"Fortune is lavish with her favors, but not to be depended on. Nature on the other hand is self-sufficing, and therefore with her feebler but trustworthy she wins the greater of hope."

Democritus Philosophy See all quotes by Democritus →

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More by Democritus

“[I would] rather discover one cause than gain the kingdom of Persia.”

“Man is a universe in little [Microcosm].”

“We know nothing accurately in reality, but [only] as it changes according to the bodily condition, and the constitution of those things that flow upon [the body] and impinge upon it.”

“Democritus in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy”

“The animal needing something knows how much it needs, the man does not.”

“The man who is fortunate in his choice of son-in-law gains a son; the man unfortunate in his choice loses his daughter also.”

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