Gaius Musonius Rufus (ca. 30–62 CE) was a well-known Stoic philosopher in the Roman Empire. No written treatises survive from Musonius, but his teachings are recorded in thirty-two apothegms (called fragments below) and twenty-one discourses preserved by other writers (see Musonius Rufus in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy). To maintain consistency with other ancient references with an identifiable author, we recommend that authors use the following abbreviations:

References to the teachings should include Musonius Rufus’s name, an abbreviation for the work, and the specific part of the text being referenced:

(Musonius Rufus, Diatr. 21.33–35)

(Musonius Rufus, frag. 38)

When an English translation of the work is quoted, the translator’s name should be included in brackets (see SBLHS 2 §6.4.2):

(Musonius Rufus, Diatr. 21.33–35 [Lutz])

(Musonius Rufus, frag. 38 [Lutz])

Each discourse has a unique name (for a full list, see here). However, we recommend the simple citation style noted above.

The standard Greek text and translation was produced by Cora Lutz (1947) and can be found here. An earlier edition of the Greek text was produced by Otto Hense (1905) and can be found here.

Works Cited

Hense, Otto. 1905. C. Musonii Rufi Reliquiae. Leipzig: Teubner.

Lutz, Cora E. 1947. “Musonius Rufus: ‘The Roman Socrates.’” YCS 10:3–147.