Quotes from Epictetus

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

Apropos of which, Diogenes says somewhere that one way to guarantee freedom is to be ready to die.

If you are praised by others, be skeptical of yourself.

If you are kissing your child or wife, say that it is a human being whom you are kissing, for when the wife or child dies, you will not be disturbed.

Our possessions should be suited to our bodies and lives, just as our shoes are suited to our feet. Could you run better if your shoes were larger than your feet, or gold-plated and diamond studded? Of course not. Once you let your appetite exceed what is necessary and useful, desire knows no bounds.

The reason why I lost my lamp was that the thief was superior to me in vigilance. He paid however this price for the lamp, that in exchange for it he consented to become a thief: in exchange for it, to become faithless.

Care for your body as needed, but put your main energies and efforts into cultivating your mind.

I am prepared to show you that you have resources and a character naturally strong and resilient; show me in return what grounds you have for being peevish and malcontent.

I hope death overtakes me when I'm occupied solely with the care of my character, in an effort to make it passionless, free, unrestricted and unrestrained.

For it is always true that to whatever point the perfecting of anything leads us, progress is an approach towards this point.

When you have him as your leader, and conform your will and desire to his, what fear of failure can you have?

you should not wait for clapping of hands and shouts and praise to do your duty; but do good of your own accord.