The 70 Best Famous Phrases of Hippocrates

Hippocrates (Cos, c. 460 BC-Thessaly c. 370 BC) is possibly the most famous doctor of Ancient Greece, and in fact is considered the father of Medicine.

This researcher is the one who devised the theory of the four humors that later influenced many other great historical figures such as Galen or even Alfred Adler.

In this article we will see a selection of the best phrases of Hippocrates to better understand the thought of this researcher from Classical Greece, and what his vision of life and the human body was.

The best phrases of Hippocrates

By reviewing these phrases from Hippocrates it is easy to understand the way in which health and medicine were conceived in the times of Ancient Greece Many of them only make sense from the culture of the Hellenes, while others could be applicable today.

1. Life is short, art is long, opportunity is fleeting, experience is deceptive and judgment is difficult.

An aphorism that covers many of the topics that Greek intellectuals dealt with in the time of Pericles: the finitude of life, the ability of art to make us transcend, and the complexity of reaching true knowledge.

2. Let food be your nourishment and food be your medicine

The simplest way to be healthy is to stay healthy through good habits, such as eating well.

3. Declare the past, diagnose the present, predict the future. Practice these acts.

A proto-scientific vision of the past, present and future.

4. Today’s young people do not seem to have any respect for the past or any hope for the future.

One of Hippocrates’ phrases referring to the social situation of his time, at least as far as the youngest are concerned.

5. The human soul develops until the moment of death

These ideas are a precedent for Developmental Psychology.

6. Neither society, nor man, nor anything else must exceed the limits established by nature to be good.

An essentialist vision of nature, which identifies it with the concept of “good”.

7. There is a common circulation, a common respiration. All things are related.

As a doctor, Hippocrates was interested in delineating the normal functioning of the human body.

8. War is the surgeon’s best school.

One of Hippocrates’ phrases about the contexts in which you can learn as a doctor.

9. In fact, there are two things, science and opinion. The former begets knowledge, the latter ignorance.

Distinguishing between valid knowledge and simple beliefs.

10. I will not give poison to anyone even if they ask me to, nor will I suggest such a possibility.

About a very current topic: euthanasia.

11. Silence is not only not thirsty, but it never brings pain or sadness.

One of Hippocrates’ most abstract reflections, on the nature of silence.

12. Some patients, although aware that their condition is dangerous, recover their health simply because of their satisfaction with the doctor’s kindness.

About the human and emotional component that often has therapeutic applications.

13. The natural force within each of us is the greatest healer of all.

Hippocrates believed that the body itself has the tendency to return to balance characterized as good health.

14. What is used, is developed. What is not used is wasted.

This reflection is reminiscent of Lamarck’s ideas that would emerge strongly in the scientific field two millennia after Hippocrates.

15. The patient must fight the disease together with the doctor.

A joint effort in which everyone does their part.

16. Walking is a man’s best medicine.

Moving exercises the muscles and promotes metabolism, something that has a positive impact on health.

17. The heart and the diaphragm are particularly sensitive, however, they have nothing to do with the operations of the understanding, because the brain is the cause of all this.

For a long time, the inhabitants of Hellas Greece believed that reason emerged from the heart, and not from the brain; Hippocrates questioned this idea.

18. Anyone who wishes to study medicine must master the art of massage.

One of the facets of medical therapy, according to Hippocrates.

19. He who wants to be a surgeon should go to war.

Once again, speaking about a context in which there are naturally many patients to care for.

20. When you are sick, look at your spine first.

A wise observation, given that the spine is one of the fundamental pillars of life in human beings.

21. An insolent response from a polite person is a bad sign.

In this advice, Hippocrates talks about personal relationships and how to navigate them.

22. Heals sometimes, treats often, always consoles.

A professional maxim that is easy to memorize and simple to apply.

23. Many admire, few know.

Beyond the surprise, we can do something to understand or know how what we admire is possible or how it is done.

24. We must turn to nature itself, to observations of the body in health and disease, to learn the truth.

In nature, Hippocrates sees a model of what is perfect, what should be.

25. Diseases do not come to us from nowhere. They develop from small daily sins against Nature. When enough sins have accumulated, illnesses will suddenly appear.

A moralistic vision about the disease.

26. Practice actions that bring you closer to the future

Hippocrates invites us to know what will happen by analyzing the present and the past.

27. If someone wants good health, he must first ask himself if he is ready to eliminate the reasons for his illness. Only then is it possible to help you.

There is no point in curing yourself if you maintain the habits that return us to the disease.

28. Rest as soon as there is pain

Pain is the first sign that something is wrong in the human body.

29. The elderly have fewer illnesses than the young, but their illnesses never leave them.

A paradox about health and age.

30. Divine is the task of relieving pain.

Hippocrates, as a physician, once again focuses attention on the importance of the sensation of pain.

31. Men should know that from the brain and only from the brain, our pleasures, joys, laughter and jokes arise, as well as our sadness, pain, sadness and tears… It is the same thing that makes us crazy or delirious, it inspires fear and fear in us. , whether at night or day, brings us insomnia, untimely mistakes, meaningless anxieties, distractions and acts that are contrary to custom…

Once again, pointing out the revolutionary idea that the brain is very involved in psychological tasks, more so than the heart.

32. Where there is love for medicine, there is love for humanity

A feature that distinguishes advanced societies.

33. The best medicine of all is teaching people how not to need it.

Prevention, the great virtue we can learn.

34. The soul is the same in all living creatures, although each one’s body is different

His animistic conception of the human being.

35. Time is that in which there is opportunity, and opportunity is that in which there is no great moment

Philosophical phrase of the great Hippocrates.

36. The way to health is to take an aromatic bath and a scented massage every day

A way of saying that well-being gives us health and prosperity.

37. If you are not your own doctor, you are a fool.

Not knowing our own body is the first step towards poor health.

38. Sport preserves health

Practicing physical exercise is a great idea if we want to improve our health.

39. The doctor treats, but nature heals

Great aphorism of Hippocrates.

40. The wise man should consider health to be the greatest human blessing

Of course, without health there is no well-being or goals.

41. A fool is the doctor who despises the knowledge acquired by the ancients

All scientific background must be valued and taken into consideration.

42. The doctor must have a certain ingenuity at his disposal, since the disease is repulsive to both the healthy and the sick

It is not enough to just follow a manual.

43. Make a habit of two things: helping; or at least do no harm

Live and let live.

44. It is better not to apply any treatment in cases of hidden cancer; because if treated (through surgery), patients die quickly; but if they are not treated, they remain for a long time

In his time, surgical intervention could trigger infections and even worse problems.

45. It is much more important to know which person has the disease than what disease the person has

Each organism is unique, and can give us many clues about why a specific pathology has nested there.

46. ​​Study the spine well, since many diseases are related to the spine

He wasn’t wrong.

47. Prayer, indeed, is good, but in invoking the gods, a man should lend a hand

To reflect.

48. Science is the mother of knowledge, but opinion breeds ignorance

Opinions are often riddled with prejudices, clichés and utter ignorance.

49. Things that are holy are revealed only to men who are holy…

Another person couldn’t value it.

50. Healing is a matter of time, but sometimes it is also a matter of opportunity

On how to intervene on a pathology.

51. Idleness and lack of employment tend to be dragged towards evil

Not having a job or profit is usually not a good thing for anyone.

52. The fever of the disease is caused by the body itself. That of love, the other’s body

Good reflection on romantic passion.

53. Everything in excess opposes nature

The poison is in the dose.

54. The function of protecting and developing health should be even greater than that of restoring it when it is deteriorated

Prevention over intervention.

55. We must turn to nature itself, to observations of the body in health and illness, to learn the truth

The human body hides many truths about life and well-being.

56. Medicine is the noblest of all Arts; but, owing to the ignorance of those who practice it, and of those who thoughtlessly form a judgment upon it, it is now behind all the arts.

His consideration of the science of medicine.

57. The main virtue that language can have is clarity, and nothing detracts from it as much as the use of unknown words

He opted for practicality in language.

58. Nature works without teachers

Hippocrates knew the perfect order of nature.

59. Men think that epilepsy is divine, simply because they do not understand it. Someday we will understand what causes it and then we will stop calling it divine. And so it is with everything in the universe

He couldn’t have been more correct with this reflection.

60. Illnesses do not come to us from nowhere. They develop from small daily sins against Nature. When enough sins have accumulated, diseases will suddenly appear

Bad habits create the perfect sediment for diseases.

61. Life is so short, and art is so long to learn

Certainly, there are disciplines that not even an entire life can cover.

62. The forms of diseases are many and the cure for them is multiple

There is no perfect formula for each pathology.

63. Knowing really is science; Just believing you know is ignorance.

Personal experience is not science.

64. What medicines do not heal, iron cures; what iron does not cure, fire cures; what fire does not heal should be considered incurable

A maxim with a metaphorical aspect.

65. Wine is a suitable article for humanity, both for the healthy body and for the sick man

Everything has its application, as long as it is in moderation.

66. Young people today do not seem to have any respect for the past or any hope for the future

Describing the mentality of young people.

67. And he who has foreseen what will happen from the current state of the body administers the remedy best.

A good doctor must have this tact.

68. Doctors are many in the title, but very few in reality

Those who really have a vocation are a small percentage of the total.

69. Who could have predicted, from the structure of the brain, that wine could alter its functions?

Alcohol certainly changes the neurochemical balance of our brain.

70. Opposites are cures for opposites

Normally, the antidote is usually part of the poison.