Socrates is known for his Western philosophy. Here are his 15 quotes, that will help you be wiser. 

Socrates, with his questioning, encouraged critical thinking & reveal deeper truths. These 15 quotes by him share his wisdom & important things one needs to know about life. These quotes will make you wiser. 

Socrates lived in Athens during the 5th century BCE. He is a classical Greek philosopher, who is known as one of the founders of Western philosophy. We get knowledge about him from his students as he himself did not write anything. His area of interest is in ethics & moral philosophy.  

So, here are 15 great quotes by Socrates to make you wiser. 

01). Awareness of ignorance is the beginning of wisdom.

With this quote Socrates shares that wisdom is knowing your limitations & working on them. If you know that you lack something, then only you can expand your knowledge. By knowing your ignorance, you become open to learning new things. When you are open to learning new things, at that time you are working on the path to becoming wiser. 

02). Strong minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, weak minds discuss people.

This quote shows the different types of conversations that individuals have. Those who have strong minds discuss ideas. Those with average minds discuss events, & those with weak mind gossip about people. He is not insulting anyone by categorizing them. He highlights the different intellectual levels of people. He says that people must invest their energy in good work than gossiping about someone. 

03). By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you’ll become happy; if you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.

This quote shares that regardless of the outcome, one should marry. Because either you become happy, or you become wise. If you found a good spouse, you live happily with good adventures & memories. And if not good memories, then by facing struggles, you become wiser. Loving & supporting partner makes life fulfilling & supports you in every decision. If you get the bad one, you suffer from difficulties & by that suffering you become wiser & stronger. 

04). The mind is everything; what you think you become.

Socrates thinks that the mind possesses the ability to shape your reality. The thoughts & ideas you have in your mind have the potential to manifest your words & actions. And by that, it shapes the person you become. As thoughts have the capacity to shape your life, choose to think in a way that aligns with your ambitions & goals. That helps you become the person you want. This quote highlights that your thoughts are not just mere notions, but powerful tools that have the capacity to shape your life. 

05).  Do not grieve over someone who changes all of a sudden. It might be that he has given up acting and returned to his true self.

This quote suggests not to mourn when someone changes their behaviour. Instead, encourage the welcome & accept the transformation. When someone changes their behaviour, it can be hard for you to accept that. But think about them as they left their persona because now they are trusting you with their true self. Encourage & appreciate their true behaviour, as it is hard for a person to be one’s true self. Do not mourn for a change instead, appreciate the change. 

06). To find yourself, think for yourself.

This quote shows the importance of self-awareness. It says to think for yourself instead of following societal norms. “To find yourself” implies the process of self-discovery. Everyone has their own wisdom & skills, that makes them unique. One should follow that & make a decision by themselves. “Think for yourself” suggests an individual thought process. Rather than blindly following someone, rely on your own thoughts & instincts. Know your wants & needs, and think for yourself by yourself. 

07).We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is a habit.

This quote says that your actions & behaviours define who you are. Your identity is not shaped by occasional actions but by consistent actions. Your daily actions & habits play an important role in making your character. If you want to be excellent at something, you have to make it a habit. When you practice something repeatedly, you can achieve excellence in that area. Socrates wants to say that your actions define who you are. And excellence can not be achieved without effort, you have to work on it continuously.

08). If you want to be wrong, then follow the masses.

This quote suggests that by following a crowd or a group of people blindly, you may make mistakes. The majority often make a decision without rational thinking. And by following them, you often make wrong choices & false decisions. By this, Socrates wants to tell you that make a decision by your own thought process, after examining everything. Do not follow the crowd blindly because they can be wrong at some point. 

09). Be nicer than necessary to everyone you meet. Everyone is fighting some kind of battle.

Here, Socrates says that be kind to everyone, because you do not know what they are going through in their lives. Show extra courtesy & warmth to everyone you meet. That might help them feel a little better. This quote emphasises the nature of empathy, & compassion toward other people. You show compassion to everyone regardless of how they present their selves in front of you. This quote encourages you to treat everyone with kindness. 

10). Contentment is natural wealth, luxury is artificial poverty.

This quote gives the definition of what real wealth is. It says that your real wealth is finding satisfaction in life’s simple pleasures. But, when you run after material things, it gives you dissatisfaction. Luxury is a thing that never gets satisfaction. It gives a sense of instability as new things get launched and you run after them. Natural wealth can give you happiness, luxury leads you to dissatisfaction. 

11). When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser.

When people lose their battles, they take shelter under slander. If someone fails to prove their viewpoint, they might condemn other people’s viewpoint. And by that, try to make them feel inferior. Losing & failing is a hard thing & that leads a person to do unethical things. Socrates guides you to never lose your integrity if you have lost or failed. Because slander is a tactic used by the weak.  

12). He who is not content with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.

Someone who is constantly feeling dissatisfied with whatever they have. Then they will feel the same if they receive what they want. It is in human nature that it never feels satisfied. But by this, Socrates wants to tell you that true contentment does not arise from external objects. You have to be satisfied with whatever you have. When you are not content with your current situation. Then there might be a chance that you never feel content if you achieve what you want.  

13).  Falling down is not a failure. Failure comes when you stay where you have fallen.

This quote shares that falling down is not bad. It is bad when you do not get up to work better. Try to view failure as an opportunity for growth & learning new things. The act of falling down & facing obstacles is part of your life. But when you fall down & do not try to get up, this shows the attribute of failure. Get up, work harder than you earlier did & prove that you are stronger & you can win every battle.

14). I cannot teach anybody anything. I can only make them think.

By this quote, he shares the role of a teacher. Socrates says that the teacher’s role is not only to transfer or teach something. It says that they have to make their students search for answers. Teachers have to encourage their students to think differently, outside of the box. And sometimes make them read more to find answers. With this process, they gain more knowledge & their ability to search for new things gets a push. So Socrates thinks that no one can teach you, they can just raise questions in your mind & by that you get knowledge.   

15). The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing.

This quote shares the paradoxical idea at first look. But as per Socrates, when you feel like you do not have absolute knowledge at that time, you open yourself to getting new knowledge. True wisdom recognizes the vastness of knowledge & never thinking that you acquire all knowledge. Constantly asking questions, and acknowledging your own limitation is true wisdom.  

Through these 15 quotes, we can understand Socrates’ wisdom. Here, they will help you become wiser. It is not an easy task to apply everything in a day. Try to add as per your own abilities. And by following these quotes, maybe you too can be someone great, like Socrates.