Lucian

Lucian (c. 120 - c. 200) was a Greek writer, born in Samosata in Commagene, in Syria, and called himself a Syrian. The exact dates of birth and death are unknown, but it is probable that he was born not long before the year 125 and died not long after 180. We know of his life-history primarily through his own writings, notably the Dream, the Doubly Indicted, the Fisher, and the Apology.

He travelled much in his youth, acquired a cynical view of the world, and gave himself to ridicule the philosophical sects and the pagan mythology. His principal writings consist of "Dialogues," of which the "Dialogues of the Dead" are the best known, the subject being one affording him scope for exposing the vanity of human pursuits. He was an out and out sceptic, found nothing worthy of reverence in heaven or on earth.

Wisdom & Quotes

• The wealth of the soul is the only true wealth.

- Dialogues

• Criticism is twofold: that which teaches us what we are to choose, and that which teaches us what to avoid.
• In history, nothing fabulous can be agreeable.
• Everything has a beauty peculiar to itself; but if you put one instead of another, the most beautiful becomes ugly, because it is not in its proper place.
• The good historian, then, must be thus described: he must be fearless, uncorrupted, free, the friend of truth and of liberty; one who, to use the words of the comic poet, calls a fig a fig, and a skiff a skiff, neither giving nor withholding from any, from favour or from enmity, not influenced by pity, by shame, or by remorse; a just judge, so far benevolent to all as never to give more than is due to any in his work; a stranger to all, of no country, bound only by his own laws, acknowledging no sovereign, never considering what this or that man may say of him, but relating faithfully everything as it happened.
• Ignorance is a dreadful thing and has caused no end of damage to the human race.
• Human life is under the absolute dominion of two mighty principles, fear and hope, and that any one who can make these serve his ends may be sure of rapid fortune.
• Dreams are great magicians.
• A monkey is always a monkey," says the proverb, "even if he has birth-tokens of gold." Although you have a book in your hand and read all the time, you do not under­stand a single thing that you read, but you are like the donkey that listens to the lyre and wags his ears.

If possessing books made their owner learned, they would indeed be a possession of great price, and only rich men like you would have them, since you could buy them at auction, as it were, outbidding us poor men. In that case, however, who could rival the dealers and booksellers for learning, who possess and sell so many books ? But if you care to look into the matter, you will see that they are not much superior to you in that point; they are barbarous of speech and obtuse in mind like you—just what one would expect people to be who have no conception of what is good and bad. Yet you have only two or three books which they themselves have sold you, while they handle books night and day.

Antoninus