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Epictetus Quotes

Browse 8 quotes about Epictetus.

Epictetus Quotes

“The willing are led by fate, the reluctant are dragged.”

Philosophy Stoicism Stoic Marcus Aurelius Seneca Epictetus Cleanthes

Book:Hymn to Zeus

Source: Hymn to Zeus

“Philosophy does not promise to secure anything external for man, otherwise it would be admitting something that lies beyond its proper subject-matter. For as the material of the carpenter is wood, and that of statuary bronze, so the subject-matter of the art of living is each person's own life.”

Philosophy Quotes Stoicism Epictetus Robin Hard Revised Translation

Author:Epictetus

“Man, consider first what the matter is (which you propose to do), then your own nature also, what it is able to bear. If you are a wrestler, look at your shoulders, your thighs, your loins: for different men are naturally formed for different things.”

Philosophy Stoicism Epictetus

Book:Discourses and Selected Writings of Epictetus

Source: Discourses and Selected Writings of Epictetus

“Why should we place Christ at the top and summit of the human race? Was he kinder, more forgiving, more self-sacrificing than Buddha? Was he wiser, did he meet death with more perfect calmness, than Socrates? Was he more patient, more charitable, than Epictetus? Was he a greater philosopher, a deeper thinker, than Epicurus? In what respect was he the superior of Zoroaster? Was he gentler than Lao-tsze, more universal than Confucius? Were his ideas of human rights and duties superior to those of Zeno? Did he express grander truths than Cicero? Was his mind subtler than Spinoza’s? Was his brain equal to Kepler’s or Newton’s? Was he grander in death – a sublimer martyr than Bruno? Was he in intelligence, in the force and beauty of expression, in breadth and scope of thought, in wealth of illustration, in aptness of comparison, in knowledge of the human brain and heart, of all passions, hopes and fears, the equal of Shakespeare, the greatest of the human race?”

Source: About The Holy Bible

“Ernest Hemingway wrote that happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing. However, if we are intelligent yet unhappy, then perhaps we are not intelligent enough. Socrates, Seneca, and Epictetus were intelligent enough to find happiness and contentment—even while drinking hemlock, cutting their veins, or living as crippled slaves.”

Happiness Intelligence Contentment Unhappiness Socrates Ernest Hemingway Seneca Epictetus

Author:Giannis Delimitsos

“Because I have no natural gifts, shall I on that account give up my discipline? Far be it from me! Epictetus will not be better than Socrates, but if only I am not worse, that suffices me. For I shall not be a Milo, either, and yet I do not neglect my body, nor a Croesus, and yet I do not neglect my property, nor, in a word, is there any other field in which we give up the appropriate discipline merely from despair of attaining the highest.”

Philosophy Discipline Self Improvement Improvement Epictetus

Book:Epictetus. The Discourses as Reported By Arrian. Vol. I. Books 1 and 2. With an English Translation By W. A. Oldfather

Source: Epictetus. The Discourses as Reported By Arrian. Vol. I. Books 1 and 2. With an English Translation By W. A. Oldfather

“To a Christian who believes in personal immortality, the writings of Epictetus or Marcus Aurelius are an incomplete account of human happiness. (P. 160)”

Human Happiness Marcus Aurelius Epictetus Personal Immortality

Book:How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading

Source: How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading

“Don’t seek for everything to happen as you wish it would, but rather wish that everything happens as it actually will — then your life will flow well.”

Life Flow Stoicism Manual Epictetus

Book:Discourses and Selected Writings

Source: Discourses and Selected Writings