“Number is the ruler of forms and ideas, and the cause of gods and daemons.”
As quoted in Life of Pythagoras (c. 300) by Iamblichus of Chalcis, as translated by Thomas Taylor (1818)
Variants:
Number rules the universe.
As quoted in The Story of a Number (1905) by E. Maor; also in Comic Sections (1993) by Desmond MacHale
“Man know thyself; then thou shalt know the Universe and God.”
As quoted in Fragments of Reality: Daily Entries of Lived Life (2006) by Peter Cajander, p. 109
"Pythagorean Ethical Sentences From Stobæus" (1904)
Florilegium
As quoted in Divine Harmony: The Life and Teachings of Pythagoras by John Strohmeier and Peter Westbrook. (1999)
The Golden Verses
As quoted in Divine Harmony: The Life and Teachings of Pythagoras by John Strohmeier and Peter Westbrook. (1999)
The Golden Verses
“In this theater of man's life it is reserved only for God and angels to be lookers on.”
Francis Bacon, in The Advancement of Learning (1605) Book II, xx, 8.
Misattributed
As quoted in A Dictionary of Thoughts: Being a Cyclopedia of Laconic Quotations from the Best Authors of the World, both Ancient and Modern (1908) by Tyron Edwards, p. 592
“There are men and gods, and beings like Pythagoras.”
Of himself, as quoted in A History of Western Philosophy (1945) by Bertrand Russell
“Above and before all things, worship GOD!”
As quoted in The Sayings of the Wise: Or, Food for Thought: A Book of Moral Wisdom, Gathered from the Ancient Philosophers (1555) by William Baldwin [1908 edition]
Variant translation: Honor first the immortal gods, in the manner prescribed, and respect the oath.
Next, honor the reverent heroes and the spirits of the dead by making the traditional sacrifices.
Honor your parents and your relatives. As for others, befriend whoever excels in virtue.
Yield to kind words and helpful deeds, and do not hate your friend for a trifling fault as you are able. For ability is near to necessity.
As quoted in Divine Harmony: The Life and Teachings of Pythagoras by John Strohmeier and Peter Westbrook. (1999) ISBN 0-9653774-5-8
The Golden Verses