Epictetus Quotes
Epictetus was a Greek Stoic philosopher of the first and early second centuries, born into slavery in Hierapolis in Roman Phrygia and freed in adulthood. He taught Stoic philosophy in Rome until the emperor Domitian banished philosophers from the city around 93 AD, after which he established a school in Nicopolis on the Adriatic coast. The quotes below are attributed to Epictetus, organized by topic.
Browse Epictetus by topic
Epictetus on Death
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“In a word, neither death, nor exile, nor pain, nor anything of this kind is the real cause of our doing or not doing any action, but our inward opinions and principles.”
καὶ ἁπλῶς οὔτε θάνατος οὔτε φυγὴ οὔτε πόνος οὔτε ἄλλο τι τῶν τοιούτων αἴτιόν ἐστι τοῦ πράττειν τι ἢ μὴ πράττειν ἡμᾶς, ἀλλ᾿ ὑπολήψεις καὶ δόγματα.
Epictetus on Freedom
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“No man is free who is not master of himself.”
Οὐδεὶς ἐλεύθερος ἑαυτοῦ μὴ κρατῶν. -
“Only the educated are free.”
οὐ γὰρ τοῖς πολλοῖς περὶ τούτων πιστευτέον, οἳ λέγουσιν μόνοις ἐξεῖναι παιδεύεσθαι τοῖς ἐλευθέροις, ἀλλὰ τοῖς φιλοσόφοις μᾶλλον, οἳ λέγουσιν μόνους τοὺς παιδευθέντας ἐλευθέρους εἶναι. -
Attributed to Epictetus:
“Some things are within our power, while others are not.”
Epictetus on God
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“Yet God hath not only granted these faculties, by which we may bear every event without being depressed or broken by it, but like a good prince and a true father, hath placed their exercise above restraint, compulsion, or hindrance, and wholly within our own control.”
καίτοι ὅ γε θεὸς οὐ μόνον ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὰς δυνάμεις ταύτας, καθ᾿ ἃς οἴσομεν πᾶν τὸ ἀποβαῖνον μὴ ταπεινούμενοι μηδὲ συγκλώμενοι ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ᾿ ὃ ἦν ἀγαθοῦ βασιλέως καὶ ταῖς ἀληθείαις πατρός, ἀκώλυτον τοῦτο ἔδωκεν, ἀνανάγκαστον, ἀπαραπόδιστον, ὅλον αὐτὸ ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν ἐποίησεν.
Epictetus on Happiness
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Attributed to Epictetus:
“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.”
Epictetus on Knowledge
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“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.”
Τί πρῶτόν ἐστιν ἔργον τοῦ φιλοσοφοῦντος; ἀποβαλεῖν οἴησιν· ἀμήχανον γάρ, ἅ τις εἰδέναι οἴεται, ταῦτα ἄρξασθαι μανθανειν. -
“Τῷ λογικῷ ζώῳ μόνον ἀφόρητόν ἐστι τὸ ἄλογον, τὸ δ᾿ εὔλογον φορητόν.”
To the rational being only the irrational is unendurable, but the rational is endurable. | Variant translation: To a reasonable creature, that alone is insupportable which is unreasonable; but everything reasonable may be supported. | I.2.1 -
“To the rational being only the irrational is unendurable, but the rational is endurable.”
Τῷ λογικῷ ζώῳ μόνον ἀφόρητόν ἐστι τὸ ἄλογον, τὸ δ᾿ εὔλογον φορητόν. -
“Variant translation: To a reasonable creature, that alone is insupportable which is unreasonable; but everything reasonable may be supported.”
Τῷ λογικῷ ζώῳ μόνον ἀφόρητόν ἐστι τὸ ἄλογον, τὸ δ᾿ εὔλογον φορητόν. -
“Τὸ δ᾿ ἀπάγξασθαι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀφόρητον; — Ὅταν γοῦν πάθῃ τις ὅτι εὔλογον, ἀπελθὼν ἀπήγξατο.”
But to be hanged—is that not unendurable?" Even so, when a man feels that it is reasonable, he goes off and hangs himself. | I.2.3 -
“But to be hanged—is that not unendurable?" Even so, when a man feels that it is reasonable, he goes off and hangs himself.”
Τὸ δ᾿ ἀπάγξασθαι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀφόρητον; — Ὅταν γοῦν πάθῃ τις ὅτι εὔλογον, ἀπελθὼν ἀπήγξατο. -
“καίτοι ὅ γε θεὸς οὐ μόνον ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὰς δυνάμεις ταύτας, καθ᾿ ἃς οἴσομεν πᾶν τὸ ἀποβαῖνον μὴ ταπεινούμενοι μηδὲ συγκλώμενοι ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ᾿ ὃ ἦν ἀγαθοῦ βασιλέως καὶ ταῖς ἀληθείαις πατρός, ἀκώλυτον τοῦτο ἔδωκεν, ἀνανάγκαστον, ἀπαραπόδιστον, ὅλον αὐτὸ ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν ἐποίησεν.”
Yet God hath not only granted these faculties, by which we may bear every event without being depressed or broken by it, but like a good prince and a true father, hath placed their exercise above restraint, compulsion, or hindrance, and wholly within our own control. | I.6.40 -
“καὶ ἁπλῶς οὔτε θάνατος οὔτε φυγὴ οὔτε πόνος οὔτε ἄλλο τι τῶν τοιούτων αἴτιόν ἐστι τοῦ πράττειν τι ἢ μὴ πράττειν ἡμᾶς, ἀλλ᾿ ὑπολήψεις καὶ δόγματα.”
In a word, neither death, nor exile, nor pain, nor anything of this kind is the real cause of our doing or not doing any action, but our inward opinions and principles. | I.11.33 -
“λόγου γὰρ μέγεθος οὐ μήκει οὐδ᾿ ὕψει κρίνεται, ἀλλὰ δόγμασιν.”
Reason is not measured by size or height, but by principle. | I.12.26
Epictetus on Mind
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Attributed to Epictetus:
“It is not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”
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Attributed to Epictetus:
“Men are disturbed not by the things which happen, but by the opinions about the things.”
Epictetus on Virtue
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“First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.”
Τίς εἶναι θέλεις, σαυτῷ πρῶτον ἐιπέ· εἶθ᾿ οὕτως ποίει ἃ ποιεῖς. -
Attributed to Epictetus:
“If you wish to be a writer, write.”
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Attributed to Epictetus:
“Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it.”
Things actually not said by Epictetus
A number of widely-shared lines are circulated as Epictetus but are in fact from someone else. Did Epictetus say these? No. Each entry below pairs the line with the person who actually wrote it.
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Did Epictetus say this? No.
“The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skilful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.”
This quote is commonly attributed to philosophers but its actual source is uncertain or unverified in the standard reference works. Wikiquote's note on this attribution: This quote is frequently attributed to Epictetus, e.g. by Brigid Delaney, How not to panic during the coronavirus pandemic: welcome hard times like a Stoic , The Guardian, 17 March 2020. The quote is also frequently attributed to Epicurus . In fact this quotation first appears as two separated sente
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Did Epictetus say this? No.
“Other people’s views and troubles can be contagious. Don’t sabotage yourself by unwittingly adopting negative, unproductive attitudes through your associations with others.”
This quote is commonly attributed to philosophers but its actual source is uncertain or unverified in the standard reference works. Wikiquote's note on this attribution: This quote is frequently attributed to Epictetus, e.g. by Brigid Delaney, Six ways to make your life easier and more peaceful – by using stoic principles , The Guardian, 22 November 2023. This quotation originates from the 1995 book: The Art of Living: the classic manual on virtue, happiness, and ef
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Did Epictetus say this? No.
“You become what you give your attention to.”
This quote is commonly attributed to philosophers but its actual source is uncertain or unverified in the standard reference works. Wikiquote's note on this attribution: This quote has been attributed to Epictetus since around 2016. (e.g. in this thephilosophyofeverything blog .) Sometimes appears in an extended form, e.g. by The Daily Stoic : "You become what you give your attention to. If you yourself don't choose what thoughts and images you expose yourself to, s
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Did Epictetus say this? No.
“Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Therefore, give yourself fully to your endeavors. Decide to construct your character through excellent actions, and determine to pay the price for a worthy goal. The trials you encounter will introduce you to your strengths. Remain steadfast... and one day you will build something that endures, something worthy of your potential.”
This quote is commonly attributed to philosophers but its actual source is uncertain or unverified in the standard reference works. Wikiquote's note on this attribution: Has been ascribed to Epictetus since the late 1990s, (e.g. The Nassau Herald (1999), page 220 ). The first sentence ("Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes") appears in the 1995 book: The Art of Living: the classic manual on virtue, happiness, and effectiveness , page 39, by Sharon Lebell.
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Did Epictetus say this? No.
“Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it.”
This quote is commonly attributed to philosophers but its actual source is uncertain or unverified in the standard reference works. Wikiquote's note on this attribution: Has been ascribed to Epictetus since around 2016, (e.g. on this Daily Stoic web page ). It may be an attempt to summarise the start of Enchiridion 46 : "On no occasion call yourself a philosopher, and do not, for the most part, talk among laymen about your philosophic principles, but do what follows