Epicurus

Epicurean philosophy

Ancient influential 138 sayings

Sayings by Epicurus

It is not so much our friends' help that helps us as the confident knowledge that they will help us.

c. 300 BCE — Principal Doctrines
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Remember that you were born with two ears and one tongue, so that you may listen more and speak less.

Unknown — This is a common proverb, often attributed to various philosophers, but not definitively to Epicurus…
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Pleasure is the starting point and goal of living blessedly.

c. 300 BCE — Letter to Menoeceus
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The wise man is happy even in torture.

c. 300 BCE — Fragments (This is a more Stoic idea, often contrasted with Epicureanism. While Epicurus advocated e…
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The just man is tranquil, the unjust man is full of the utmost turmoil.

c. 300 BCE — Principal Doctrines
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The greatest good is the knowledge of the nature of things.

c. 300 BCE — Letter to Herodotus (though often summarized as such, precise phrasing can vary)
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

We should not believe in fate, but in our own free will.

c. 300 BCE — Letter to Menoeceus (referencing the rejection of determinism)
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The study of nature is not a luxury, but a necessity for a happy life.

c. 300 BCE — Letter to Pythocles (summary of his views on physics)
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The wise man is able to live well even in poverty.

c. 300 BCE — Fragments
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

It is impossible for someone to dispel his fears about the most important matters if he does not understand the nature of the universe but still gives some credence to myths. So that without the study of nature, there is no enjoyment of unmixed pleasures.

c. 300 BCE — Principal Doctrines
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The art of living well and the art of dying well are one.

3rd century BCE — From his letters, as cited by later philosophers
Strange & Unusual Confirmed

Death is nothing to us, since when we are, death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.

3rd century BCE — From 'Principal Doctrines'
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The wealth required by nature is limited and is easy to procure; but the wealth required by vain ideals extends to infinity.

3rd century BCE — From 'Principal Doctrines'
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I have never wished to cater to the crowd; for what I know they do not approve, and what they approve I do not know.

3rd century BCE — From his letters, cited by Seneca
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The flesh cries out to not be hungry, thirsty, or cold. Anyone who has these things, and good hope of keeping them, might rival even Zeus in happiness.

3rd century BCE — From his letters, paraphrased by later writers
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Empty is the argument of the philosopher which does not relieve any human suffering.

3rd century BCE — From his teachings, recorded by later writers
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

It is folly for a man to pray to the gods for that which he has the power to obtain by himself.

3rd century BCE — From his teachings, recorded by Diogenes Laërtius
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The noble soul occupies itself with wisdom and friendship.

3rd century BCE — From his teachings, recorded in fragments
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

If you wish to make Pythocles rich, do not give him more money; diminish his desires.

3rd century BCE — From his letters to Pythocles
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

The man who best knows how to meet external threats makes into one family all the creatures he can.

3rd century BCE — From his teachings, recorded in fragments
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable