The Commandments of the Seven Sages of Greece

In Greek mythology Delphi was the site where the two eagles met, sent by Zeus from opposite locations to discover the center of the universe, the navel of the earth. Αmid the majestic landscape of Delphi, the most magnificent and most renowned temple was founded, the temple of Apollo, god of light, which became the spiritual center of the ancient world. There, a number of commandments were inscribed by the seven sages of ancient Greece, which formed a code of conduct, an enduring moral guide to last throughout the centuries. These sayings were accessible to all visitors of Delphi, and formed the legacy of the seven sages for future generations, showing them how to live a life in wisdom, succinctly expressed through the three prime commandments carved on the pediment of the temple of Apollo: “In Delphi you exist,” “Know thyself,” and “Nothing in excess.”

The Commandments of the Seven Sages of Greece from the copy of Sosiades preserved by Stobaeus are

1. Follow God
2. Obey the law 
3. Worship the Gods
4. Respect your parents 
5. Be overcome by justice 
6. Know what you have learned
7. Perceive what you have heard 
8. Know Yourself 
9. Intend to get married 
10. Know your opportunity 
11. Think as a mortal
12. If you are a stranger act like one
13. Honor the hearth/Hestia
14. Control yourself 
15. Help your friends
16. Control anger
17. Exercise prudence
18. Honor providence
19. Do not use an oath 
20. Love friendship 
21. Cling to discipline 
22. Pursue honor
23. Long for wisdom
24. Praise the Good
25. Find fault with no one
26. Praise those having grace
27. Practice what is just 
28. Be kind to friends 
29. Watch out for your enemies 
30. Exercise nobility of character 
31. Shun evil 
32. Be impartial 
33. Guard what is yours
34. Shun what belongs to others 
35. Listen to everyone
36. Be  religiously silent
37. Do a favor for a friend
38. Nothing to excess
39. Use time sparingly
40. Foresee the future
41. Despise insolence
42. Have respect for suppliants 
43. Be accommodating in everything 
44. Educate your sons
45. Give what you have 
46. Fear deceit 
47. Speak well of everyone
48. Be a seeker of wisdom 
49. Choose what is divine 
50. Act when you know 
51. Shun murder 
52. Pray for things possible
53. Consult the wise
54. Test the character
55. Give back what you have received
56. Down-look no one
57. Use your skill
58. Do what you mean to do 
59. Honor a benefaction 
60. Be jealous of no one 
61. Be on your guard
62. Praise hope
63. Despise a slanderer 
64. Gain possessions justly
65. Honor good men
66. Know the judge
67. Master wedding-feasts 
68. Recognize fortune
69. Flee a pledge
70. Choose wise 
71. Associate with your peers
72. Govern your expenses
73. Be happy with what you have
74. Rever a sense of shame
75. Fulfill a favor

76. Pray for happiness
77. Be fond of fortune 
78. Observe what you have heard
79. Work for what you can own
80. Despise strife
81. Detest disgrace
82. Restrain the tongue
83. Keep yourself from insolence
84. Make just judgements 
85. Use what you have 
86. Judge incorruptibly 
87. Accuse one who is present 
88. Tell when you know
89. Do not depend on strength
90. Live without sorrow
91. Speak with calmness 
92. Finish the race without shrinking back
93. Deal kindly with everyone 
94. Do not curse your sons
95. Rule your wife
96. Benefit yourself 
97. Be courteous
98. Give a timely response
99. Struggle with glory
100. Act without repenting 
101. Regret falling short of the mark 
102. Control the eye 
103. Give a timely counsel 
104. Act quickly
105. Guard friendship 
106. Be grateful
107. Pursue harmony
108. Keep deeply the top secret
109. Fear ruling 
110. Pursue what is profitable
111. Accept due measure
112. Do away with enmities
113. Accept old age
114. Do not boast in might
115. Exercise  silence
116. Flee enmity
117. Acquire wealth justly
118. Do not abandon honor 
119. Despise evil
120. Venture into danger prudently
121. Do not tire of learning 
122. Do not stop to be thrifty
123. Admire oracles
124. Love whom you rear
125. Do not oppose someone absent
126. Respect the elder
127. Teach the young
128. Do not trust wealth 
129. Respect yourself 
130. Do not begin to be insolent
131. Crown your ancestors
132. Die for your country
133. Do not be discontented by life 
134. Do not make fun of the dead 
135. Share the load of the unfortunate 
136. Gratify without harming 
137. Greave for no one 
138. Beget rom noble routes 
139. Make promises to no one 
140. Do not wrong the dead
141. Be well off as a mortal 
142. Do not trust fortune
143. As a child be well-behaved 
144. As a youth - self-disciplined
145. As of middle-age - just
146. As an old man - sensible
147. On reaching the end - without sorrow