Xenophanes Quotes

Greek Pre-Socratic philosopher (c.570–c.478 BC)

Xenophanes of Colophon (Greek Ξενοφάνης ὁ Κολοφώνιος, Xenophánes; 570 – 480 BC) was a Greek philosopher, poet, and social and religious critic. Our knowledge of his views comes from his surviving poetry, all of which are fragments passed down as quotations by later Greek writers.

From: Wikiquote (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Native Name: Ξενοφάνης ὁ Κολοφώνιος

Alternative Names: Xenophanes of Colophon

From Wikidata (CC0)

ἀλλ᾽οἱ βροτοὶ δοκέουσι γεννᾶσθαι θεοὺς,
τὴν σφετέρην δ᾽ἐσθῆτα ἔχειν φωνήν τε δέμας τε.

The truth is that no man ever was or will be
who understands the gods and all I speak of.
If you stumble on some rocks of the whole truth
you never know it. There is always speculation.

Everything comes from the earth,
and everything ends in the earth.

I am Xenophanes! I AM GOD!

There is one God, supreme among gods and men,
who is like mortals in neither body nor mind.

1
Man made his gods, and furnished them
with his own body, voice, and garments.

2
If a horse or lion or a slow ox
had agile hands for paint and sculpture,
the horse would make his god a horse,
the ox would sculpt an ox.

3
Our gods have flat noses and black skins
say the Ethiopians. The Thracians say
our gods have red hair and hazel eyes.

But if horses or cattle or lions had hands, or were able to draw with their hands and do the works that men can do, horses would draw the forms of the gods like horses, and cattle like cattle, and they would make their bodies such as they had themselves.

One day a dog was being thrashed in the street,
and behold, Pythagoras, philosopher of spirits,
was walking by.
His heart was in his mouth
for the poor pup.
'Stop! Stop!' he cried.
'Don't beat him any more.
This is my dear friend's soul.
I recognize the voice when I hear him bark.

Whom they call Iris is also a raincloud
that we see as purple, scarlet and green.