Crows pick out the eyes of the dead, when the dead have no longer need of them; but flatterers mar the soul of the living, and her eyes they blind.
EpictetusRead
If someone irritates you, it is only your own response that is irritating you. Therefore, when anyone seems to be provoking you, remember that it is only your judgment of the incident that provokes you. -
Interpretation
What this quote means
Our responses to irritations are often the source of our irritation, not the actions of others.
Epictetus, a Stoic philosopher, emphasizes that external events are not inherently irritating; rather, it is our subjective judgments and reactions that lead to our feelings of irritation. This perspective encourages self-reflection, suggesting that individuals have the power to change their responses to situations and, in turn, their emotional experiences.
Themes
IrritationResponseJudgmentStoicismSelf-ControlPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a therapy session discussing personal reactions to stress.
More from Epictetus
All quotes →Learn to distinguish what you can and can't control. Within our control are our own opinions, aspirations, desires and the things that repel us. They are directly subject to our influence.
EpictetusRead
Men are disturbed not by the things that happen, but by their opinion of the things that happen.
EpictetusRead
Nothing truly stops you. Nothing truly holds you back. For your own will is always within your control. Sickness may challenge your body. But are you merely your body? Lameness may impede your legs. But you are not merely your legs. Your will is bigger than your legs. Your will needn't be affected by an incident unless you let it.
EpictetusRead
The people have a right to the truth as they have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
EpictetusRead
Practice yourself, for heaven's sake, in little things, and thence proceed to greater.
EpictetusRead
Similar quotes
It is possible that the contemplation of cruelty will not make us humane but cruel; that the reiteration of the badness of our spiritual condition will make us consent to it.
Lionel TrillingRead
Although the time of death is approaching me, I am not afraid of dying and going to Hell or (what would be considerably worse) going to the popularized version of Heaven. I expect death to be nothingness and, for removing me from all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism.
Isaac AsimovRead
Inner-life questions are the kind everyone asks, with or without benefit of God-talk: 'Does my life have meaning and purpose?' 'Do I have gifts that the world wants and needs?' 'Whom and what shall I serve?' 'Whom and what can I trust?' 'How can I rise above my fears?'
Parker PalmerRead
If someone's liver doesn't work, we blame it on the genes; if someone's brain doesn't work properly, we blame the school. It's actually more humane to think of the condition as genetic. For instance, you don't want to say that someone is born unpleasant, but sometimes that might be true.
James D. WatsonRead
If there were no God, he would have to be invented.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
She thought how strange it would be if she ever said 'Hello' to him. One did not greet oneself each morning.
Ayn RandRead