“First learn the meaning of what you say and then speak.”
More from Epictetus on Wisdom
“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.”
“Very little is needed for everything to be upset and ruined, only a slight lapse in reason.”
“Fortify yourself with contentment for this is an impregnable fortress.”
“Reading should serve the goal of attaining peace; if it doesn’t make you peaceful, what good is it?”
“On the occasion of every accident that befalls you ... inquire what power you have for turning it to use.”
“Bear and forbear.”
“Nature has given to men one tongue but two ears that we may hear from others twice as much as we speak.”
Others on Wisdom
Sun Tzu
30 quotes“Do not swallow bait offered by the enemy. Do not interfere with an army that is returning home.”
Dalai Lama
22 quotes“Compassion is the radicalism of our time.”
Cervantes
20 quotes“A closed mouth catches no flies.”
Aesop
19 quotes“Little by little does the trick.”
Confucius
19 quotes“The gem cannot be polished without friction nor man perfected without trials.”
Ben Franklin
18 quotes“Be slow in choosing a friend, slower in changing.”
Napoleon
16 quotes“Ability is of little account without opportunity.”
Cicero
15 quotes“Great is the power of habit. It teaches us to bear fatigue and to despise wounds and pain.”
George Washington
14 quotes“Let your Discourse with Men of Business be Short and Comprehensive.”
Rudyard Kipling
14 quotes“I keep six honest serving men. (They taught me all I know) Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and...”
Khalil Gibran
14 quotes“Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge.”
George R.R. Martin
14 quotes“This was how an enemy should be dealt with: with a dagger, not a declaration.”