Top 10 Ancient Atheist Philosophers and Their Quotes

Pop goes the philosophy–it’s time for top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes.

Philosophers aren’t always atheists. The one I dated for 7 years was though–I still tease her by saying God is controlling the universe. It seems like a weird thing to tease someone about I know–but she often teases me by telling me that everyone’s brain is just existing in a vat someone and the universe isn’t real. As the philosophers say, people do weird things. Then I make her reassure me that it is because Hilary Putnam made many arguments against the theory we are all brains in vats. Also, my man Ned Block said that we have no reason to think we are living in a simulation. Take that, the Matrix.

Atheism, as defined by Merriam-Webster, is “a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods.” Atheists stress that atheism is not a religion. It is not a disbelief in a god or any gods, but is rather a lack of belief. It’s as if you reach into your pockets to see if you have any belief on you, turn them inside out, and they’re empty. That being said, atheists are also very diverse in what they believe in–there can be a multitude of subtle differences to a belief or non-belief. They have different reasons for their lack of belief. The only commonality in their belief is that there is no god nor supernatural beings.

If you are wondering where atheism came from, or how long it has been existing, here is the answer. Atheism is believed to trace back its origins to Ancient Greece–which is why we have what we call the ancient atheist philosophers. Atheism also has roots in the Vedic period of India. There are also ancient atheists hailing from pre-Socratic Greece, like Thales and Anaximenes. In the ancient time, atheist philosophers were persecuted and punished for what they believed and did not believe in. There were philosophers who were thrown out of their cities and some were even executed.

At one point in history, Christians were tagged as atheists by non-Christians because of their lack of belief in the Roman gods. When Christianity became well-established, their positions shifted, and soon enough non-Christians were dubbed as either pagans or atheists.

18 Most Famous Atheists in the World

There have been several ancient atheist philosophers who had their mark in history over the years. They were most popular because of their quotes that defined what they did and did not believe in. Here, we enumerate the top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes, and we have also prepared 18 Most Famous Atheists in the World. No ranking is necessary, as there is simply no way to really rank them from greatest to least. They were all great in their own right. We just searched for the 10 great ones who made an impact with their arguments through the quotes they once have said in their lifetime. We used data from Arguments For Atheism and BBC–as well as the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy and the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Now, let’s take a look at the list of top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes.

10. Epicurus

He is one of the very first atheist writers in history. His theory is mostly inclined into ‘materialism,’ which is the view that all things are physical. For him, even the soul is made of material objects and the soul dies as the body dies. He did not believe in the afterlife, and also had something to say about “The Problem of Evil.”

“The soul cannot survive separation from the body since it is necessary to understand that it too is a part.
By itself, the soul cannot ever either exist (even though Plato and the Stoics talk a great deal of nonsense on the subject) or experience movement, just as the body does not possess sensation when the soul is released from it.”

9. Lucretius

He never denied that gods exist, but always believed that if they exist, they have nothing to do with humankind. I wonder what the gods would get up to in that scenario?  Watch a lot of Morgan Freeman movies on Netflix? Lucretius is a known follower of Epicurus and also subscribed to materialism.

“This terror, then, this darkness of the mind,
Not sunrise with its flaring spokes of light,
Nor glittering arrows of morning can disperse,
But only Nature’s aspect and her law,
Which, teaching us, hath this exordium:
Nothing from nothing ever yet was born.

Fear holds dominion over mortality
Only because, seeing in land and sky
So much the cause whereof no wise they know,
Men think Divinities are working there.

Meantime, when once we know from nothing still
Nothing can be created, we shall divine
More clearly what we seek: those elements
From which alone all things created are,
And how accomplished by no tool of Gods.”

8. Thales

He is an ancient Greek philosopher who also pioneered in atheism. He declared that everything originated from water and that the Earth floats on water–which just sounds nice. Given the amount of times I have seen rats climb out of a sewer puddle in the subway–he may just be right. He is one of the ancient atheist philosophers who argued that nature is a self-contained and self-sustaining system on its own–kind of like Pauly Shore in Biodome. Because Thales ruled out divine intervention in the creation of the world, he also paved the way to the beginning of Greek astronomy.

“All things are from water and all things are resolved into water.”

7. Anaximander

He was essentially the first metaphysician who argued that the origin of everything is “boundless.” He also drew a map of the world and was the first geographer. Anaximander is one of the most popular pre-Socratic philosophers who argued that the origin is boundless and the boundless has no origin. Unlike Thales, he felt that the earth floated free in the universe.

“The source from which existing things derive their existence is also that to which they return at their destruction.”

6. Heraclitus

Hailing from Ephesus, Heraclitus, next on our list of top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes does not believe in religion or God as an originator of the universe. He is also popular for his extreme views, which also caused him to have largely incoherent views about life. When you read his views there is a lot of complex language and wordplay–you have to solve riddles in order to understand him.  That means, to all those first-year Philosophy students, it’s gonna be okay–but you actually have to do the readings.

“Religion is a disease, but it is a noble disease.”

5. Xenophanes

Xenophanes is from Colophon and was a traveling poet. This is a stretch to call him an atheist. However, he is best known as a critic of religion. He especially was critical of the popular notions of deities at the time. However, some also argue now that he was a monotheist while others have views that he was a pantheist.

“The clear and perfect truth no man has seen, nor will there be anyone who knows about the gods and what I say about all things…; for, however, perfect what he says may be, yet he does not know it; all things are matters of opinion.”

4. Leucippus

Leucippus,number 4 on our list of top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes is the founder of Atomism. He is also known as the one who pioneered the belief in the existence in an empty space. Atomism is the idea that everything is composed entirely of various imperishable, indivisible elements called “atoms.” However, he also may not have actually existed. There is very little evidence of his life and his views are taken from the writings of other philosophers. Despite very little information about him, this quote attributed to him is profound enough that he deserves to be in the list of the top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes.

“The sum of things is unlimited, and they all change into one another. The all includes the empty as well as the full. The worlds are formed when atoms fall into the void and are entangled with one another; and from their motion, as they increase in bulk arises the substance of the stars.”

3. Anaxagoras

A Greek philosopher who mostly did studies about nature and eclipses, Anaxagoras that ranked 3rd on our list of top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes is also known for his theory that the sun is not held by Apollo as believed by the Roman mythology. When he debated that the sun comes from the fallen meteors, he was called an atheist. He also held that there is “a portion of everything in everything”–so I blame him for balls of yeast everywhere.

“Everything has a natural explanation. The moon is not a god but a great rock and the sun a hot rock.”

2. Democritus

Perhaps among the most popular ancient philosophers in the world, Democritus, next on our list of top 10 ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes, played a very important role in the atomic theory of the universe. He was Leucippus’ student (most scholars cannot tell the two apart from their writings) and was also very interested in perception and knowledge. He also explained most of the world’s natural phenomena like thunder and lightning.

“Nothing exists except atoms and empty space; everything else is opinion.”

1. Empedocles

Also from the pre-Socratic era, Empedocles like most philosophers was also a poet. He is also known as the one who developed and recognizes the four elements we still regard to today–earth, water, air, and fire. He was a magician, a democratic politician, and a materialist physicist. You know, just like most current-day senators.

“There is an utterance of Necessity, an ancient decree of the gods, eternal, sealed fast with broad oaths: whenever any one defiles his body sinfully with bloody gore or perjures himself in regard to wrong-doing, one of those spirits who are heir to long life, thrice ten thousand seasons shall he wander apart from the blessed, being born meantime in all sorts of mortal forms, changing one bitter path of life for another.”

To this day, there are still many people tagging themselves as atheists–some because they truly are, others because they just want to ride the bandwagon. The ancient times did not fully accept atheism and the people who taught them. The same could probably be said of the modern times. Even so, it is always interesting to know about the top 10 Ancient atheist philosophers and their quotes.