“There is a scale of virtues, and it is necessary, if one would mount the higher steps, to begin with the lowest; and the first virtue a man must acquire if he wishes to acquire the others, is that which the ancients called ἐγκράτεια or σωφροσύνη”

— Leo Tolstoy

i.e., self-control or moderation.
Source: The First Step (1892), Ch. VIII

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Leo Tolstoy 456

Russian writer 1828–1910

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“There is a scale of virtues, and it is necessary, if one would mount the higher steps, to begin with the lowest; and the first virtue a man must acquire if he wishes to acquire the others, is that which the ancients called ἐγκράτεια or σωφροσύνη”

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Leo Tolstoy 456

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