THE Wit And Wisdom Of Alexander

 

                 THE Wit And Wisdom Of Alexander

          A few selected quotations which follow show the wit and wisdom of Alexander both as a man and warrior.  They are considerably philosophical and show the influence of his teacher Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) who was one of the distinguished philosophers of his time.  It is noteworthy that his philosophy of statecraft is unlikely to become obsolete for centuries to come.

            The first quotation in our list i.e. “I am indebted to my father for living, but to my teacher for living well.” Is a tribute to Aristotle.

1. There is nothing impossible to him who will try.

 2. Upon the conduct of each depends the fate of all.

3. But truly, if I were not Alexander, I would be Diogenes. (Diogenes, who was a Greek cynic philosopher was born in 412 0r 404 BC and died in 323 BC in Corinth, Greece).

 

4. Through every generation of the human race, there has been a constant war, a war with fear.  Those who have the courage to conquer it are made free and those who are conquered by it are made to suffer until they have the courage to defeat it, or death takes them.

5. An army of sheep led by a lion is better than an army of lions led by sheep.

6. For me every virtuous foreigner is a Greek and every evil Greek worse than a Barbarian.

7. A king does not kill messengers.

8. A tomb now suffices him for whom the world was not enough.

9. We of Macedon for generations past have been trained in the hard school of danger and war.

10. My treasure lies in my friends.

11. Glory crowns the deeds of those who expose themselves to toils and dangers.

12. Each moment free from fear makes a man immortal.

13. When we give someone our time, we actually give a portion of our life that we will never take back.

14. As for a limit to one’s labors, I for one do not recognize for a high-minded man, except that the labors themselves should lead to noble accomplishments.

15. There are no more worlds to conquer.