A system of morality that is based on relative emotional values is a mere illusion, a thoroughly vulgar conception that has nothing sound in it and nothing true.
SocratesRead
Are you not ashamed of heaping up the greatest amount of money and honor and reputation, and caring so little about wisdom and truth and the greatest improvement of the soul?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of valuing wisdom and truth over material wealth and social status.
In this quote, Socrates questions the priorities of individuals who focus on accumulating wealth, honor, and reputation while neglecting the cultivation of wisdom, truth, and the development of the soul. He challenges us to reflect on what truly matters in life, suggesting that personal growth and moral integrity are far more valuable than superficial achievements.
Themes
WisdomTruthWealthSoulValueGrowth
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about the ethical implications of wealth accumulation.
More from Socrates
All quotes →The poets are only the interpreters of the gods.
SocratesRead
I am wiser than this man, for neither of us appears to know anything great and good; but he fancies he knows something, although he knows nothing; whereas I, as I do not know anything, so I do not fancy I do. In this trifling particular, then, I appear to be wiser than he, because I do not fancy I know what I do not know.
SocratesRead
The unexamined life is not worth living.
SocratesRead
When I was young, I believed that life might unfold in an orderly way, according to my hopes and expectations. But now I understand that the Way winds like a river, always changing, ever onward.. My journeys revealed that the Way itself creates the warrior; that every path leads to peace, every choice to wisdom. And that life has always been, and will always be, arising in Mystery.
SocratesRead
Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued." "It is not living that matters, but living rightly. The unexamined life is not worth living.
SocratesRead
Similar quotes
I worked for Harper’s Bazaar. They fired me. I recommend that you all get fired; it’s a great learning experience.
Anna WintourRead
The smartest people are constantly revising their understanding, reconsidering a problem they thought they’d already solved. They’re open to new points of view, new information, new ideas, contradictions, and challenges to their own way of thinking.
Jeff BezosRead
With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings.
Ezra Taft BensonRead
Only let the moving waters calm down, and the sun and moon will be reflected on the surface of your being.
Deepak ChopraRead
There be three kinds of unhappie men. 1. Qui scit & non docet, Hee that hath knowledge and teacheth not. 2. Qui docet & non vivit, He that teacheth, and liveth not thereafter. 3. Qui nescit, & non interrogat, He that knoweth not, and doth not enquire to understand.
Edward CokeRead
Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible, nothing can surpass it. The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid. Everyone knows this is true, but few can put it into practice. Therefore the Master remains serene in the midst of sorrow. Evil cannot enter his heart. Because he has given up helping, he is people's greatest help. True words seem paradoxical.
LaoziRead