Seneca, Moral Epistle 7.10-12
“But, to make sure that I have not learned today for myself alone, I will give you three outstanding sayings that came to me with pretty much the same sense. From these, this letter will resolve my debt to you with one of them; take the other two as advanced payment.
Democritus says, “One person stands in for the whole people for me and the people count as one.” This is also well, whoever it belongs to–the author is uncertain–when they asked him what the goal was of so much labor dedicated to an art that would reach such a small amount of people, he said, “A few are enough for me, one is enough, none is enough too.” The third saying is from Epicurus, which he wrote to one of his collaborators: “These words aren’t for the many, but for you: we are a great enough audience for each other.”
Take these things into your thoughts, Lucilius, so you can ignore that pleasure that comes from the adulation of the crowd.Many people praise you, but do you have anything that makes you happy with yourself if you are the kind of person everyone understands? Your fine qualities should look within. Goodbye!”
Sed ne soli mihi hodie didicerim, communicabo tecum, quae occurrerunt mihi egregie dicta circa eundem fere sensum tria; ex quibus unum haec epistula in debitum solvet, duo in antecessum accipe. Democritus ait: “Unus mihi pro populo est, et populus pro uno.” Bene et ille, quisquis fuit, ambigitur enim de auctore, cum quaereretur ab illo, quo tanta diligentia artis spectaret ad paucissimos perventurae, “Satis sunt,” inquit, “mihi pauci, satis est unus, satis est nullus.” Egregie hoc tertium Epicurus, cum uni ex consortibus studiorum suorum scriberet: “Haec,” inquit,” ego non multis, sed tibi; satis enim magnum alter alteri theatrum sumus.” Ista, mi Lucili, condenda in animum sunt, ut contemnas voluptatem ex plurium adsensione venientem. Multi te laudant. Ecquid1 habes, cur placeas tibi, si is es, quem intellegant multi? Introrsus bona tua spectent.
