent on fingo)
uno nos animo: ablative of quality, esse+ablative.
| aetati meae: dative of time. | vigoris:
genitive with quidquid, as often occurs.
| id: id refers to quidquid.
| tua: feminine agreeing with an understood aetate.
| quamquam: “although.” | abest: subject
is mea aetas. | multum: adverb modifying abest.
| rediturum: future participle in agreement with id,
and part of the future infinitive rediturum (sc. esse).
| re...ipsa: ablative of respect, “in reality.”
[3] Presence heightens the joy of having a friend, but even
at a distance, it is joyful.
[3] Venit ad nos ex iis quos amamus etiam absentibus gaudium,
sed id leve et evanidum: conspectus et praesentia et conversatio
habet aliquid vivae voluptatis, utique si non tantum quem velis sed
qualem velis videas. Affer itaque te mihi, ingens munus, et quo
magis instes, cogita te mortalem esse, me senem.
venit: unusually, the verb comes first and its subject,
gaudium, comes last in the sentence for emphasis. | iis:
ablative with ex, modifies absentibus. | habet:
a singular verb with multiple subjects: Seneca sees the three
subjects conspectus et praesentia et conversatio as a single
phenomena, hence the singular verb. Note the uses of et:
when a list has more words for "and" than is normal in English, it
is called "polysyndeton." | aliquid: “something”,
frequently takes a genitive, here vivae voluptatis. |
si...videas: Future Less Vivid condition. | velis+velis:
subjunctive either merely by "attraction" or in relative clauses of
characteristic. "Attraction" means that the speaker put the
subordinate clause into the subjunctive for no other reason than
that the leading verb was subjunctive. They are translated just as
an indicative would be translated. Attraction is not reliably
predictable. Relative clauses of characteristic, on the other hand,
generalize things and so these clauses would mean "the sort of
person you want in the sort of condition you want." | Affer:
imperative. Adfer is a possible alternate spelling. |
ingens munus: in apposition to the whole thought of the
preceding clause. | quo magis instes: when purpose
clauses contain a comparative, they are introduced by quo.
| cogita: imperative. | me senem:
dependent on cogita, with an understood esse. Note
the lack of a connective, such as et, between this clause
and the parallel te mortalem esse: when an expected
connective is lacking, it is called "asyndeton."
[4] Seneca is fond of paradoxical formulation, as with propera
ad te here: how does one "rush to oneself"? The stoic idea
here is that one's true nature (the goal of life as a human) is
perfect wisdom, and one should strive to realize and develop that
nature. There was perhaps only one person the Stoics thought had
achieved it (Cato), and the rest were "making progress." The stoics
also denied that one could progress toward wisdom: it is like a
light switch that has two positions, on and off, but Seneca seems to
not be concerned with that particular Stoic claim here.
[4] Propera ad me, sed ad te prius. Profice et ante omnia hoc
cura, ut constes tibi. Quotiens experiri voles an aliquid actum sit,
observa an eadem hodie velis quae heri: mutatio voluntatis indicat
animum natare, aliubi atque aliubi apparere, prout tulit ventus. Non
vagatur quod fixum atque fundatum est: istud sapienti perfecto
contingit, aliquatenus et proficienti provectoque. Quid ergo
interest? hic commovetur quidem, non tamen transit, sed suo loco
nutat; ille ne commovetur quidem. Vale.
propera ... profice ... cura...: imperative. | ut
constes tibi: indirect command dependent on cura: cf.
section 1 above. | actum sit: indirect
question subjunctive introduced by an dependent on experiri.
| observa: imperative. | quae
heri/eadem hodie: both use velis as the main verb. |
velis: indirect question subjunctive. | quae
heri (sc. voluerit): this relative clause needs a verb: supply
voluerit (subjunctive, because it is subordinate to an
indirect question: perfect, because it is primary sequence
expressing prior time (heri)). | animum
natare: indirect speech dependent on indicat. | aliubi...aliubi:
whenever two forms with ali- occur in the same clause,
translate as "different ____ .... different ____" or "one ... ,
another ...." as in "different people say different things" or "one
person says one thing, another says another thing." | apparere:
infinitive in indirect speech, subject is still animum.
| quod: understood antecedent id. Compare
English "Pick which you want." (="Pick that one which you want").
| istud: refers to the though of the previous
clauses in the sentence. | sapienti perfecto:
dative dependent on contingit. | proficienti
provectoque: dative dependent on contingit.
hic ... ille: used in the sense of “this one....the other
one...” (the sage who has achieved wisdom vs. those who are
progressing toward wisdom).
Vocabulary
abscedo, abscedere, abscessi, abscessum, be gone, be off, go
away, depart
absens, absentis, absent
absum, abesse, afui, afuturus, be away, be distant
adfero (see affero)
aetas, -atis, f., stage of life
affero, afferre, attuli, adlatum, apply, bring to bear
ago, agere, egi, actum, accomplish, do; do, drive
aliquando, sometimes
aliquatenus, to a certain degree, somewhat
aliquis, aliquid, someone, something
aliubi, elsewhere
alter, altera, alterum, the other
amicitia, -ae, f., friendship
amicus, -a, -um, friendly
amo (1), love
amor, -oris, m., love
an, whether
animus, -i, m., soul
ante, before (+acc.)
appareo, apparere, apparui, apparitum, show one's self, appear, be
seen
atque, and (=ac)
coepio, coepi, coeptum, begin
cogito (1), think
commoveo, commovere, commovi, commotus, set in motion, move
forward
conspectus, -us, m., seeing, sight
consto, constare, constiti, constatum, be consistent with, stay
true to
contingo, contingere, contigi, contactum, happen
conversatio, -onis, f., conversation, discussion
curo (1), take care of, care for
disco, discere, didici, learn
dissimilis, -e, dissimilar, different
diversus, -a, -um, different
dum, until, as long as
enim, conj., for
ergo, therefore
etiam, even, also
evanidus, -a, -um, short-lived
excolo, excolere, excolui, excultum, cultivate
experior, experiri, expertus sum, experience; try, test, prove
fero, ferre, tuli, latus, carry
festino (1), hurry
fingo, fingere, finxi, fictum, imagine, conceive, think
fixus, fast, unmovable, fixed
fructus, -us, m., fruit, result
fundatus, -a, -um, established, firm, fixed
gaudium, -i, n., joy
habeo, habere, habui, habitum, have
heri, yesterday
hodie, today
iam, at this point, now, already
immo, on the contrary
indico (1), indicate, show
ingens, -entis, huge
insto, instare, institi, instatum, urge on, press forward
inter (+ acc.), between
interest, interesse, interfuit, be a difference, make a
difference, matter
istuc, thither, to that place
itaque, thus
itaque, thus, so
laetus, -a, -um, happy, felicitous
levis, leve, light, lightweight, trifling
locus, -i, m., place
magis, more
mortalis, -e, mortal, subject to death
multum, adv., far, much
munus, muneris, n., favor, service
mutatio, -onis, f., change
nato (1), waver, fluctuate
ne ... quidem, not even ...
ne, lest
negotium, -i, n., business
nihil, nothing
nisi, unless
noceo, nocere, nocui, nociturum, harm (+dat.)
nunc, now
nuto (1), nod, sway, totter
ob, on account of (+acc.)
observo (1), notice
percipio, percipere, percepi, perceptum, perceive, see
perfectus, -a, -um, complete, perfect
pergo, pergere, perrexi, perrectum, continue
praesentia, -ae, f., presence
prius, beforehand
proficiens, proficientis, progressing, one making progress
proficio, proficere, profeci, profectum, make progress, advance
propero (1), rush, hurry
prosum, prodesse, profui, profuturus, be advantageous
prout, just as
proveho, provehere, provexi, provectum, advance, carry forward
qualis, -e, of which sort, in what state
quamquam, although
quidem, indeed
quoque, too, also
quotiens, as often as, as many times as
redeo, redire, redii, reditum, return, come back, go back
res, rei, f. (see commentary)
rogo (1), ask
sapiens, sapientis, wise
sed, but
semper, always
senex, senis, m., old man
studeo, studere, studui, be zealous, study
tam, adv., so
tamen, however, nevertheless
tantum, adv., only
transeo, transire, transi(v)i, transitum, go across
tulit, see fero
unus, -a, -um, one
utique, in every way; in any case, at any rate, certainly
vagor (1), wander
valde, strongly
vale, be well, fare well (a form of valeo)
venio, venire, veni, ventum, come
ventus, -i, m., wind
vigor, -oris, m., strength
vivus, -a, -um, living, live
volo, velle, volui, want
voluntas, -atis, f., will
voluptas, -atis, f., pleasure