The Practice of Deprivation
Seneca on the monthly practice of restraining ourselves
One of Seneca’s wisest recommendations is to practice the art of deprivation. Writing to his friend Lucilius 2,000 years ago, Seneca recommended setting aside a period of time each month to deprive oneself of the luxuries they live their normal days in.
“A time when the mind is free of anxieties,” he writes, “is the very time when it should prepare itself for adversity: amid the favors of fortune, one should strengthen oneself against the onslaughts of fortune.”
Seneca compares this practice to the soldier during times of peace. A soldier would not and cannot just sit around waiting for the day where he must defend his land, he must prepare for battle, going for periodic runs, preparing for the day that something may occur.
We are creatures of habit. It is biologically wired within us to become comfortable with our environment based upon the knowledge we’ve formed of it and the routines we have built into it. This is perfect for everyday life because we need these stabilities to live a comfortable existence.
But we also need to be prepared for the fact that at any moment, that could change. Too often, we have not prepared for the change--we have projected our current moment, or a better one, into the future and do not anticipate the fact that change could come and disrupt our way of living.
“If you want someone not to be alarmed in a crisis,” Seneca writes, “train him ahead of time.”
Seneca recommends practicing once a month for a period of three days living in poverty. Most of us, once we have retained something, are afraid to lose it. We create these elaborate fears that if we do not have our lives exactly as they are today, we can’t live a good life. But Seneca actually believes otherwise.
“Even the adverse fortune will give you enough to supply your needs.”
Seneca stresses that this practice is not to shame individuals for having a steady and fulfilled life. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with having money and the comfort of everyday living. What he is recommending is to practice this deprivation as a way to remind yourself consistently that if and when you live in comfort, you should not be filled with fear to one day lose it.
“The only way to achieve that,” he writes, “is if you convince yourself that you will be happy even without it--if you look at it as something that might disappear at any moment.”