Julius Caesar (full name: Gaius Julius Caesar) was reportedly born on 12 or 13 July 100 BCE in Rome, Italy, and died on March 15 (74th day in the Roman Calendar; The Ides of March), 44 BCE in Rome, Italy. He was a powerful Roman ruler, general, and statesman. He conquered Gaul's region through his military prowess (58-50 BCE), was victorious in the civil war of the period from 49-45 BCE, and served as a dictator from 46-44 BCE.
He introduced several reforms during his reign as a dictator when he was assassinated by a group of nobles (Roman politicians), who were threatened by his growing power and influence over the masses (Rome's lower and middle classes). They were afraid that he might become the king.
His father had the same name and his mother Aurelia Cotta came from an influential family. His father's sudden demise in 85 BCE made him the head of his family at the age of 16. He traced his bloodline and found it to have noble origins. He claimed that his ancestors were the Trojan prince Aeneas (probably the son of the Goddess Venus) and his son Julus.
He played a significant role in the events that led to the Roman Empire's rise and the Roman Republic's decline. He became the dictator of Rome in 46 BCE (for ten years). During his reign, he introduced several policies favouring the lower and middle-class people such as the reduction of government debt, distribution of subsidized grains and its regulation, support to the military, etc.
He established the Julian calendar in replacement of the Roman Republican Calendar. During his lifetime, the Roman month in which he was born was renamed "July" in his honour. His assassination was led by Gaius Cassius Longinus and Marcus Junius Brutus along with several other co-conspirators. He was stabbed to death in 44 BCE. This tragic event made him a martyr in the people's eyes and resulted in another series of civil wars which further led to the Roman Republic's complete decline.
Here are some of the famous quotes of Julius Caesar.
Experience is the teacher of all things.
How many of us learnt to ride a bicycle in our childhood without actually going out? Children who start to learn cycling, fall many times before they become good at it. Several kids never learn how to ride a bike because of the fear of falling. They should be reminded of the above-mentioned quote. It is no doubt a fact that one cannot learn how to do a thing properly until he/she does not perform an activity.
We all would be experts at all things if we could gain mastery over a skill just by imagining about it. In reality, we need to practice and practice before we can claim that we are good at something.
Life teaches us innumerable priceless lessons in its ways, and that continues to increase as we grow older. These lessons give us the experience of all types of things - good and bad, happy and sad. These experiences make us wise and mature as we grow old and take on the responsibilities in life.
This is the reason behind putting pressure on the education system to promote experiential learning in classrooms rather than teaching concepts theoretically. Children who learn the concepts via experiments and activities understand the concepts better and do not just memorize them. This ensures proper learning from a young age when a child's grasping power is the strongest. Some of the best lessons are learnt by experiencing them in real life. Such lessons are not taught at any educational institutions, and these lessons prepare us for real life.
A good chef cooks almost a thousand times before he/she can perfect a dish, and the case is similar to anyone and everyone. We improve after gaining deep insights from various experiences in life.
It is better to create than to learn! Creating is the essence of life.
This quote talks about the magnificent act of creation. If someone believes in God, then he/she believes that he created the world we live in along with all the living and non-living things. We also say that we all are Mother Nature's creation. Hence, we cannot deny that the act of creating something indeed holds great importance in people's eyes.
However, we must always think about the end product's pros and cons before glorifying it. Since Julius Caesar was a powerful ruler, he would have wished to perform all the supreme deeds and be a ruler known for his victories and creations. Hence, he has emphasized that it is better to create something and own it rather than learn it from someone else. Today some people might disagree with his view, as one must strive not only towards being great but also towards becoming a better version of oneself: a more compassionate person and not just a person who chases his dreams without thinking about others. Hence, it is better to create and learn until it is for the greater good.
It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.
We can find several people in our lives who can say highly melodramatic dialogues of dying for us, but there are only a few souls who would assure us that they are by our side till their last breath. This quote tells us about a similar situation where men find it easier to die than facing life's hardships. One needs to persevere in tackling hardships and obstacles in their path. One needs to be patient and keep moving forward with hope and faith in their goals. It is easy to die, but life is so precious that one must not give up and keep on trying till he/she does not find the light at the end of the tunnel.
If you must break the law, do it to seize power: in all other cases observe it.
Julius Caesar was a Roman ruler who won several wars to occupy territories and expand his area of control. Hence, most of his sayings describe war scenarios and their insights. In this quote, he mentions the fact that one must always obey the laws for the betterment of society. If a need arises to break the law for some reason, it must only be done to seize power. People can infer different meanings of this quote. I would mention that laws that are broken should only be broken if the existing laws violate human rights or do any harm to them such that justice is not served. Otherwise violating laws (for personal interests) to seize power is not in favour of the masses and should not be done.
I came, I saw, I conquered.
The powerful Roman ruler spoke the phrase "I came, I saw, I conquered" (Latin - Veni, vidi, vici) on his great win in a short war against Pharnaces II of Pontus at the Battle of Zela. It describes Caesar's confidence and power after winning a battle. Nowadays, it is used popularly in situations, where a person achieved something easily and quickly and then proudly declares his or her victory.
As a rule, men worry more about what they can't see than about what they can.
This quote describes the human nature of wasting time while worrying about the future and its uncertainties. Man forgets to focus on the present that he still has and essentially needs to focus on. A person spends half his life worrying about things that are not in his control rather than trying to work towards improving his skills and abilities so that he is equipped to face any challenge that may come his way in the future.
What we wish, we readily believe, and what we ourselves think, we imagine others think also.
This quote is self-explanatory in the sense that it mentions another set of qualities of the human mind. The human mind is man's strongest asset if used correctly. We should neither be pessimistic nor too optimistic. A balance is needed between the levels of these contrasting energies so that our mind functions in a way that it is neither losing hope nor living only on false hope. We strongly believe in things that we wish would happen to us, and there is nothing wrong with it. It is just that we must not only wish but also work towards fulfilling them. Humans often believe in that every human's perspective and thoughts on different things would match with their thoughts and feelings; which are not true.
No one is so brave that he is not disturbed by something unexpected.
This is a quote that describes an aspect of human nature. We all are social beings with compassionate hearts that can empathize with others in moments of sadness or misfortune. The quote describes that human response to unexpected events is huge. Any unexpected event is bound to affect humans in ways not known by them.
Cowards die many times before their actual deaths.
Fear is the greatest obstacle in anyone's path. If a person conquers his fears, then there is nothing in this world that he cannot achieve. In case, he is unable to do so, then he has to lead a life clouded by his fears, and in this way, he lives a life of unrealized potential and dreams. This is similar to dying every day, and this is what the quote talks about. Being too fearful reaps no fruits. One has to take reasonable risks to move forward in life.
Which death is preferably to every other? 'The unexpected'.
Death treats every living being equally, and the eternal truth of life is death. The fact that one day we will be no longer alive on this earth frightens all of us, and in this case, if someone asks us that "how would you wish to die and when?", then most of us would not be able to answer the question, and a lot of thoughts would keep hovering in our minds, and these thoughts would evoke a response out of us, and in most cases, we would not come to a conclusion. The question remains unanswered, and it is best to think that an unexpected death would be better as it would come uninvited and end a person's suffering in a moment.
He conquers twice, who shows mercy to the conquered.
This quote highlights the importance of having mercy and kindness in our hearts. This quote is more applicable in the context of wars. It states the fact that a person who shows mercy towards the side that lost in a war or any such event, wins twice. First, he possibly conquered their territory (which is considered as a symbol of victory), and second, he won their hearts by showing mercy and not killing them or punishing them.
Without training, they lacked knowledge. Without knowledge, they lacked confidence. Without confidence, they lacked victory.
We cannot achieve success without working hard (and smart). One needs to gain knowledge related to their field, put it to practice to be confident about it, and then gain victory. Nothing is guaranteed in life; we can only increase the likelihood of us succeeding by putting in the work from our heart and soul. A person who does not even try putting in some effort will lose even before taking part in a battle.
If I fail it is only because I have too much pride and ambition.
Pride and vanity never supplement anyone's growth; rather they diminish it. A person should neither be too ambitious nor proud of his achievements. Staying grounded is very important for maintaining success levels that one might have achieved once.
It is better to suffer once than to be in perpetual apprehension.
We should face our fears bravely to end the associated anxiety, trauma, worry, and suffering at once. Avoiding our problems will make the situation worse and keep us in a state of anxiety till a solution or remedy is not found.
Fortune, which has a great deal of power in other matters but especially in war, can bring about great changes in a situation through very slight forces.
Money can be used to manipulate situations such as court proceedings and turn the verdict in one's favour. This quote talks about this sad reality where injustice happens with the poor and the downtrodden as they lack money, and the wealthy often exploit them with the resources that they have. In war-like conditions, the amount of resources and wealth plays a very decisive role in the victory of one side.
War gives the right to the conquerors to impose any condition they please upon the vanquished.
War never benefitted any soul, be it the conqueror or the conquered, and this quote tells us the same. When some people have conquered a piece of land, they commit the mistake of thinking that they have conquered the people and their freedom. In this self-centred thought clouded by the layers of false victory, these so-called conquerors forget about humanity and think of it as their right to do anything with the so-called conquered people's lives.
As a result of a general defect of nature, we are either more confident or more fearful of unusual and unknown things.
Humans tend to function in extremities at times. Either he is filled with a lot of hope or is completely hopeless, and so on. Similarly, when it comes to uncertainty or dealing with the unknown, our mind starts playing tricks with us. In such situations, either we are very confident that we will face whatever comes in our path or become too nervous and the fear of the unknown consumes us.
Wine and other luxuries have a tendency to enervate the mind and make men less brave in battle.
Alcohol always ruins situations and people's lives. Here, we get some insights from a Roman ruler, who tells us that alcohol and related beverages can alter the mind's ability to function properly, and in such a state battle cannot be fought bravely.
Men's minds tend to fear more keenly those things that are absent.
Fear of the unknown always consumes our mind's ability to make rational decisions and weakens a person's chances of succeeding.
It is the right of war for conquerors to treat those whom they have conquered according to their pleasure.
This quote reveals the brutal side of Julius Caesar's personality, who said that the conquerors could treat the people of the losing-side as per their desires, which is unfair and barbarous of him to think.
