Euclid (c. 325–265 BCE), the ancient Greek mathematician associated with Alexandria, is remembered not only for what he taught, but for the way he taught it. His most enduring reminder is simple: truth is reached step by step, through proof rather than privilege. Knowledge, in his view, was not a gift reserved for the powerful, but a path open to anyone willing to walk it patiently.

For Euclid, understanding did not come from shortcuts. It arose through careful reasoning, clear definitions, and the humility to begin at the beginning. Each proposition rested on the one before it, forming a quiet architecture of trust, a structure built to hold truth without spectacle.

Geometry, to Euclid, was more than measurement. Geometry was a discipline of humility and a way of training the mind to move slowly, without illusion. What could not yet be proven could not yet be claimed.

October 13 is recognized as World Geometry Day, celebrating geometry as a creative, visual, and problem-solving branch of mathematics. From ancient diagrams to modern design, geometry reminds us that imagination and structure are not opposites, but partners. As poet Alexander Pushkin once said, “Inspiration is needed in geometry, just as much as in poetry.”

This patient, step-by-step way of seeing the world would later inspire Leonardo da Vinci, whose art and inventions reveal how geometry and careful observation bring beauty and truth into form.

With passion, Euclid's work taught that the long way is not a failure, but a way for understanding and discipline to grow. So that wisdom becomes something you can stand on.