--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To live without evil belongs only to the…" description: "\"To live without evil belongs only to the gods.\" — Sophocles" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png" --- # To live without evil belongs only to the gods. ![“To live without evil belongs only to the gods.” quote by Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png) > “To live without evil belongs only to the gods.” [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Only divine beings are free from evil; humans inevitably encounter wrongdoing. **In simple terms:** Only gods live without evil. Key Takeaway Strive for moral integrity despite flaws. Themes morality divinity evil Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - justice - leadership - personal conduct - societal norms Key Concepts ethics mythology human condition Questions to Reflect On - What defines moral goodness? - How can we mitigate evil in society? A Different Perspective Human capacity for good can be limited. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belongs Gods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belongs-gods-274958/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil Belongs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-belongs-274955/) [Gods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gods/) [Live Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-evil-274962/) ## Related quotes > [To harbor no envy, no anger, no resentment against an offender is still not to have charity for him. It is possible, without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maximus-the-confessor/to-harbor-no-envy-no-anger-no-resentment-against-an-offender-is-still/) [Maximus the Confessor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maximus-the-confessor/) > [“I refuse to live with any more evil cats. It’s him or me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-roux/i-refuse-to-live-with-any-more-evil-cats-it-s-him-or-me/) [Abigail Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-roux/) > [“No, I will finish what I started, here, at Glimpa’s Arch. The act belongs to me, the consequence, pleasing or not, belongs to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-z-colby/no-i-will-finish-what-i-started-here-at-glimpa-s-arch-the-act-belongs/) [J.Z. Colby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-z-colby/) > [Perfection belongs to the Gods; the most we can hope for is excellence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/perfection-belongs-to-the-gods-the-most-we-can-hope-for-is-excellence/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [“Never forget, Alexandros, that this flesh, this body, does not belong to us. Thank God it doesn’t. If I thought this stuff was mine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/never-forget-alexandros-that-this-flesh-this-body-does-not-belong-to/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [“But why? Why did you do the evil things you did?' Billy asks suddenly. 'Ah, because I could not imagine consequences,' the Professor says.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-meno/but-why-why-did-you-do-the-evil-things-you-did-billy-asks-suddenly-ah/) [Joe Meno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-meno/) > [That the good that we do might live on after us, while the evil lies interred with their bones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lee-carrell/that-the-good-that-we-do-might-live-on-after-us-while-the-evil-lies/) [Jennifer Lee Carrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lee-carrell/) > [If live is evil backwards, then what is lived backwards?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-live-is-evil-backwards-then-what-is-lived-backwards/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Rats live on no evil star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/rats-live-on-no-evil-star/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“World is beautiful but it is dangerous place to live, there is so much evil behind a normal person.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-art/world-is-beautiful-but-it-is-dangerous-place-to-live-there-is-so-much/) [John Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-art/) > [We, in America and Great Britain, have never had to live with evil and ignore it, or pretend it wasn't happening, as people did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/we-in-america-and-great-britain-have-never-had-to-live-with-evil-and/) [Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/) > [The world is an evil place to live in. Not for those who do evil, but for those who sit back and allow evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-world-is-an-evil-place-to-live-in-not-for-those-who-do-evil-but/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Once I start to LivE I see the Evil in it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cj/once-i-start-to-live-i-see-the-evil-in-it/) [CJ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cj/) > [They say to live is evil, but to waste gods creation and not live the liffe god has givin you would show evil. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/they-say-to-live-is-evil-but-to-waste-gods-creation-and-not-live-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Is that what they teach you at the convent? That the gods demand the hearts from our bodies?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-lafevers/is-that-what-they-teach-you-at-the-convent-that-the-gods-demand-the/) [Robin LaFevers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-lafevers/) ## More by Sophocles > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [God's dice always have a lucky roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/god-s-dice-always-have-a-lucky-roll/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A fool cannot be an actor, though an actor may act a fool's part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-fool-cannot-be-an-actor-though-an-actor-may-act-a-fool-s-part/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Go then if you must, but remember, no matter how foolish your deeds, those who love you will love you still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/go-then-if-you-must-but-remember-no-matter-how-foolish-your-deeds/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Man's worst ill is stubbornness of heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/man-s-worst-ill-is-stubbornness-of-heart/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A lie never lives to be old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-lie-never-lives-to-be-old/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [How dangerous can false reasoning prove!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/how-dangerous-can-false-reasoning-prove/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Why should man fear since chance is all in all for him, and he can clearly foreknow nothing? Best to live lightly, as one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/why-should-man-fear-since-chance-is-all-in-all-for-him-and-he-can/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“But life takes sudden twists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/but-life-takes-sudden-twists/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [When ice appears out of doors, and boys seize it up while it is solid, at first they experience new pleasures. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/when-ice-appears-out-of-doors-and-boys-seize-it-up-while-it-is-solid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [For God hates utterly the bray of bragging tongues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/for-god-hates-utterly-the-bray-of-bragging-tongues/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I have nothing but contempt for the kind of governor who is afraid, for whatever reason, to follow the course that he knows is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-the-kind-of-governor-who-is-afraid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“Not from Hades' black and universal lake can you lift him. Not by groaning, not by prayers. Yet you run yourself out in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/not-from-hades-black-and-universal-lake-can-you-lift-him-not-by/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [A fearful man is always hearing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/a-fearful-man-is-always-hearing-things/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [There is a point at which even justice does injury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/there-is-a-point-at-which-even-justice-does-injury/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) [Explore all 621 Sophocles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) ## More Evil quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [I do conscientiously and sincerely believe that the Order of Freemasonry, if not the greatest, is one of the greatest moral and political evils…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/i-do-conscientiously-and-sincerely-believe-that-the-order-of/) [John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/) > [The Republicans do not look on the Democrats as the evil empire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-republicans-do-not-look-on-the-democrats-as-the-evil-empire/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [What is done out of love always takes place beyond good and evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-done-out-of-love-always-takes-place-beyond-good-and-evil/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ Evil cannot be "treated" -- nor should it be. Evil has to \[be\] confronted and destroyed and it matters not why the evil is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-o-reilly/evil-cannot-be-treated-nor-should-it-be-evil-has-to-be-confronted-and/) [Bill O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-o-reilly/) > [The evil which does me no harm is like the good which in no wise avails me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/the-evil-which-does-me-no-harm-is-like-the-good-which-in-no-wise/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Attack the evil that is within yourself, rather than attacking the evil that is in others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/attack-the-evil-that-is-within-yourself-rather-than-attacking-the/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) [James Nayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nayler/) > [The politician attempts to remedy the evil by increasing the very thing that caused the evil in the first place: legal plunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-politician-attempts-to-remedy-the-evil-by-increasing-the-very/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [“Water is so friendly when you have it on your palms, but so evil when they have you on theirs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/water-is-so-friendly-when-you-have-it-on-your-palms-but-so-evil-when/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [THE ART OF PEACE is not easy. It is a fight to the finish, the slaying of evil desires and all falsehood within. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morihei-ueshiba/the-art-of-peace-is-not-easy-it-is-a-fight-to-the-finish-the-slaying/) [Morihei Ueshiba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morihei-ueshiba/) [Browse all 11,163 Evil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To live without evil belongs only to the gods.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sophocles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the-gods/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Evil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the-gods/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/sophocles-370_evil_to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the_1621138.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To live without evil belongs only to the gods.” — Sophocles", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sophocles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To live without evil belongs only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the-gods/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/to-live-without-evil-belongs-only-to-the-gods/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```