Quotes from Solon

Reprove thy friend privately: commend him publicly.

The answer of Solon to the question 'Which is the most perfect popular government ?'] That where the least injury done to the meanest individual, is considered as an insult on the whole constitution.

count no man happy until he be dead.

Many bad men are rich, many good men are poor; but we shall not exchange wealth for honour, for money flits from man to man but honour abides forever.

Count no man happy until the end is known.

Power proves the man.

Vertraue einem edlen Charakter mehr als einem Eid.

That city in which those who are not wronged, no less than those who are wronged, exert themselves to punish the wrongdoers.

Grant me from the blessed gods prosperity, and] from all mankind the possession ever of good repute; [and that I may thus be a delight to my friends, and an affliction to my foes, but the first revered], by the other beheld with dread.

No mortal is happy, and all men on earth who look upon the sun are wretched.

The power of hail and snow springs from a cloud, and thunder from the fire of lightning. Strong men destroy a city, and a tyrant enslaves people through their ignorance. A ship once out of port is hard to capture: know this now before it is too late.

Call no man happy before he dies, he is at best but fortunate.

Let no man be called happy before his death. Till then, he is not happy, only lucky.

If all men were to bring their miseries together in one place, most would be glad to take each his own home again rather than take a portion out of the common stock.

A half truth is the worst of all lies,because it can be defended in partiality.

I grow old ever learning many things.

Speech is the image of actions.

Many evil men are rich, and good men poor, but we shall not exchange with them our excellence for riches.

Let us sacrifice to the Muses.

Poets tell many lies.

I grow old learning something new every day.

Until he is dead, do not yet call a man happy, but only lucky.

Put more trust in nobility of character than in an oath.

Rich people without wisdom and learning are but sheep with golden fleeces.