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Musonius Rufus
c. 30–100 CE · Roman Stoic teacher
Gaius Musonius Rufus was a Roman Stoic known for insisting that philosophy must be lived, not debated. He taught both men and women and emphasized frugality, endurance, and ordinary duty. He was the teacher of Epictetus.
Ideas from Musonius Rufus
“For a man to be happy, he must live in accordance with nature, and this is impossible unless he has learned what is in accordance with nature and trained himself to do it.”
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
“If you are going to learn, you must be punished; for the man who is not punished is not taught.”
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Neither should a free man be a slave to his body, nor should he neglect it.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Philosophy is not a skill for display, but a discipline for living.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
The greatest impediment to living a good life is being a slave to pleasures.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Wealth is able to buy the pleasures of eating, drinking and other sensual pursuits, yet can never afford a cheerful spirit or freedom from sorrow.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Both for the body and the soul, the practice of endurance is necessary, if we wish to become better than we are.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Girls as well as boys should study philosophy; the things that befall men befall women too, and they have the same nature.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
If you are exiled, you will be exiled from a place; if you are cast down, you will be cast down from a place; but wherever you go, you take yourself with you.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
If you set your heart on what is not your own, you will lose what is.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Marriage is a partnership, not a hierarchy.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Philosophy is the medicine of the soul.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Hard labor and discipline are good for the soul, not only for the body.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Beauty of the soul is more valuable than beauty of the body, and virtue outlasts the body.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
A good man does not allow himself to be upset by insult, nor to be troubled by the fault of another.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
The one who wants little is closer to the gods than the one who wants much.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Train your children in virtue, not in wealth.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Courage is not shown in words, but in the bearing of hardships.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Eat to live, and not live to eat.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
The beauty of the soul is not seen with the eyes, but with the judgment.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Take food for the body, but take wisdom for the soul; the one keeps you alive, the other makes life worth living.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Work for the sake of virtue, and the reward is in the working.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
True wealth is not in what you own, but in what you can do without.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Live according to virtue, and no circumstance can make you poor.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
A steady mind finds joy in the ordinary, and is not shaken by the extraordinary.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Train the body to endure, and the soul will follow; for the two are one household.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures
Teach by example, not by words alone; the pupil follows what you do, not what you say.
Musonius Rufus · Lectures