“If anyone tells you that a certain person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you but answer, "He was ignorant of my other faults, else he would not have mentioned these alone.”
― Epictetus
“There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power or our will. ”
― Epictetus
“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.”
― Epictetus
“Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it.”
― Epictetus
“First say to yourself what you would be;
and then do what you have to do.”
― Epictetus
“Don't just say you have read books. Show that through them you have learned to think better, to be a more discriminating and reflective person. Books are the training weights of the mind. They are very helpful, but it would be a bad mistake to suppose that one has made progress simply by having internalized their contents." Translation by Sharon Lebell”
― Epictetus, The Art of Living: The Classical Manual on Virtue, Happiness, and Effectiveness
“If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid.”
― Epictetus
“The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.”
― Epictetus
“Man is not worried by real problems so much as by his imagined anxieties about real problems”
― Epictetus
“Other people's views and troubles can be contagious. Don't sabotage yourself by unwittingly adopting negative, unproductive attitudes through your associations with others.”
― Epictetus
“It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”
― Epictetus
“Any person capable of angering you becomes your master;
he can anger you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him.”
― Epictetus
“He who laughs at himself never runs out of things to laugh at.”
― Epictetus
“People are not disturbed by things, but by the views they take of them.”
― Epictetus
“All religions must be tolerated... for every man must get to heaven in his own way.”
― Epictetus
“First learn the meaning of what you say, and then speak.”
― Epictetus
“Only the educated are free.”
― Epictetus
“To accuse others for one's own misfortune is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete.”
― Epictetus
“Circumstances don't make the man, they only reveal him to himself.”
― Epictetus
“The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests. ”
― Epictetus
“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.”
― Epictetus
“Attach yourself to what is spiritually superior, regardless of what other people think or do. Hold to your true aspirations no matter what is going on around you.”
― Epictetus
“How long are you going to wait before you demand the best for yourself and in no instance bypass the discriminations of reason? You have been given the principles that you ought to endorse, and you have endorsed them. What kind of teacher, then, are you still waiting for in order to refer your self-improvement to him? You are no longer a boy, but a full-grown man. If you are careless and lazy now and keep putting things off and always deferring the day after which you will attend to yourself, you will not notice that you are making no progress, but you will live and die as someone quite ordinary.
From now on, then, resolve to live as a grown-up who is making progress, and make whatever you think best a law that you never set aside. And whenever you encounter anything that is difficult or pleasurable, or highly or lowly regarded, remember that the contest is now: you are at the Olympic Games, you cannot wait any longer, and that your progress is wrecked or preserved by a single day and a single event. That is how Socrates fulfilled himself by attending to nothing except reason in everything he encountered. And you, although you are not yet a Socrates, should live as someone who at least wants to be a Socrates.”
― Epictetus
“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has. ”
― Epictetus
“You are a little soul carrying around a corpse”
― Epictetus
“Seek not the good in external things;seek it in yourselves.”
― Epictetus
“Caretake this moment. Immerse yourself in its particulars. Respond to this person, this challenge, this deed. Quit evasions. Stop giving yourself needless trouble. It is time to really live; to fully inhabit the situation you happen to be in now.”
― Epictetus
“If evil be said of thee, and if it be true, correct thyself; if it be a lie, laugh at it.”
― Epictetus
“Do not try to seem wise to others. ”
― Epictetus
“Don't seek to have events happen as you wish, but wish them to happen as they do happen, and all will be well with you.”
― Epictetus
“No man is free who is not master of himself.”
― Epictetus
“If you would be a reader, read; if a writer, write.”
― Epictetus
“You know yourself what you are worth in your own eyes; and at what price you will sell yourself. For men sell themselves at various prices. This is why, when Florus was deliberating whether he should appear at Nero's shows, taking part in the performance himself, Agrippinus replied, 'Appear by all means.' And when Florus inquired, 'But why do not you appear?' he answered, 'Because I do not even consider the question.' For the man who has once stooped to consider such questions, and to reckon up the value of external things, is not far from forgetting what manner of man he is.”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“I laugh at those who think they can damage me. They do not know who I am, they do not know what I think, they cannot even touch the things which are really mine and with which I live.”
― Epictetus
“If you would cure anger, do not feed it. Say to yourself: 'I used to be angry every day; then every other day; now only every third or fourth day.' When you reach thirty days offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the gods.”
― Epictetus
“Know, first, who you are, and then adorn yourself accordingly.”
― Epictetus
“Preach not to others what they should eat, but eat as becomes you and be silent. ”
― Epictetus
“Difficulty shows what men are. Therefore when a difficulty falls upon you, remember that God, like a trainer of wrestlers, has matched you with a rough young man. Why? So that you may become an Olympic conqueror; but it is not accomplished without sweat.”
― Epictetus, Discourses, Books 1-2
“A ship should not ride on a single anchor, nor life on a single
hope”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“It is not so much what happens to you as how you think about what happens."
Epictetus”
― Epictetus
“I must die. Must I then die lamenting? I must be put in chains. Must I then also lament? I must go into exile. Does any man then hinder me from going with smiles and cheerfulness and contentment?”
― Epictetus
“Either God wants to abolish evil, and cannot; or he can, but does not want to.”
― Epictetus
“It is better to die of hunger having lived without grief and fear, than to live with a troubled spirit, amid abundance”
― Epictetus
“We are not disturbed by what happens to us, but by our thoughts about what happens to us.”
― Epictetus
“Asked, Who is the rich man? Epictetus replied, He who is content.”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“Give me by all means the shorter and nobler life, instead of one
that is longer but of less account!”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“Events do not just happen, but arrive by appointment.”
― Epictetus
“Nature hath given men one tongue but two ears, that we may
hear from others twice as much as we speak.”
― Epictetus
“God has entrusted me with myself. No man is free who is not master of himself. A man should so live that his happiness shall depend as little as possible on external things. The world turns aside to let any man pass who knows where he is going.”
― Epictetus
“Demand not that things happen as you wish, but wish them to happen as they do, and you will go on well.”
― Epictetus, The Discourses of Epictetus
“Even as the Sun doth not wait for prayers and incantations to
rise, but shines forth and is welcomed by all: so thou also wait
not for clapping of hands and shouts and praise to do thy duty;
nay, do good of thine own accord, and thou wilt be loved like the
Sun.”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“If you wish to be a writer, write.”
― Epictetus
“These reasonings are unconnected: "I am richer than you, therefore I am better"; "I am more eloquent than you, therefore I am better." The connection is rather this: "I am richer than you, therefore my property is greater than yours;" "I am more eloquent than you, therefore my style is better than yours." But you, after all, are neither property nor style.”
― Epictetus
“Remember that you ought to behave in life as you would at a banquet. As something is being passed around it comes to you; stretch out your hand, take a portion of it politely. It passes on; do not detain it. Or it has not come to you yet; do not project your desire to meet it, but wait until it comes in front of you. So act toward children, so toward a wife, so toward office, so toward wealth.”
― Epictetus
“If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid with regard to external things. Don't wish to be thought to know anything; and even if you appear to be somebody important to others, distrust yourself. For, it is difficult to both keep your faculty of choice in a state conformable to nature, and at the same time acquire external things. But while you are careful about the one, you must of necessity neglect the other”
― Epictetus
“Control thy passions lest they take vengence on thee.”
― Epictetus
“Know you not that a good man does nothing for appearance sake, but for the sake of having done right?”
― Epictetus
“No great thing is created suddenly.”
― Epictetus
“So you wish to conquer in the Olympic Games, my friend? And I, too... But first mark the conditions and the consequences. You will have to put yourself under discipline; to eat by rule, to avoid cakes and sweetmeats; to take exercise at the appointed hour whether you like it or not, in cold and heat; to abstain from cold drinks and wine at your will. Then, in the conflict itself you are likely enough to dislocate your wrist or twist your ankle, to swallow a great deal of dust, to be severely thrashed, and after all of these things, to be defeated.”
― Epictetus, The Discourses of Epictetus: With the Encheiridion and Fragments
“….when things seem to have reached that stage, merely say “I won’t play any longer”, and take your departure; but if you stay, stop lamenting.”
― Epictetus
“Concerning the Gods, there are those who deny the very existence of the Godhead; others say that it exists, but neither bestirs nor concerns itself not has forethought far anything. A third party attribute to it existence and forethought, but only for great and heavenly matters, not for anything that is on earth. A fourth party admit things on earth as well as in heaven, but only in general, and not with respect to each individual. A fifth, of whom were Ulysses and Socrates, are those that cry: --
I move not without Thy knowledge!”
― Epictetus
“A guide, on finding a man who has lost his way, brings him back to the right path—he does not mock and jeer at him and then take himself off. You also must show the unlearned man the truth, and you will see that he will follow. But so long as you do not show it him, you should not mock, but rather feel your own incapacity.”
― Epictetus
“Difficulty shows what men are.”
― Epictetus
“Men are not afraid of things, but of how they view them.”
― Epictetus
“Appearances to the mind are of four kinds. Things either are what they appear to be; or they neither are, nor appear to be; or they are, and do not appear to be; or they are not, and yet appear to be. Rightly to aim in all these cases is the wise man's task.”
― Epictetus
“There is but one way to tranquility of mind and happiness, and that is to account no external things thine own, but to commit all to God.”
― Epictetus
“If any be unhappy, let him remember that he is unhappy by reason of himself alone. For God hath made all men to enjoy felicity and constancy of good.”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.”
― Epictetus
“When a youth was giving himself airs in the Theatre and saying, 'I am wise, for I have conversed with many wise men,' Epictetus replied, 'I too have conversed with many rich men, yet I am not rich!’.”
― Epictetus
“It is our attitude toward events, not events themselves, which we can control. Nothing is by its own nature calamitous -- even death is terrible only if we fear it.”
― Epictetus
“Remind thyself that he whom thou lovest is mortal that what
thou lovest is not thine own; it is given thee for the present, not
irrevocably nor for ever, but even as a fig or a bunch of grapes at
the appointed season of the year”
― Epictetus
“Never say that I have taken it, only that I have given it back.”
― Epictetus
“To Epictetus, all external events are determined by fate, and are thus beyond our control, but we can accept whatever happens calmly and dispassionately. Individuals, however, are responsible for their own actions which they can examine and control through rigorous self-discipline. Suffering arises from trying to control what is uncontrollable, or from neglecting what is within our power. As part of the universal city that is the universe, human beings have a duty of care to all fellow humans. The person who followed these precepts would achieve happiness.”
― Epictetus, The Golden Sayings of Epictetus
“Imagine for yourself a character, a model personality, whose example you determine to follow, in private as well as in public.”
― Epictetus
“Whoever is going to listen to the philosophers needs a considerable practice in listening.”
― Epictetus
“Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, whatever are our own actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, whatever are not our actions. The things in our control are by nature free, unrestrained, unhindered; but those not in our control are weak, slavish, restrained, belonging to others. Remember, then, that if you suppose that things which are slavish by nature are also free, and that what belongs to others is your own, then you will be hindered. You will lament, you will be disturbed, and you will find fault both with gods and men. But if you suppose that only to be your own which is your own, and what belongs to others such as it really is, then no one will ever compel you or restrain you. Further, you will find fault with no one or accuse no one. You will do nothing against your will. No one will hurt you, you will have no enemies, and you not be harmed.”
― Epictetus, Enchiridion and Selections from the Discourses of Epictetus
“Who are those people by whom you wish to be admired? Are they not these whom you are in the habit of saying that they are mad? What then? Do you wish to be admired by the mad?”
― Epictetus, The Discourses of Epictetus
“You may fetter my leg, but Zeus himself cannot get the better of my free will.”
― Epictetus
“We must not believe the many, who say that only free people ought to be educated, but we should rather believe the philosophers who say that only the educated are free.”
― Epictetus, The Discourses of Epictetus
“As a man, casting off worn out garments taketh new ones, so the dweller in the body, entereth into ones that are new.”
― Epictetus
“For it is not death or pain that is to be feared, but the fear of pain or death.”
― Epictetus
“Crows pick out the eyes of the dead, when the dead have no longer need of them; but flatterers mar the soul of the living, and her eyes they blind.”
― Epictetus
“When any person harms you, or speaks badly of you, remember that he acts or speaks from a supposition of its being his duty. Now, it is not possible that he should follow what appears right to you, but what appears so to himself. Therefore, if he judges from a wrong appearance, he is the person hurt, since he too is the person deceived. For if anyone should suppose a true proposition to be false, the proposition is not hurt, but he who is deceived about it. Setting out, then, from these principles, you will meekly bear a person who reviles you, for you will say upon every occasion, "It seemed so to him."
― Epictetus
“If you want to improve, you must be content to be thought foolish and stupid.”
― Epictetus
“If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid with regard to external things. Don't wish to be thought to know anything; and even if you appear to be somebody important to others, distrust yourself.”
― Epictetus, Enchiridion and Selections from the Discourses of Epictetus
“It has been ordained that there be summer and winter, abundance and dearth, virtue and vice, and all such opposites for the harmony of the whole, and (Zeus) has given each of us a body, property, and companions.”
― Epictetus, Discourses, Books 1-2
“Men are disturbed not by the things that happen, but by their opinion of the things that happen.”
― Epictetus
“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”
― Epictetus
“What concerns me is not the way things are, but the way people think things are.”
― Epictetus
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