Pythagoras of Samos

Mathematics Greek -570 – -495 260 quotes

An ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician, credited with the Pythagorean theorem and the founding of the Pythagorean school.

Most quoted

"Do not allow sleep to close your eyelids, before you have reviewed all your actions of the day. How have I erred? What have I done? What have I left undone? Begin from the first and go through to the last; and then, for the evil acts, chide yourself, and for the good rejoice."

— from The Golden Verses of Pythagoras

"Do not allow sleep to close your eyelids, before you have reviewed all your actions of the day. How have I erred? What have I done? What have I left undone? Begin from the first and go through to the last; and then, for the bad, be vexed, and for the good, be glad."

— from The Golden Verses of Pythagoras

"As long as man continues to be the ruthless destroyer of lower living beings, he will never know health or peace. For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love."

— from Attributed by Ovid, -500

All quotes by Pythagoras of Samos (260)

The harmony of the world is made manifest in Form and Number, and the heart and soul and all the poetry of Natural Philosophy are embodied in the concept of mathematical beauty.

Attributed saying

Virtue is harmony.

Philosophical doctrine

The universe is a living organism, permeated by a single soul.

Philosophical doctrine

The properties of number are the properties of all things.

Philosophical doctrine

Man know thyself; then thou shalt know the Universe and God.

Attributed saying

Time is the soul of this world.

Attributed saying

The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most.

Attributed saying

A blow from your friend is better than a kiss from your enemy.

Attributed saying

Do not destroy the principle of the soul which is within you.

Attributed saying

The wind is blowing. Worship the sound.

Attributed saying

Liberty is an equal state of servitude and rule.

Attributed saying

There is no word or action but has its echo in eternity.

Attributed saying

The purpose of life is the contemplation of the eternal truths.

Philosophical doctrine

Justice is a number multiplied by itself.

Philosophical doctrine

The mind of man is immortal and periodically enters new bodies.

Doctrine of Metempsychosis

Be a good son, a just father, a faithful husband, a loyal friend, and a useful citizen.

Attributed saying

The whole air is full of souls. These are those who are called demons and heroes.

Philosophical doctrine

The monad (number one) is the beginning of all things.

Philosophical doctrine

The tetractys (the number ten) is the fount and root of eternal nature.

Symbolic oath

The art of living happily is to live in the present.

Attributed saying

Contemporaries of Pythagoras of Samos

Other Mathematicss born within 50 years of Pythagoras of Samos (-570–-495).