Plato

Not your children, nor your life, nor anything else should you place above righteousness.

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PLATO

Κρίτων, 54b

The cause of all sins lies in the person's excessive selfishness.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 731e

A man should make sure to not only appear to be good, but to also act like it, both in private and public life.

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PLATO

Γοργίας, 527b

None is good by itself. But in reality, how something is done each time, that is what gives it a quality. When something is done nicely and correctly, then it is considered good, but when something is done in an improper way, then it is considered bad.

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PLATO

Συμπόσιον, 180e

It is being said that beautiful is the beneficial and ugly is the harmful.

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PLATO

Πολιτεία, 457b

Great things are difficult.

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PLATO

Κρατύλος, 384a

No man is evil willfully.

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PLATO

Πρωταγόρας, 358c

All the gold upon the earth and beneath it does not compensate for lack of virtue.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 728a

Virtue doesn’t come from money. Money and all other goods come from virtue to people, in both public and private life.

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PLATO

Απολογία, 30a

We should care not only about living but about living honorably.

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PLATO

Κρίτων, 48b

An old man is twice a child.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 646a

The foundation of every science is the clarification of the terms.

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PLATO

Πολιτεία, 465c

None of us was born only for himself, but a part of our birth is shared among our homeland, our parents and the rest of our friends.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΕ, 24

I would rather suffer injustice than be unjust.

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PLATO

Γοργίας, 469c

The greatest of all evils is injustice.

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PLATO

Γοργίας, 469b

Neither should someone return injustice, nor harm other people, no matter what he suffers from them.

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PLATO

Κρίτων, 49d

Right is nothing but the interest of the stronger party.

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PLATO

Πολιτεία, 338c

The one who desires to become great should love neither himself nor his own things, but only what is just.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 732a

Every science, when detached from justice and the other virtues, is proved to be guile and not wisdom.

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PLATO

Μενέξενος, 246e

The just life is also the most pleasant.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 662d

Everyone is willing to do anything for immortal glory and good reputation.

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PLATO

Συμπόσιον, 208d

We should satisfy the desires that make a person better when fulfilled but avoid those who make a person worse.

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PLATO

Γοργίας, 503c

There is in every one of us, even the most modest, a type of desire that is terrible, wild, and lawless.

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PLATO

Πολιτεία, 572b

To conquer oneself is the best and noblest victory. To be vanquished by one's own nature is the worst and most ignoble defeat.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 626e

Extremely rich people are not virtuous, and since they are not virtuous they are not happy.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 743c

One should predict misfortunes so he can avoid them. If through ignorance, he cannot avoid them, he should face them with indifference.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ζ’, 43

But it is time for me to die, and for you to live. Which one of us goes to a better place? No one knows, but god.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΚΑ, 33

Indeed, the living are born from the dead, and the souls of the dead exist. The virtuous ones fare better while the evil ones, worse.

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PLATO

Φαίδων, 72d

The divine is beauty, wisdom, honesty, and everything that resembles those.

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PLATO

Φαῖδρος, 246d

If one goes against the laws of proportion disregarding moderation then everything ends up into sickness and injustice. For example, big sails on small ships and large meals to small bodies.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 691e

To know nothing is neither terrible nor evil. However, a large amount of experience and knowledge, is more harmful, if not accompanied by the cultivation of the soul.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 819a

One should have such amount of wealth that neither you will be coveted, nor lack the necessities.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Δ’, 27

Peace is just a word. In reality, the norm is an everlasting and undeclared war among the cities.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 626a

Out of the three things that each man seeks, the third in order is the moderate pursuit of money, the second is the care of the body, and first is the care of the soul.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 743e

The state is the nurturer of people. A good state nurtures virtuous people and a bad one evil people.

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PLATO

Μενέξενος, 238c

Those who exercise their bodies and neglect their soul neglect the part that has to lead, and take care of the part that has to be led.

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PLATO

Κλειτοφῶν, 407e

Extreme liberty for people or countries leads to the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery. It is only natural that dictatorship arises out of democracy.

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PLATO

Πολιτεία, 564a

Everyone takes pleasure in keeping company with others of the same age group.

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PLATO

Φαῖδρος, 240c

If you hold your breath for a long time you may get rid of the hiccups. Otherwise, gargle with water. If the hiccups won’t subside, get something and tickle your nose to sneeze.

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PLATO

Συμπόσιον, 185d

Excessive sleep is not required by nature, neither for our souls nor for our bodies. Someone sleeping is as valuable as someone dead.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 807e

The virtuous form friendships only with the good. However, the evil neither with the good nor with the evil can ever create a true bond.

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PLATO

Λύσις, 214d

Virtuous people do not need a long, but a brilliant life.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ζ, 97

We should do everything, during our lifetime, to be a part of virtue and wisdom. For the prize of victory is good and hope is great.

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PLATO

Φαίδων, 114c

Son, you are still young and as time passes, it will make you change your beliefs and admit the opposites.

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PLATO

Νόμοι, 888a

You will do a greater good to me if you cure my soul of ignorance rather than my body from illness.

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PLATO

Ἱππίας Ἔλάττων, 372e

We should contemplate that excessive pleasures and sorrows are the greatest illnesses of the soul.

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PLATO

Τίμαιος, 86b

The definition of debauchery is when someone is ruled by pleasures.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΣΤ, 12

The drunk captain or any ruler can bring everything upside down. Whether it is a ship, a chariot, a military camp or whatever it is that they are commanding.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΙΗ, 29

Not only the old man but also the man who is drunk is twice a child

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΙΗ, 30

Truth, of all other goods, is the foremost value for both gods and humans.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΙΑ, 18

We shouldn’t focus only on living, but in living properly.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ζ, 44

Those who philosophize correctly study death, and dying is to them anything but terrible.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Α, 89

Virtue is teachable and one should take care of himself, before anything else.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Α, 90

Any crowd and all wealth retreat before virtue.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Α, 91

The beneficial is always beautiful while the harmful is ugly.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Α, 92

All gold that exists on and inside the earth is not equal to virtue.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Α, 95

A foolish soul should also be considered as ugly and without a sense of moderation.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Δ, 98

Stupidity, as an illness of the soul, should be forgiven. The types of stupidity are two, lunacy and ignorance.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Δ, 99

Prudent are those who know what they should do and say. Perhaps fools are those who know nothing of those things and will do and say what they shouldn’t.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Δ, 118

With marriage we fulfill our duty to respond to the demands of nature that perpetuates everything, providing servants to the god by leaving in our place our children’s children.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΞΖ, 26

By giving birth and raising children, we, in turn, pass life, like a torch, to others.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΞΖ, 27

Ancient Greeks accepted the opinion that Athenians take pleasure in analyzing things logically, and not in a rush. While Lacedemonians are practicing reticence and Cretans the ability to think in various ways without much talking.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΛΕ, 11

Death caused by disease and wounds is painful and violent. When death comes with old age it is less painful and brings gratification rather than sorrow.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΙΕ, 20

If we were seeking gold we wouldn’t allow ourselves to ever fight one another during the search and thus destroy the discovery. We should behave similarly when seeking justice, something much more valuable than gold.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Θ, 26

Justice is holiness and holiness is justice.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Θ, 36

God is not in any way unjust. There is nothing that resembles god than the most righteous man.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Θ, 53

He who has never been a servant, cannot be an excellent master.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΞΒ, 50

Justice is virtue and wisdom, and injustice is evil and ignorance. However, injustice is more powerful than justice.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Θ, 62

For the man who has under control all those things that can lead to bliss and he doesn’t allow them to be controlled by the will of other people whose fortune or misfortune can affect his own life, this man is made to live perfectly.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΓ, 24

Prefer the poorer and humbler life over the richer and more corrupt one.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΚΑ, 31

It is way worse to improperly use one thing, than not use it at all, because the former is bad, while the latter is neither good nor bad.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΓ, 29

Those who are in Hades are happier than those who are alive, for they are immortal forever if what is said is true.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΡΚ, 30

It is easier for someone to give a favorable impression when he speaks about the gods than when he speaks about mortals. The great ignorance of the audience doesn’t allow them to check the reality of what is being said and is a great help to him.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Π, 11

What we call evil is good for the unfair and bad for the just.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Β, 46

The bigger they are (monarchs and private citizens), the more sycophants they have around them to provide pleasure accompanied by grave harm. And this is the greatest evil that wealth and political power can create.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΙΔ, 25

Oblivion is the fading of memory.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Κ, 5

Studying is paramount, otherwise, knowledge is lost. Oblivion is the loss of knowledge.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Κ, 6

Youth, indeed, can engage in everything.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΝΒ, 13

By nature, the morals of the young are such that fluctuate often throughout their life.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΝΒ, 16

It could so happen, as with ships, that such a man who doesn’t know how to use his soul, would yield control of his intellect to another, who is knowledgeable about the governing of men. This is what you call politics but it could also be called justice.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΖ, 8

There should be a law prohibiting love towards children, to stop wasting so much activity for an unknown result. Because it is unknown how the children will end up, concerning evil or good, both in body and soul.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΝΒ, 17

The shepherd’s laws are the best for a herd of sheep. And whose laws are perfect for people’s souls? Aren’t they the laws of the king?

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΔ, 11

Don’t be surprised if all living beings honor their own offspring. Because in all of them exists this aspiration as well as the love of immortality and everlasting bliss.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΟΕ, 12

For those who are constantly asking for bribes: "Poor man, don’t try to increase your acquisitions, but decrease your desires".

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ι, 60

The highest degree of injustice is to be considered just when you are not.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ι, 72

Avarice and jealousy are shameful, indeed.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ι, 73

He who steals a little has the same desire as the one who steals much, but with less power.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ι, 76

It is impossible for someone known for his virtue to be distinguished for his great wealth.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ϟΓ, 26

Death in war can be beautiful in many ways. Because if someone is killed in war, even if he is poor or corrupt, he is honored and praised by sages.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ν, 16

A state in which the rulers have no desire for authority should be ruled perfectly, without any resistance. If the opposite happens, the city will have the worst possible ruling.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 107

Love for knowledge and philosophy is the same thing. So, one must be of a philosophical, highly spirited, strong and quick character, to be a perfect guardian of the state.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 110

It is obvious that there is no more wretched state than the one governed by tyranny, nor a more prosperous than one governed by a king.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 117

The community which has neither poverty nor riches will always have the noblest principles. There is no ongoing insolence, injustice, and envy.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 119

So, my opinion is that laws should be passed on the basis of only one virtue, prudence, even though there are four of them.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 120

Men should set rules and live accordingly, otherwise, they will be no different than wild beasts.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΓ, 128

After examining all those sciences we talked about, we must agree that none of them proved to be political science.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΜΗ, 22

It is known that if the children turn out good or not, their father’s house will be similar to the quality of his children.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΠΓ, 27

Perfection is to not be afraid of desires but to tackle them with a level of indifference and decency.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ε, 132

None of the gods and people dare to claim that whoever does injustice shouldn’t be punished.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 20

Virtue doesn’t come from money, but money and all other goods come to people from virtue, in both public and private life.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ε, 125

Referring to the young people, prudence is comprised of those very important things, obeying the rulers, and being the rulers of our desires in food, drink, and sexual pleasures.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ε, 128

If you want divination to be a science, let us accept it as a science of researching the future, and being governed by prudence. Humans are created so that they can act and live only through science. Prudence will not allow a lack of science to become our partner.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Ε, 133

If you are going to make the right decision, I think you should make it based on science, and not on the opinion of the crowd.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 89

The one responsible for important affairs should possess the greatest prudence.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 90

He who investigates if a soul lives righteously or not should possess three things. Those are knowledge, common sense, and the courage of his convictions.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 93

He who decides to enforce a punishment does not do it for the crime that belongs in the past, for what is done cannot be undone. He does it for the future so that neither the offender nor anyone who is exemplified by his punishment will wrong again.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 92

We should punish an evil person to make him better, not an unfortunate one.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 94

Prudent rulers' character is very modest, just and liberating for their subjects. However, it lacks ingenuity, impulse, and briskness.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Μ, 103

Using violence against our parents when they are not insane does not comply with the divine laws. If they are living a kind of life that we don’t enjoy, we shouldn’t become repulsive with our advice, nor flatter them.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΟΘ, 40

When he saw someone being rude towards his father, he told him: "Young man, stop deriding the one that you should be bragging about".

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΟΘ, 43

For in the soul of the good man there is no growing of envy.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΛΗ, 33

During peace, the city achieved a high status. Then, it was afflicted by what usually afflicts those who prosper. First jealousy and then envy.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΛΗ, 49

The envious proves that he is a man who takes pleasure in the misfortunes of others.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΛΗ, 62

To deceive your own self is the worst thing. Because the one deceiving you never gets far and is always present.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΚΓ, 17

The composition of the body wears from inactivity and idleness, but it can usually be preserved through motion and exercise. Similarly, the soul through learning and mental exercise acquires knowledge and it can be saved and improved.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΚΘ, 97

It is not bad at all to reflect on something that we haven’t done properly or not doing properly. He is going to be more prudent, throughout the rest of his life, the one who doesn’t refrain of doing that.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΚΘ, 101

Each of us is good to the extent that he is wise while on the subjects that he is uneducated, he is evil.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: ΚΘ, 102

When once Antisthenes talked too much during a conversation, Plato told him that the measure of speech is not defined by the talker, but the listener.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Λ, 22

It happens that prudence and great strength can coexist in the same body. People tend to always desire them.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Γ, 59

How is it possible for someone to initiate from a false belief and without reaching an, even small, part of the truth, to gain wisdom? – Impossible

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Γ, 71

Prudence is a self-sufficient force that generates human happiness, a state of the soul by which we judge what to do and what not, a science defining good and evil, a science of creating bliss.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Γ, 96

Among men, lots of crafts have been discovered empirically, out of their experiences. Experience is what makes our life advance, while inexperience guides through chance.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Γ, 88

Each of us should learn and find someone who can make us strong and able to recognize moral from immoral life and always choose the best.

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PLATO

Ιωάννου Στοβαίου Ανθολόγιον: Γ, 93