Quotes from Epictetus

It were no slight attainment could we merely fulfil what the nature of man implies.

Focus not on what he or she does, but on keeping to your higher purpose. Your own purpose should seek harmony with nature itself. For this is the true road to freedom.

Nothing is in reality either pleasant or unpleasant by nature but all things become so through habit

Nothing great is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig.

The two powers which in my opinion constitute a wise man are those of bearing and forbearing.

Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it.

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.

A vulgar man, in any ill that happens to him, blames others; a novice in philosophy blames himself; and a philosopher blames neither, the one nor the other.

What is the first business of one who practices philosophy? To get rid of self-conceit. For it is impossible for anyone to begin to learn that which he thinks he already knows.

Shall I show you the sinews of a philosopher? What sinews are those? - A will undisappointed; evils avoided; powers daily exercised; careful resolutions; unerring decisions.

What is it to be a philosopher? Is it not to be prepared against events?

All philosophy lies in two words sustain and abstain.

Here is the beginning of philosophy: a recognition of the conflicts between men a search for their cause a condemnation of mere opinion .. . and the discovery of a standard of judgement.

He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.

The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.

The greater the difficulty the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.

If you wish to live a life free from sorrow think of what is going to happen as if it had already happened.

You can be happy if you know this secret: Some things are within your power to control and some things are not.

No matter what happens, it is within my power to turn it to my advantage.

Nothing truly stops you. Nothing truly holds you back. For your own will is always within your control.

Make the best use of what is in your power, and take the rest as it happens.

When something happens, the only thing in your power is your attitude toward it; you can either accept it or resent it.

A half-hearted spirit has no power. Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Average people enter into their endeavors headlong and without care.

To pay homage to beauty is to admire Nature; to admire Nature is to worship God