"Show me someone who isn't a slave! One is a slave to lust, another to greed, another to power, and all are slaves to fear. I could name a former Consul who is a slave to a little old woman, a millionaire who is the slave of the cleaning woman.... No servitude is more abject than the self-imposed."-SENECA, MORAL LETTERS, 47.17
(“누구든 노예가 아닌 사람을 보여주시오! 어떤 이는 욕망의 노예, 또 다른 이는 탐욕의 노예, 또 다른 이는 권력의 노예이며, 모든 사람은 두려움의 노예입니다. 나는 작은 할머니에게 노예가 된 전직 집정관을, 청소부에게 노예가 된 백만장자를 예로 들 수 있습니다... 어떤 예속도 스스로 부과한 것만큼 비참하지는 않습니다.” - 세네카, 『도덕 편지』, 47.17)
We're all addicts in one way or another. We're addicted to our routines, to our coffee, to our comfort, to someone else's approval. These dependencies mean we're not in control of our own lives-the dependency is.
"Anyone who truly wants to be free," Epictetus said, "won't desire something that is actually in someone else's control, unless they want to be a slave." The subjects of our affection can be removed from us at a moment's notice. Our routines can be disrupted, the doctor can forbid us from drinking coffee, we can be thrust into uncomfortable situations.
This is why we must strengthen ourselves by testing these dependencies before they become too great. Can you try ...
