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The Moral Epistles

124 Letters to Lucilius

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About this listen

Towards the end of his life, Seneca the Younger (c4 BCE-65 CE) began a correspondence with a friend in Sicily, later collected under the title The Moral Epistles.

In these 124 letters, Seneca expresses, in a wise, steady and calm manner, the philosophy by which he lived - derived essentially from the Stoics. The letters deal with a variety of specific topics - often eminently practical - such as 'On Saving Time', 'On the Terrors of Death', 'On True and False Friendships', 'On Brawn and Brains' and 'On Old Age and Death'.

His views are as relevant to us today as in his own time. He remarks on how we waste our time through lack of clarity of purpose, how we jump from one attraction to another and how fleeting life is. But these are letters to a friend, so the tone is not grandly didactic but friendly, personal and direct and speak to us across the centuries.

Though not so well known as Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, The Moral Epistles are approachable, memorable and immensely rich in content - and especially so in this sympathetic reading by James Cameron Stewart.

Translation Richard Gummere.

Public Domain (P)2016 Ukemi Audiobooks Philosophy Stoicism Inspiring Meditation Moral Philosophy
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Pick this complete version over the Penguin classics "Seneca letters from a stoic" version.

The chapters are well structured and the narrator's accent suits the contents of which are inspiring and enlightening.

Complete well-spoken wisdom

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beautiful wisdom, knowing that there is nothing new under the sun. wisdom one will still apply today. what really counts in life. makes alot of sense

excellent, very interesting

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its a very long listen but totally worth it. its well narrated throughout. I'd highly recommend...

A long listen

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Fascinating and while these letters were written so long ago amazing how relevant they are to life today.
EXCELLENT narration from James Cameron Stewart. Perfectly paced, lovely to listen to and while it might seem LONG at 23 hours 18 minutes great to dip in to from time to time.

Superb Epistles, Great Narration

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I have listened to this many, many, times. The narrator is perfect, and the words are wise and powerful.
I will be listening many more times. This is very unusual for me but I find, no matter how many times I listen, it always brings me comfort and peace,
As relevant today as it was 2000 years ago.

Brilliant!

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