Black Elk

Black Elk (c. 1863-1950)

"You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round."

• From Black Elk Speaks (chapter 17), narrated by Black Elk and recorded/edited by John G. Neihardt. (University of Nebraska Press, 2014).

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General W. T. Sherman

William Tecumseh Sherman (c. 1820-1891)

"I have again and again been invited to write a history of the war, or to record for publication my personal recollections of it, with large offers of money therefor; all of which I have heretofore declined, because the truth is not always palatable, and should not always be told."

• From The Memoirs of General W. T. Sherman (Chapter IX) by W. T. Sherman. (Renaissance Classics, 2012).

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Nero

Nero (r. 54-68)

"A simple craft will keep a man from want."

• The Twelve Caesars (Nero) by Suetonius, translated by Robert Graves and edited by James B. Rives. New York: Penguin Classics, 2007.

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Tacitus

Tacitus (c. 56/57- 117+)

"Primitive man had no evil desires. Being blameless and innocent, his life was free of compulsions or penalties. He also needed no rewards; for he was naturally good."

• The Annals of Imperial Rome (Book III, translator chaptor 6), by Tacitus, translated by Michael Grant (Penguin Classics, 1996).

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The Buddha

The Buddha (6th Century BCE)

"Though one might conquer in battle
a thousand times a thousand men,
the one who conquers himself alone
is supreme in battle."

• The Dhammapada (Verses on the Way, Chapter 8), recorded in the 3rd century BCE. Translation by Glenn Wallis, 2004.

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Tiberius

Emperor Tiberius (r. 14-37)

"Rulers die; the country lives for ever."

• A quote attributed to Tiberius in The Annals of Imperial Rome (Book II, translator chapter 5), by Tacitus, translated by Michael Grant (Penguin Classics, 1996).

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Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin (c. 1706-1790)

"Love your neighbor

Yet don't pull down your hedge."

• From Poor Richard's Almanac by Benjamin Franklin (Seven Treasures Publications, 2008). 

Have a look at our Benjamin Franklin biography, HERE.

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Sima Qian

Sima Qian (c. 145-90 BCE)

"Truly, whether one achieves order or unrest in government depends in the end upon how well one plans."

• From the Records of the Grand Historian (Shi Ji 11) by Sima Qian. Translated by Burton Watson (Columbia University Press, 1993).

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Geoffrey Chaucer

Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1342-1400)

"When something's difficult, or can't be had,
We crave and cry for it all day like mad.
Forbid a thing, we pine for it all night,
Press fast upon is and we take to flight."

• From The Canterbury Tales (The Wife of Bath's Prologue) by Geoffrey Chaucer, translated to modern English by Nevill Coghill (Penguin Classics, 2003).

Watch a short YouTube video about the life of Geoffrey Chaucer, HERE.

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Macarius the Great

Macarius the Great (sayings recorded between 4th and 6th century)

"Like the dead, take no account of either the scorn of men or their praises, and you can be saved."

• Quote attributed to the 4th-century Egyptian ascetic, Macarius the Great, in Sayings of the Desert Fathers, edited and translated by Sister Benedicta Ward, Cistercian Studies, 1975.

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Herodotus

Herodotus (c. 490-425/420)

"It is much more agreeable to be the object of envy than of pity."

• A quote in the character of the Cornthian tyrant, Periander, from The Histories by Herodotus (Book III), translated by Aubrey De Sélincourt and revised by John Marincola (Penguin Classics, 2002). 

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Nennius

Nennius (9th century)

"It is better to drink a wholesome draught of truth from the humble vessel, than poison mixed with honey from a golden goblet."

• From History of the Britons by Nennius, translated by J. A. Giles (c. 19th century), republished by Oxford University Press, 2018. 

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Homer

   
Homer (flourished 700 BCE)

"The War-god in his fury is no respecter of persons."

• The Odyssey (Book 11) by Homer, translated by E. V. Rieu and edited by D. C. H. Rieu. New York: Penguin Classics, 2009.

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Brynhild (Saga of the Volsungs)

Brynhild
(Valkyrie from The Saga of the Volgungs, written anonymously in the 13th century)

"Although caught by nightfall, do not take shelter near the road, for foul beings who bewilder men often live there."

• From The Saga of the Volsungs (chapter 22), by an anonymous 13th century Icelander, translated by Jesse L. Byock (Penguin Classics, 1990, 1999).

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Geoffrey of Monmouth

"Accept me, too, as your writer, so that, reclining in the shade of a tree which spreads so wide, and sheltered from envious and malicious enemies, I may be able in peaceful harmony to make music on the reed-pipe of a muse who really belongs to you."

• Geoffrey of Monmouth's The History of the Kings of Britain (the Dedication), completed in 1136 CE, translated from Latin into English by Lewis Thorpe (Penguin Classics, 1966).

Read our biography about Geoffrey of Monmouth and his interesting book of pseudo-history, HERE.

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Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin (c. 1706-1790)

"Glass, China and Reputation are easily cracked and never well mended."

• From Poor Richard's Almanac by Benjamin Franklin (Seven Treasures Publications, 2008). 

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Sun Tzu

Sun Tzu (sayings recorded c. 6th-3rd century BCE)

"Excessive rewards
      Are a sign
      Of desperation.

Excessive punishments
      Are a sign
      Of exhaustion."

This quote comes from Sun Tzu's The Art of War (Chapter Nine), translated by John Minford (Penguin Classics edition, 2009). The terracotta warriors were photographed by Kevin Poh and published under the CC 2.0 license.


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Thucydides

Thucydides (c. 460-400 BCE)

"Once you come forward in the role of liberators, you will find that your strength in the war is enormously increased."

• History of the Peloponnesian War (Book III, section 13) by Thucydides, translated by Rex Warner (Penguin Classics, 1972). 

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Christine de Pizan

Christine de Pizan (c. 1364-1430)

"Condemning all women in order to help some misguided men get over foolish behavior is tantamount to denouncing fire, which is a vital and beneficial element, just because some people are burnt by it, or to cursing water just because some people are drowned in it."

• From The Book of the City of Ladies (Part I, chapter 8) by Christine de Pizan, translated by Rosalind Brown-Grant (Penguin Classics, 1999).

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Lao Tzu

Lao Tau (c. 6th-5th Century BCE)

"The Way is broad, reaching left as well as right.
The myriad of creatures depend onitfor life yet it claims no authority.
It accomplishes its task yet lays claim to no merit.
It clothes and feeds the myriad of creatures yet lays no claim to being their master."

• From Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching (Book One, XXXIV), translated by D. C. Lau (Penguin Classics, 1963). 

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Agesilaus II

King Agesilaus II of Sparta (r. 400-360 BCE)

"It isn't positions which lend men distinction, but men who enhance positions."

• Quote attributed to King Agesilaus II in the Sayings of the Spartans, presumably collected by Plutarch, in On Sparta, translated by Richard J. A. Talbert. New York: Penguin Classics, 2005.

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