Plato Biography: Plato was a renowned ancient Greek philosopher, born around 427 BCE in Athens. A student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle, he is one of the foundational figures in Western philosophy. After Socrates’ execution, Plato traveled extensively, absorbing knowledge from regions like Egypt and Italy. Upon returning to Athens, he founded the Academy, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world.

Plato’s writings, mainly in the form of dialogues, explore topics such as justice, virtue, politics, knowledge, and the nature of reality. His most famous works include "The Republic," where he outlines his vision of an ideal state ruled by philosopher-kings, and "The Symposium," which examines the nature of love. Plato introduced the Theory of Forms, suggesting that the material world is a mere shadow of a higher, unchanging reality.

Deeply influenced by Socrates, Plato’s philosophy emphasized the pursuit of truth and the importance of a just society. His legacy has endured for over two millennia, profoundly shaping philosophy, political theory, and education. Plato’s Academy continued to influence thinkers long after his death around 347 BCE, cementing his role as a timeless beacon of intellectual inquiry and philosophical thought.

We have compiled Plato's most popular quotes for you, his powerful words, on love, life, philosophy and more..

I hope you like it... have a good reads.

Top 100 Plato Quotes: On Love, Knowledge, Politics, Life, Existence, Knowledge, Wisdom, Virtue, Ethics, Edication

-Plato Quotes On Love:

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

"Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back."

"At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet."

"The madness of love is the greatest of heaven’s blessings."

"Love is simply the name for the desire and pursuit of the whole."

"Love is the joy of the good, the wonder of the wise, the amazement of the Gods."

"Love is a serious mental disease."

"To love rightly is to love what is orderly and beautiful in an educated and disciplined way."

- Plato Quotes On Knowledge and Wisdom:

"Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge."

"Ignorance, the root and stem of all evil."

"A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers."

"Opinion is the medium between knowledge and ignorance."

"Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself."

"Knowledge becomes evil if the aim be not virtuous."

"Knowledge is the food of the soul."

"Time is the moving image of eternity."

"Learning is remembering."

"We do not learn; and what we call learning is only a process of recollection."

"The true lover of knowledge is always striving after being."

"Wisdom alone is the science of other sciences."

"Philosophy begins in wonder."

"Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind."

"Reason is the natural order of truth; but imagination is the organ of meaning."

"Knowledge is true opinion tied down by reason."

- Plato Quotes On Life and Existence:

"The greatest wealth is to live content with little."

"The beginning is the most important part of the work."

"The soul takes nothing with her to the next world but her education and her culture."

"The soul of man is immortal and imperishable."

"Excellence is not a gift, but a skill that takes practice."

"Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder."

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything."

"Reality is created by the mind; we can change our reality by changing our mind."

"The art of living well and the art of dying well are one."

"The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled."

"An empty vessel makes the loudest sound."

"The unexamined life is not worth living."

"All men are by nature equal, made all of the same earth by one Workman."

"Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star."

"Nothing beautiful without struggle."

**
- Plato Quotes On Justice and Morality:**

"He who commits injustice is ever made more wretched than he who suffers it."

"You should not honor men more than truth."

"The measure of a man is what he does with power."

"Justice means minding your own business and not meddling with other men's concerns."

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

"The worst form of injustice is pretended justice."

"Good actions give strength to ourselves and inspire good actions in others."

"Good conduct arises out of good character."

"Justice is having and doing what is one’s own."

"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil."

"Excess generally causes reaction, and produces a change in the opposite direction."

"The greatest victory is over self."

- Plato Quotes On Politics and Society:

"Those who tell the stories rule society."

"The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men."

"The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men."

"He who refuses to rule is liable to be ruled by one who is worse than himself."

"Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber."

"A state that is not governed by the rule of law is a state of tyranny."

"Rhetoric is the art of ruling the minds of men."

"No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth."

"Ignorance is the mother of all evils."

"An army of deer led by a lion is more to be feared than an army of lions led by a deer."

- Plato Quotes On Education:

"Education is teaching our children to desire the right things."

"The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future life."

"Education must begin with the practical and end with the theoretical."

"The object of education is to teach us to love what is beautiful."

- Plato Quotes On Courage and Strength:

"Courage is knowing what not to fear."

"We are twice armed if we fight with faith."

"The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself."

"He who lives well is twice blessed; first by nature, then by nurture."

"Bodily exercise, when compulsory, does no harm to the body; but knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind."

"A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is found among a thousand, but an accomplished one might not be found even among a hundred thousand men."

Plato Quotes On Virtue and Ethics:

"Virtue is a kind of health, beauty and good habit of the soul."

"Virtue is relative to the actions and ages of each of us in all that we do."

"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws."

"Excess of liberty, whether it lies in state or individuals, seems only to pass into excess of slavery."

"Honesty is for the most part less profitable than dishonesty."

"The soul that has been illuminated with the love of wisdom is most divine."

- Plato Quotes On Truth and Falsehood:

"Poetry is nearer to vital truth than history."

"You should not honor men more than truth."

"No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth."

"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil."

"He who steals a little steals with the same wish as he who steals much, but with less power."