The 80 best phrases of Plato

As one of the most important figures of social development for Western culture, Plato seemed to be ahead of the times and his desire to promote knowledge, as well as respect for life and the world around us, makes him one of the greatest commemorative characters in history.

So much so, that he has left us his thoughts and reflections about society and what people should expect about it and about themselves.

• We recommend you read: "50 great philosophical phrases to ponder"

And it is right in this article where you can see these thoughts and beliefs that were so important for the time of ancient greece, but that still resonate today, with the best phrases of Plato, inspired by his teacher Socrates. that this thinker left.

80 great phrases of Plato

Here you can learn about Plato's philosophy and see if you share his ideals. This is our selection with the 80 best phrases of this Greek philosopher.

1. It is not the eyes that see, but what we see through the eyes.

The world as we know it is thanks to how we perceive it.

2. We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.

It's okay to fear the unknown, but not to get bogged down by it.

3. At night especially, it is beautiful to believe in light

The lights look brighter when we light up the dark.

4. You can discover more about a person in an hour of play, than in a year of conversation.

When we play, it is our interior that manifests itself, for better or for worse.

5. The wise man will always want to be with the one who is better than him.

There is nothing wrong with being surrounded by more expert people, as they have a lot to teach us.

6. The greatest declaration of love is the one that is not made; The man that feels a lot, speaks little.

Remember that actions are always worth a thousand words.

7. Thinking is the dialogue of the soul with itself.

Thinking is a gift, as it opens the door to our deepest creativity.

8. Beauty resides in the eyes of the beholder.

Each person interprets beauty in their own way.

9. We must look for a cause other than God for our ills.

There is no use blaming others for our own actions. We must be responsible and accept our mistakes.

10. Freedom is in owning your own life.

If you choose your path, you will never be unhappy. No matter how many obstacles you have to overcome in this one.

11. Knowledge is the right opinion.

The knowledge we obtain is never bad or incorrect, because it is the way to know what surrounds us.

12. The first and best victory is to conquer yourself.

By conquering our fears and insecurities, we can conquer anything.

13. No human cause deserves such anxiety.

If something hurts us, is it worth fighting for?

14. Everything is flow, nothing stays still.

Life is in constant motion and we must move with it

15. What I really know is the extent of my ignorance.

Nobody knows everything and accepting it is synonymous with growth.

16. An entire explanation of the world exists beyond us

Everything in this life has an explanation and a reason, even if we don't know it yet.

17. Looking for the good of our fellow men we will find ours.

Part of our personal satisfaction is based on helping others.

18. By learning to die, you learn to live better.

The best way to live is without fear in the end.

19. It is not in men but in things that the truth must be sought.

The facts are those that show the true reality of the world.

20. A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is among a thousand, but a realized one could not be found even among a hundred thousand men.

A person who is at peace with himself has reached the top of everything.

21. What little I know I owe to my ignorance.

It is our ignorance that can help us grow or stagnate.

22. Necessity is the mother of invention.

To create we must first have the instinct to need that.

23. Better a little that is well done, than a large imperfect amount.

It's not about how much we can do, but how great we are at something.

24. Each heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers to it. Those who want to sing always find a song. At the touch of a lover, everyone becomes a poet.

Love is a union, a commitment and a support that seeks the growth of both people.

25. Time is a moving image of eternity.

Time never stops, because eternity is infinite.

26. Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow they go.

Life is not about a race to be won, but about reaching the desired goal.

27. The goal of education is virtue and the goal of becoming a good citizen.

Only through education can we become people of integrity.

28. True friendship can only exist between equals.

A friend who is not with you to support, but to discourage you then is not a true friend.

29. We have already said that the legislator, when he tries to promulgate his laws, must propose three objectives: that the state that has to apply them must be free; that its citizens must be united and that they must be cultured.

The rulers should create laws that benefit the people for their integral growth.

30. Any man can easily do harm, but not all men can do good to another.

Only those who are not envious of others can really help others.

31. Civilization is the triumph of persuasion over force.

A civilized culture should place the search for peace and understanding above confrontation.

32. A house that has a library has a soul.

The diverse content of the books fill our souls in an almost magical way.

33. That moves by itself is immortal.

We should not wait for the approval of another, to be someone.

34. Man is a being in search of meaning.

Our final goal will always be to find answers to everything we ask ourselves.

35. We are doubly armed if we fight in faith.

You don't just need tools to be successful, but the conviction that we will succeed.

36. Only the dead have seen the end of the war.

A war brings more losses than victories.

37. Where the love reigns, laws left over.

When you rule with love, no one will want to contradict you.

38. Cold and insipid is the comfort when it is not wrapped in some remedy.

There is no use complaining if we do not find a solution to our problem.

39. Courage is knowing what we should not fear.

Being brave does not imply having absolute strength, but the confidence to face difficulties.

40. The wise speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something.

Only speak at the right time and not just to feel like we know something even if it doesn't.

41. When a crowd exercises authority, it is even more cruel than tyrants.

Someone in a crowd may have a cruel idea and more people will support it and add opinions until it becomes egregious.

42. The beginning is the most important part of the job.

The way you start any project is what will set your course.

43. Vulgar souls have no destiny.

The soul is the essence of people, those people who lack ideals will not have a memorable future either.

44. Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, charm and joy to life and everything.

Music has accompanied humanity and has evolved as one of the most important ways of expressing feelings and ideas.

45. Music is to the soul what gymnastics is to the body.

Music, its absorption and interpretation, is capable of nourishing the soul and strengthening it.

46. Of all the animals, the child is the most difficult to handle.

It is just because of the intelligence that the child possesses and conceals that he is so complex to educate.

47. There are three kinds of men: lovers of wisdom, lovers of honor, and lovers of profit.

Lovers of wisdom seek to cultivate their minds, lovers of honor seek to be remembered for great and heroic deeds, and lovers of profit seek only to win.

48. A dog has the soul of a philosopher.

There is no animal more noble, strong and unshakable than a dog, it will always be able to love and seek goodness in the world.

49. Friends often become thieves of our time.

If we are not careful we can stop spending time on ourselves and our projects.

50. Everything that is called studying and learning is nothing else to remember.

In essence, all you study is remembering things that someone discovered or invented at the time.

51. There is a kind of virtue, of evil, many.

You just need excuses to act mean.

52. The price that good men pay for indifference to public affairs is that of being ruled by bad men.

Not exercising our vote has serious consequences for the government.

53. There is not a single king who is not descended from a slave, nor a slave who has not had kings in his family.

It is unfair to judge people by their social status, since it is not necessarily eternal.

54. The intelligent man speaks with authority when he directs his own life.

Hesitating when making a decision is dangerous, but it is doubly dangerous if it is a decision of our life.

55. Philosophy is the highest form that music can take.

Music serves to express feelings and ideas, philosophy questions everything looking for answers.

56. No wealth can make a bad man at peace with himself.

The key to peace is not wealth because it can distract us from our evils for a time, but not give us peace.

57. The best wealth is to be content living with little.

When we are happy with the simple things, we can really enjoy what we have within our reach.

58. If you search, you will find.

We achieve what we set out to do, because we want it to happen.

59. A good decision is based on knowledge, not numbers.

Statistics are very useful for making decisions, but you need to know how to interpret them.

60. Excellence is not a gift, but a skill that takes practice. We do not act with reason because we are excellent, in fact, we achieve excellence by acting with reason.

Excellence is achieved through a lot of effort and error, even if we are born with a talent for something.

61. He who learns and learns and does not practice what he knows is like one who plows and plows and does not sow.

Getting a lot of knowledge, but never putting it into practice is useless.

62. Poverty does not come from the diminution of wealth, but from the multiplication of desires.

Increased desires do not allow us to think clearly.

63. Ignorance is the seed of all evil.

All evil arises from ignorance, from not knowing the facts and from judging things wrongly.

64. The goal of education is to teach us to love the beautiful.

To educate is to teach to be good people, capable of loving and reasoning. Not just memorize certain things.

65. Thinking without gaps is necessary to build sources of knowledge.

We should not limit our reasoning because that brings weakness to knowledge.

66. There is more truth in geometry than in any promise.

The geometry is precise and a single mistake can distort its shape.

67. Whoever is not a good servant will not be a good teacher.

The person who does not know how to serve will not know how to teach why he will not be able to put himself in the other's situation.

68. Be good, because everyone you know is fighting a difficult battle.

Although at times it may not seem like it, all people have their own problems to a greater or lesser extent.

69. It is good to think about things with a clear mind.

We should never make a decision or form an opinion if we are influenced by something that clouds our mind.

70. Character is simply a long and continued habit.

Habits form our character. So our character is the habit of making those habits part of our life.

71. States are like men, they are born from their own traits.

Our personality is based on the way we have formed over time.

72. Love is a serious desire of the mind.

The need to find someone who loves us, ironically does not arise from our heart, but from the mind

73. The man who makes everything that leads to happiness depends on himself, no longer on others, has adopted the best plan to live happily.

We must learn that no one else is responsible for our happiness than ourselves.

74. Good actions empower ourselves and inspire the good actions of others.

Acting well will make other people do it too. This will form a chain that will never break.

75. Man cannot practice various arts successfully.

Perfecting a skill takes years, and those who obsess over mastering it all end up with more flaws than strengths.

76. Good people don't need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws.

People with a good heart will do good without any bribes, those with a bad heart will not do good or be forced.

77. God has given us two wings to fly to Him: love and reason.

The basis for being with God is doing well. The bases to act well in life are these 2.

78. There is in each of us, even those who seem to be the most moderate, a type of desire that is terrible, wild, and lawless.

All of us in the depths of our hearts have some desire that can make us think outside of reason.

79. Courage is a kind of salvation.

The only way to overcome our fears is to face them with courage.

80. Either we find what we are looking for, or at least we free ourselves from the persuasion that we know what we do not know.

The knowledge we seek is not always what we hope to find, but it can be satisfying.