#13: On Anger (De Ira)
Quotes that resonate, from ‘How to Keep Your Cool: An Ancient Guide to Anger Management’ by Seneca, selected, translated and introduced by James Romm.
[27]
Delay is the greatest remedy for anger.
[28]
Ask of your anger, at the outset, not to grant forgiveness but to exercise judgement. Its first impulses are harsh ones; it will relent if it waits.
[29]
First, in regard to reports, we should not be quick to believe them. Many lie to deceive us, and many because themselves are deceived.
[30]
If you were going to adjudicate a case involving even a tiny sum, the trial wouldn’t proceed without witnesses, and the witnesses’ testimony wouldn’t count unless they were sworn in, and you’d give both sides a chance to plead their case; you’d take your time and not decide in one hearing. Truth gets shinier [like silver coins] the more frequently it is handled.
[31]
Second come the things we witness ourselves. In these cases, we will examine the nature and intent of those who do them. Say it’s your
child: chalk it up to his age; he doesn’t know that what he did was wrong.