There is no genius without a touch of madness.

Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind

Write your response

Take five minutes with it. No account needed to start, and nobody else can read what you write.

Respond to this passage

Where this comes from

Seneca to Serenus, on steadiness of mind and how it is lost and recovered.

Seneca. Roman statesman, playwright and adviser to Nero, born around 4 BCE in Córdoba and forced to take his own life in 65 CE. His moral letters were written late, addressed to his friend Lucilius, and are the most practical writing the Stoics left behind.

Read next