The Delphic maxims are a set of moral precepts that were inscribed on the Temple of Apollo in the ancient Greek precinct of Delphi. The three best known maxims – "Know thyself", "Nothing in excess", and "Surety is ruin" – were prominently located at the entrance to the temple, and were traditionally said to have been authored by the legendary Seven Sages of Greece, or even by Apollo. In fact, they are more likely to have simply been popular proverbs. Each maxim has a long history of interpretation, although the third of the set has received comparatively little attention.
A further 147 maxims, documented by Stobaeus in the 5th century AD, were also located somewhere in the vicinity of the temple. The antiquity and authenticity of these maxims was once in doubt, but recent archaeological discoveries have confirmed that some of the sayings quoted by Stobaeus were current as early as the 3rd century BCE.
Entrance maxims Three maxims are known to have been inscribed on the Temple of Apollo at Delphi at least as early as the 5th century BCE, and possibly earlier. These inscriptions are routinely referenced and discussed by ancient authors; Plato, for example, mentions them in six of his dialogues. Their exact location is uncertain; they are variously stated to have been on the wall of the pronaos (forecourt), on a column, on a doorpost, on the temple front, or on the propylaea (gateway).
Although the temple was destroyed and rebuilt several times over the years, the maxims appear to have persisted into the Roman era (1st century AD), at which time, according to Pliny the Elder, they were written in letters of gold.
The maxims are as follows: No.GreekRomanized transliterationEnglish001 (or )Know thyself002Nothing in excess003Give a pledge and trouble is at hand
These sayings were traditionally said to have originated with the Seven Sages, a legendary group of philosophers and statesmen who flourished in the 6th century BCE. The first known reference to the Seven Sages is in Plato's Protagoras, where they are said to have collectively authored the first two maxims. The names of the sages are given by Plato as Thales, Pittacus, Bias, Solon, Cleobulus, Myson and Chilon; but in the works of later writers, some of these names are dropped and others added in their place. Each of the maxims was often attributed to a particular sage, and some authors, such as Demetrius of Phalerum, assigned additional sayings to the four remaining sages. There was no general agreement over which maxim belonged to which sage, but "Know thyself" was most commonly attributed to Chilon.
Another popular theory held that the maxims were first spoken by the Delphic oracle, and therefore represented the wisdom of the god Apollo. Clearchus of Soli, among others, attempted to reconcile the two accounts by claiming that Chilon, enquiring of the oracle what was best to be learnt, received the answer "Know thyself", and subsequently adopted the maxim as his own. In all likelihood, however, the sayings were simply common proverbs of much earlier date, which gained a new significance from their prominent position on the temple.
First maxim
The first maxim, "know thyself", has been called "by far the most significant of the three maxims, both in ancient and modern times". In its earliest appearances in ancient literature, it was interpreted to mean that one should understand one's limitations and know one's place in the social scale. The first application of the phrase to self-knowledge in the modern sense occurs in Plato's Phaedrus, in which Socrates says that he has no leisure to investigate the truth behind common mythological beliefs while he has not yet discovered the truth about his own nature. Many authors throughout history have considered knowledge of the self to involve knowledge of other people, knowledge of the universe, and/or knowledge of God; consequently, alongside its metaphysical, self-reflexive sense, the maxim has been applied in a host of different ways to problems of science, ethics, and theology.
Second maxim In ancient Greece, the maxim "nothing too much" was only rarely understood to mean that one should place limits on one's physical appetites, being far more commonly invoked as a reminder to avoid excessive emotion, particularly excessive grief. It was also quoted by ancient authors as a warning against pride, and considering its placement at the entrance to the temple, it may have been intended to convey that "man is not to exalt himself even in his piety"; in other words, that one should not make lavish sacrifices to the gods, but should humbly give what one can spare.
The maxim has been said to have received its "ultimate expression" in Aristotle's theory of ethics, according to which every classical virtue occupies a middle place between the two extremes of excess and deficiency. It is uncertain, however, whether the maxim was a direct influence on Aristotle, as it is not explicitly referenced in his Nicomachean Ethics (although it does occur twice in another of his works, the Rhetoric). Several other phrases of similar import were current among Greek writers, such as "The half is more than the whole" and "Due measure is best", both of which are found in Hesiod's Works and Days ().
Interest in "nothing too much" dropped off during the medieval era, but it was frequently cited in the literature of the 16th and 17th centuries (often in its Latin form, ne quid nimis). From this time onward, the rule of moderation enjoined by the maxim has been more frequently applied to physical pleasures than to emotional states. In John Milton's Paradise Lost, for example, the archangel Michael advises Adam to "observe the rule of not too much ... in what thou eat'st and drink'st, seeking from thence due nourishment, not gluttonous delight".
Some authors, such as 16th-century humanist Sperone Speroni, have criticized the maxim for its apparent endorsement of mediocrity. Such criticism may be traced back as far as Pindar (5th century BCE), who claimed that the philosophers of his day were excessive in their praise of the Delphic saying. Similarly, 20th‑century essayist Paul Elmer More has argued that a too-rigorous adherence to the principle of moderation may have been the downfall of ancient Greek civilization.
Third maxim The third maxim, "give a pledge and trouble is at hand", has been variously interpreted. The Greek word , here translated "pledge", can mean either (a) surety given for a loan; (b) a binding oath given during a marriage ceremony; or (c) a strong affirmation of any kind. Accordingly, the maxim may be a warning against any one of these things.
The correct interpretation of the maxim was being debated as early as the 1st century BCE, when Diodorus Siculus discussed the question in his Bibliotheca historica. In Plutarch's Septem sapientium convivium, the ambiguity of the phrase is said to have "kept many from marrying, and many from trusting, and some even from speaking". Diogenes Laërtius (3rd century AD) also makes reference to the maxim in his account of the life of Pyrrho, the founder of Pyrrhonism. Exploring the origins of the Pyrrhonean doctrine of philosophical skepticism, Diogenes claims that the Delphic maxims are skeptical in nature, and interprets the third maxim to mean: "Trouble attends him who affirms anything in strong terms and confidently".
Analysing the various appearances of the maxim in Greek literature, Eliza Wilkins finds the opinion of the ancient authors on the meaning of split between the two rival interpretations of "commit yourself emphatically" and "become surety". Among Latin authors, however, the maxim is universally interpreted in the latter sense, as advice against giving surety.
147 maxims of Stobaeus In the 5th-century-AD anthology of Stobaeus, there is a list of a further 147 maxims attributed to the Seven Sages of Greece.
+No.GreekRomanized transliterationEnglish001Follow the gods002Obey the law003Worship the gods004Respect your parents005Be overcome by justice006Know what you have learned 007Perceive what you have heard008Be yourself009Intend to get married010Know your opportunity011Think as a mortal012If you are a stranger act like one013Honour the hearth (or Hestia)014Control yourself015Help your friends016Control anger017Exercise prudence018Honour providence019Do not use an oath020Love friendship021Cling to discipline022Pursue honour023Long for wisdom024Praise the good025Find fault with no one026Praise virtue027Practice what is just028Be kind to your friends029Watch out for your enemies030Exercise nobility of character031Shun evil032Be sociable033Guard what is yours034Shun what belongs to others035Listen to everyone036Be (religiously) silent037Do a favour for a friend038Nothing to excess039Use time sparingly040Foresee the future041Despise insolence042Have respect for suppliants043Be accommodated in everything044Educate your sons045Give what you have046Fear deceit047Speak well of everyone048Be a seeker of wisdom049Choose what is divine050Act when you know051Shun murder052Pray for things possible053Consult the wise054Test the character055Give back what you have received056Look down on no one057Use your skill058Do what you mean to do059Honour a benefaction060Be jealous of no one061Be on your guard062Praise hope063Despise a slanderer064Gain possessions justly065Honour good men066Know the judge067Master wedding-feasts068Recognize fortune069Flee a pledge070Speak plainly071Associate with your peers072Govern your expenses073Be happy with what you have074Revere a sense of shame075Fulfill a favour076Pray for happiness077Be fond of fortune078Observe what you have heard079Work for what you can own080Despise strife081Detest disgrace082Restrain the tongue083Keep yourself from insolence084Make just judgements085Use what you have086Judge incorruptibly087Accuse one who is present088Tell when you know089Do not depend on strength090Live without sorrow091Live together meekly092Finish the race without shrinking back093Deal kindly with everyone094Do not curse your sons095Rule your wife096Benefit yourself097Be courteous098Give a timely response099Struggle with glory100Act without repenting101Repent of sins102Control the eye103Give a timely counsel104Act quickly105Guard friendship106Be grateful107Pursue harmony108Keep deeply the top secret109Fear ruling110Pursue what is profitable111Accept due measure112Do away with enmities113Accept old age114Do not boast in might115Exercise (religious) silence116Flee enmity117Acquire wealth justly118Do not abandon honour119Despise evil120Venture into danger prudently121Do not tire of learning122Do not stop to be thrifty123Admire oracles124Love whom you rear125Do not oppose someone absent126Respect an elder127Teach a youngster128Do not trust wealth129Respect yourself130Do not begin to be insolent131Crown your ancestors132Die for your country133Do not be discontented by life134Do not make fun of the dead135Share the load of the unfortunate136Gratify without harming137Grieve for no one138Beget from noble routes139Make promises to no one140Do not wrong the dead141Be well off as a mortal142Do not trust fortune143As a child be well-behaved144As a youth—self-disciplined145As of middle-aged—just146As an old man—sensible147On reaching the end—without sorrow
Archaeological evidence Stobaeus cites a certain Sosiades as his source, but the identity of Sosiades is unknown, and it was once thought that this collection of maxims was of no great antiquity. In 1901, however, a parallel collection was discovered at Miletopolis in modern-day Turkey, inscribed on a stele dating from the 3rd or 4th century BCE. The stele is broken in two places; the surviving portion carries a list of 56 maxims which closely correspond to those given by Stobaeus, and it is probable that the original text contained all 147.