Hippocrates

The sacred disease is no more divine or sacred than any other disease, but has a natural cause, and its supposed divine origin is due to men's inexperience, and to their wonder at its peculiar character.

The human body contains blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile. These are the things that make up its constitution and cause its pains and health. Health is primarily that state in which these constituent substances are in the correct proportion to each other, both in strength and quantity, and are well mixed. Pain occurs when one of the substances presents either a deficiency or an excess, or is separated in the body and not mixed with the others.

The physician should have a good ear, a good eye, and a good heart.

The physician must be a lover of wisdom, for wisdom is the mother of all good things.

As to diseases, make a habit of two things—to help, or at least to do no harm.

If you are not a friend to the patient, you are a foe to the disease.

Life is short, the art long, opportunity fleeting, experience perilous, judgment difficult.

Men ought to know that from nothing else but thence [the brain] come joys, delights, laughter and sports, and sorrows, griefs, despondency, and lamentations.

The sacred disease [epilepsy] is no more divine or sacred than any other disease, but has a natural cause, and its supposed divine origin is due to men's inexperience, and to their wonder at its peculiar character.

All parts of the body which have a function, if used in moderation and exercised in labors to which each is accustomed, become thereby healthy, well-developed and age more slowly, but if unused and left idle, they become liable to disease, defective in growth and age quickly.

The physician should not be ashamed to admit that he does not know everything.

The way to health is to have a scented bath and an oily massage every day.

There are, in fact, two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the latter ignorance.

It is much better to make a mistake in the diagnosis and treatment of a disease than to miss the opportunity to cure it.

The physician must be able to discern the causes of diseases, and to know how to prevent them.

The physician should treat the patient, not the disease.

The physician should be a good listener.

The physician should be a good observer.

The physician should be a good communicator.

The physician should be a good teacher.