Quote Verification
Quote Verification
Investigating whether sayings attributed to religious teachers, philosophers, scientists, writers and public figures are authentic, misquoted, paraphrased, unsupported or fabricated.
Each investigation separates two questions: whether the person actually said or wrote the words, and whether the words accurately represent that person's documented views.
The rule
A familiar saying is not evidence of authorship.
TBR separates the wording of a quotation from its attribution. Primary texts, authoritative editions and identifiable translations are preferred over quote websites, memes and unsourced compilations.
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People in the quotation archive
Select a name to see the quotations currently associated with that person.
The Buddha
11 verified quotes
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Aristotle
10 verified quotes
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Epictetus
10 verified quotes
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Marcus Aurelius
10 verified quotes
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Marcus Tullius Cicero
5 verified quotes
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Plato
5 verified quotes
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Socrates
5 verified quotes
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Quotation library
Search the evidence
“For to fear death, gentlemen, is nothing else than to think one is wise when one is not.”
Socrates
Harold North Fowler translation, Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 (1966), Perseus Digital Library
“Men of Athens, I respect and love you, but I shall obey the god rather than you.”
Socrates
Harold North Fowler translation, Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 (1966), Perseus Digital Library
“I did care with all my might not to do anything unjust or unholy.”
Socrates
Harold North Fowler translation, Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 (1966), Perseus Digital Library
“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
Socrates
Harold North Fowler translation, Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 (1966), Perseus Digital Library
“No evil can come to a good man either in life or after death.”
Socrates
Harold North Fowler translation, Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 (1966), Perseus Digital Library
“If one man conquer in battle a thousand times thousand men, and if another conquer himself, he is the greatest of conquerors.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Let each man direct himself first to what is proper, then let him teach others; thus a wise man will not suffer.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Self is the lord of self, who else could be the lord? With self well subdued, a man finds a lord such as few can find.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Not to commit any sin, to do good, and to purify one's mind, that is the teaching of (all) the Awakened.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Earnestness is the path of immortality (Nirvana), thoughtlessness the path of death.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Let a man overcome anger by love, let him overcome evil by good; let him overcome the greedy by liberality, the liar by truth!”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“You yourself must make an effort. The Tathagatas (Buddhas) are only preachers.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“For hatred does not cease by hatred at any time: hatred ceases by love, this is an old rule.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“Not the perversities of others, not their sins of commission or omission, but his own misdeeds and negligences should a sage take notice of.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“As a solid rock is not shaken by the wind, wise people falter not amidst blame and praise.”
The Buddha
F. Max Müller, trans., Sacred Books of the East, Vol. X (1881)
“The mind is everything. What you think, you become.”
The Buddha
Compared with translations of Dhammapada verses 1–2, including Bhikkhu Ānandajoti and BuddhaNet.
Verification method
What TBR checks before calling a quotation verified
Find the source
Locate the primary text, speech, recording, canonical text or authoritative scholarly edition.
Check the wording
Identify the exact passage and record the translator or edition when the words originated in another language.
Check the attribution
Separate authorship, reported speech and traditional or canonical attribution from later paraphrase or invention.
Continue researching
Move from a quotation to the evidence around it
A quote should be an entry point into a person's ideas, source texts and the wider evidence—not an isolated slogan.
ThinkersExplore philosophers, religious figures and influential minds.
SourcesTrace claims to texts, documents and source records.
GuidesRead durable explanations and foundational TBR conclusions.
FindingsSee evidence-led conclusions reached elsewhere on TBR.
ArticlesFollow current analysis, investigations and developing ideas.
Belief SystemsPut religious quotations into the tradition that preserved them.