10 Memorable Quotes From Epictetus

Epictetus remains one of the great Greek philosophers of ancient Greece. Below are 10 quotes from Epictetus:

1. "It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."
2. "Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants."
3. "No great thing is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I answer you that there must be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen."
4. "Men are disturbed not by things, but by the view which they take of them."
5. "If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid."
6. "Don't explain your philosophy. Embody it."
7. "It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows."
8. "If anyone tells you that a certain person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you but answer, 'He was ignorant of my other faults, else he would not have mentioned these alone.'"
9. "It is not death or pain that is to be dreaded, but the fear of pain or death."
10. "The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best."