We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not.

Quote of the Week 4

“We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not.”

― Heraclitus

Triggered by the reference to a variation of the quote in WDR 5 - Das philosophische Radio Podcast with Heinz-Michael Bartling: Weisheit und Wandel (01/05/2026).

Related (see Wikipedia for details):

You cannot step into the same river twice

Since Plato, Heraclitus's theory of flux has been associated with the metaphor of a flowing river, which cannot be stepped into twice.^[57][as] This fragment from Heraclitus's writings has survived in three different forms:^[56]

• "On those who step into the same rivers, different and different waters flow" – Arius Didymus, quoted in Stobaeus^[at]
• "We both step and do not step into the same river, we both are and are not" – Heraclitus Homericus, Homeric Allegories^[au]
• "It is not possible to step into the same river twice" – Plutarch, On the E at Delphi^[av]

The classicist Karl Reinhardt identified the first river quote as the genuine one.^[58] The river fragments (especially the second "we both are and are not") seem to suggest not only is the river constantly changing, but we do as well, perhaps commenting on existential questions about humanity and personhood.^[59]