Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create that fact.
William James (1842-1910) American psychologist and philosopher
“Is Life Worth Living?” The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy (1897)
The best use of life is to spend it for something that outlasts life.
William James (1842-1910) American psychologist and philosopher
(Attributed)
Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind.
Henry James (1843-1916) American writer
Comment to Willie James (nephew) (1902)
Live all you can — it’s a mistake not to. It doesn’t so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven’t had that, what have you had?… What one loses one loses; make no mistake about that…The right time is any time that one is still so lucky as to have…. Live!
Henry James (1843-1916) American writer
The Ambassadors, Book 5, ch. 2 (1903)
A custom loathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and in the black, stinking fume thereof, nearest resembling the horrible Stygian smoke of the pit that is bottomless.
King James I (1566-1625) King of Great Britain
A Counterblaste to Tobacco (1604)
It is plain that there is wide variety in American religious taste. The [defendants] are not alone in catering to it with a pretty dubious product.
Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954) US Supreme Court Justice (1941-54), lawyer, jurist, politician
United States v. Ballard, 322 U.S. 78 (1944) [dissent]
[T]he price of freedom of religion or of speech or of the press is that we must put up with, and even pay for, a good deal of rubbish.
Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954) US Supreme Court Justice (1941-54), lawyer, jurist, politician
United States v. Ballard, 322 U.S. 78 (1944) [dissent]
(Source)
The priceless heritage of our society is the unrestricted constitutional right of each member to think as he will. Thought control is a copyright of totalitarianism, and we have no claim to it. It is not the function of our Government to keep the citizen from falling into error; it is the function of the citizen to keep the Government from falling into error. We could justify any censorship only when the censors are better shielded against error than the censored.
Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954) US Supreme Court Justice (1941-54), lawyer, jurist, politician
American Communications Assn. v. Douds, 339 U.S. 382, 442-443 (1950) [concurrence and dissent]
(Source)
If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion, or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein. If there are any circumstances which permit an exception, they do not now occur to us.
Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954) US Supreme Court Justice (1941-54), lawyer, jurist, politician
West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943) [majority opinion]
(Source)
Did you ever hear anyone say, “That book had better be banned because I might read it and it might be very damaging to me”?
Joseph Henry Jackson (1894-1955) American writer, editor
San Francisco Chronicle
Never look down on anybody unless you’re helping him up.
Jesse Jackson (b. 1941) American activist, clergyman, politician
(Attributed)
You may not be responsible for being down, but you must be responsible for getting up.
Jesse Jackson (b. 1941) American activist, clergyman, politician
(Attributed)
Man is a dog’s idea of what God should be.
Holbrook Jackson (1874-1948) English journalist, editor, author
(Attributed)
Fear of corrupting the mind of the younger generation is the loftiest form of cowardice.
Holbrook Jackson (1874-1948) English journalist, editor, author
(Attributed)
They say guns don’t kill people. Oh, I think they have something to do with it. I mean, if a kid just points his finger and says ‘BANG,’ nothing much happens.
Eddie Izzard (b. 1962) British comedian
(June 1999)
There’s a weird Republican schizophrenia: They want welfare mothers to work and working mothers to stay home.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
“Winning Women” (2 Aug. 2001)
Yes, the bad-lawyer felony is the leading cause of the death penalty in Texas.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
Column, Creators Syndicate (10 Jun 1997)
The single most dangerous thing you can do in politics is shut off information from people who don’t agree with you. Surround yourself with sycophants, listen only to the yea-sayers … then stick a fork in it, you’re done.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
“Election Denial” (3 Apr. 2001)
Keep fighting for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cat, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
“The Fun’s in the Fight,” Mother Jones (May/Jun 1993)
Full text.
MITCH: The weirdest thing just happened to me.
CHRIS: Was it a dream where you were standing in sort of sun-god robes on top of a pyramid, and there were hundreds of naked women screaming and throwing little pickles at you?
MITCH: No …
CHRIS: Why am I the only one who has that dream?Neal Israel (b. 1956) American film writer and director
Real Genius (1985)
with Pat Proft, Peter Torokvei
There is a certain relief to change, even though it be from bad to worse; as I have often found in traveling in a stagecoach, that it is often a comfort to shift one’s position and be bruised in a new place.
Washington Irving (1783-1859) American author [pseud. for Geoffrey Crayon]
Tales of a Traveler, Preface (1824)
It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question.
Eugène Ionesco (1912-1994) Romanian-French dramatist
Découvertes (1970)
The greatest test of courage is to bear defeat without losing heart.
Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899) American lawyer, agnostic, orator
“The Declaration of Independence” (1876)
(Source)
Happiness is not a reward — it is a consequence. Suffering is not a punishment — it is a result.
Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899) American lawyer, agnostic, orator
“The Christian Religion,” Part 2, The North American Review (Nov 1881)
(Source)
There are in nature neither rewards nor punishments — there are consequences.
Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899) American lawyer, agnostic, orator
“The Christian Religion” (1881)
(Source)
I have lived to thank God that all my prayers have not been answered.
Jean Ingelow (1820-1897) English writer
Off the Skelligs, ch. 6 (1872)
Worry is the interest paid on trouble before it falls due.
William Ralph Inge (1860-1954) English prelate [Dean Inge]
(Attributed)
But it must be remembered that, in spite of the proverb, it takes in reality only one to make a quarrel. It is useless for the sheep to pass resolutions in favour of vegetarianism, while the wolf remains of a different opinion.
William Ralph Inge (1860-1954) English prelate [Dean Inge]
“Patriotism,” Outspoken Essays: First Series (1915)
Sometimes quoted as "while wolves remain of a different opinion."
MAN WITH NO NAME: You see, in this world there’s two kinds of people, my friend: those with loaded guns, and those who dig. You dig.
Agenore "Age" Incrocci (1919-2005) Italian screenwriter, actor
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
(co-written with Furio Scarpelli, Luciano Vincenzoni, and Sergio Leone)
At least one way of measuring the freedom of any society is the amount of comedy that is permitted, and clearly a healthy society permits more satirical comment than a repressive, so that if comedy is to function in some way as a safety release then it must obviously deal with these taboo areas. This is part of the responsibility we accord our licensed jesters, that nothing be excused the searching light of comedy. If anything can survive the probe of humour it is clearly of value, and conversely all groups who claim immunity from laughter are claiming special privileges which should not be granted.
Eric Idle (b. 1943) British actor, musician, writer, comedian
(Attributed)
Life doesn’t make any sense, and we all pretend it does. Comedy’s job is to point out that it doesn’t make sense, and that it doesn’t make much difference anyway.
Eric Idle (b. 1943) British actor, musician, writer, comedian
(Attributed)
A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.
Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) Norwegian poet and playwright
An Enemy of the People, “Billing,” Act 1 (1882)
A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.
Ikke tusend ord
sig prenter, som én gernings spor.Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) Norwegian poet and playwright
Brand, “Manden,” Act 2 (1866)
Alt. trans.: "A thousand words can't make the mark a single deed will leave."
They’ll tell you that the darkness is a blessing in disguise
For you’ll never have to notice if you’re sighted or you’re blind
And they’ll do their best to keep you from the light.Janice Ian (b. 1951) American singer/songwriter [b. Janis Eddy Fink]
(Attributed)
My father always used to say that when you die, if you’ve got five real friends, then you’ve had a great life.
Lee Iacocca (1924-2019) American businessman [Lido Anthony Iacocca]
(Attributed)
We are continuously faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.
Lee Iacocca (1924-2019) American businessman [Lido Anthony Iacocca]
(Attributed)
I am too much of a sceptic to deny the possibility of anything — especially as I am now so much occupied with theology — but I don’t see my way to your conclusion.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
Letter to Herbert Spencer (22 Mar 1886)
Often quoted with the American spelling "skeptic," and leaving off all after "anything."
The saying that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing is, to my mind, a very dangerous adage. If knowledge is real and genuine, I do not believe that it is other than a very valuable possession, however infinitesimal its quantity may be. Indeed, if a little knowledge is dangerous, where is the man who has so much as to be out of danger?
The results of political changes are hardly ever those which their friends hope or their foes fear.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
“Government: Anarchy or Regimentation?” (1890)
Full text.
This may not be the best of all possible worlds, but to say that it is the worst is mere petulant nonsense.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
The Struggle for Existence in Human Society
God give me the strength to face a fact though it slay me.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
(Attributed)
History warns us, however, that it is the customary fate of new truths to begin as heresies and to end as superstitions; and, as matters now stand, it is hardly rash to anticipate that, in another twenty years, the new generation, educated under the influences of the present day, will be in danger of accepting the main doctrines of the ‘Origin of Species’ with as little reflection, and it may be with as little justification, as so many of our contemporaries, twenty years ago, rejected them. Against any such a consummation let us all devoutly pray; for the scientific spirit is of more value than its products, and irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
“The Coming of Age of The Origin of Species,” lecture, Royal Institution (19 Mar 1880)
(Source)
First printed in Nature: A Weekly Illustrated Journal of Science (6 May 1880).
The great tragedy of Science — the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
“Biogenesis and Abiogenesis,” Presidential Address at the British Association (1870)
(Source)
Make up your mind to act decidedly and take the consequences.
T. H. Huxley (1825-1895) English biologist [Thomas Henry Huxley]
Letter to Dr. Dohrn (17 Oct 1873)
I wanted to change the world. But I have found that the only thing one can be sure of changing is oneself.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
Quoted in “Sayings of the Week,” The Observer (2 Jul 1961)
Not actually found in any of Huxley's published works, and this reference does not provide a source or situation where it was said.
For more discussion: I Wanted To Change the World. But I Have Found That the Only Thing One Can Be Sure of Changing Is Oneself – Quote Investigator®
There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
Time Must Have a Stop (1944)
The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a man’s foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
(Attributed)
The horror no less than the charm of real life consists precisely in the recurrent actualization of the inconceivable.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
Themes and Variations (1950)
Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
“Variations on a Philosopher,” Themes and Variations (1950)
(Source)
At any given moment, life is completely senseless. But viewed over a period, it seems to reveal itself as an organism existing in time, having a purpose, trending in a certain direction.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
(Attributed)
Too much consistency is as bad for the mind as it is for the body. Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are the dead.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
“Wordsworth in the Tropics,” Do What You Will (1929)
Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
Proper Studies (1927)
It is because we don’t know who we are, because we are unaware that the kingdom of heaven is within us, that we behave in the generally silly, the often insane, the sometimes criminal ways that are so characteristically human.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) English novelist, essayist and critic
The Perennial Philosophy, ch. 1 (1944)
The naked lust for money, once considered as unseemly as public sex, [has] now [been] accepted as a virtue.
Michael Hutchinson (contemp.) American neurologist, researcher
The Anatomy of Sex and Power, ch. 18 (1990)
Q: If you can’t take a little bloody nose, maybe you had better go back home and crawl under your bed. It’s not safe out here. It’s wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it’s not for the timid.
Maurice Hurley (1939-2015) American screenwriter, producer [a.k.a. C.J. Holland]
Star Trek: The Next Generation, “Q Who?” (6 May 1989)
Compassion is not weakness, and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism.
Hubert Horatio Humphrey (1911-1978) American politician
Speech, Democratic State Convention, Little Rock, Arkansas (18 Sep 1964)
The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously.
Hubert Horatio Humphrey (1911-1978) American politician
Speech, National Student Association, University of Wisconsin, Madison (23 Aug 1965)
Oh, my friend, it’s not what they take away from you that counts. It’s what you do with what you have left.
Hubert Horatio Humphrey (1911-1978) American politician
(Attributed, 1976)
Comment after cancer surgery to remove his bladder.
OSTROW: But the Krell forgot one thing. Monsters, John! Monsters from the Id!
Cyril Hume (1900-1966) American screenwriter, author
Forbidden Planet [with Fred McLeod Wilcox] (1956)
Always keep your composure. You can’t score from the penalty box; and to win, you have to score.
Bobby Hull (b. 1939) Canadian hockey pro [Robert Marrin Hull, Jr.]
(Attributed)
The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves — say rather, loved in spite of ourselves.
[Le suprême bonheur de la vie, c’est la conviction qu’on est aimé; aimé pour soi-même, disons mieux, aimé malgré soi-même.]
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Part 1 “Fantine,” Book 5 “The Descent,” ch. 4 (1.5.4) (1862) [tr. Wilbour (1862)]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:The supreme happiness of life is the conviction of being loved for yourself, or, more correctly speaking, loved in spite of yourself.
[tr. Wraxall (1862)]The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved -- loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.
[E.g. (1873)]The supreme happiness of life consists in the conviction that one is loved; loved for one's own sake -- let us say rather, loved in spite of one's self.
[tr. Hapgood (1887)]The supreme happiness in life is the assurance of being loved; of being loved for oneself, even in spite of oneself.
[tr. Denny (1976)]The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves -- say rather, loved in spite of ourselves.
[tr. Wilbour/Fahnestock/MacAfee (1987)]The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that you are loved, loved for yourself, better still, loved despite yourself.
[tr. Donougher (2013)]
Laughter is sunshine; it chases winter from the human face.
[Le rire, c’est le soleil; il chasse l’hiver du visage humain.]
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Part 2 “Cosette,” Book 8 “Cemeteries Take What Is Given Them,” ch. 9 (2.8.9) (1862) [tr. Wilbour (1862)]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:For laughter is the sun which drives winter from the human face.
[tr. Wraxall (1862)]A smile is the same as sunshine; it banishes winter from the human countenance.
[tr. Hapgood (1887)]Laughter is a sun that drives out winter from the human face.
[tr. Denny (1976)]Laughter is sunshine; it chases winter from the human face.
[tr. Wilbour/Fahnestock/MacAfee (1987)]Laughter is sunshine. It banishes winter from the human countenance.
[tr. Donougher (2013)]
The best religion is tolerance.
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
(Attributed)
It is nothing to die; it is horrible not to live.
[Ce n’est rien de mourir; c’est affreux de ne pas vivre.]
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Vol. 5 “Jean Valjean,” Book 9 “Supreme Shadow, Supreme Dawn,” ch. 5 “Night Behind Which Is Dawn” (1862) [tr. Wilbour]
Alt trans.: "It is nothing to die; it is frightful not to live."
Thought is the labor of the intellect, reverie is its pleasure.
[La pensée est le labeur de l’intelligence, la rêverie en est la volupté.]
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Vol. 4 “St. Denis,” Book 2 “Eponine,” ch. 1 “The Field of the Lark” (1862) [tr. Wilbour]
Alt trans. [Denny (1980)]: "Thought is the work of the intellect, reveries its self-indulgence." Cited as Part IV, ch. 2 "Eponine."
Adversity makes men; prosperity makes monsters.
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
(Attributed)
The greatest follies, like the stoutest ropes, are often composed of a multitude of strands. Take the cable thread by thread, take separately each petty determining motive, and you can snap them one by one and say, “There’s no more to it than that!” Braid them and twist them together, and what you have is momentous.
[Les fortes sottises sont souvent faites, comme les grosses cordes, d’une multitude de brins. Prenez le câble fil à fil, prenez séparément tous les petits motifs déterminants, vous les cassez l’un après l’autre, et vous dites: Ce n’est que cela! Tressez-les et tordez-les ensemble, c’est une énormité.]Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Part 2 “Cosette,” Book 5 “Dark Hunt, Mute Mutts,” ch. 10 (2.5.10) (1862) [tr. Donougher (2013)]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibres. Take the cable thread by thread, take separately all the little determining motives, you break them one after another, and you say: that is all. Wind them and twist them together, they become an enormity.
[tr. Wilbour (1862)]Great follies are often made, like stout ropes, of a multitude of fibers. Take the cable, thread by thread, catch hold of the small determining motives separately, and you break them one after the other, and say to yourself, “It is only that”; but twist them together and you have an enormity.
[tr. Wraxall (1862)]The greatest follies are often composed, like the largest ropes, of a multitude of strands. Take the cable thread by thread, take all the petty determining motives separately, and you can break them one after the other, and you say, "That is all there is of it!" Braid them, twist them together; the result is enormous.
[tr. Hapgood (1887)]The greatest blunders, like the thickest ropes, are often compounded of a multitude of strands. Take the rope apart, separate it into the small threads that compose it, and you can break them one by one. You think, 'That is all there was!' But twist them all together, and you have something tremendous.
[tr. Denny (1976)]Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibers. Take the cable thread by thread, take all the little determining motives separately, you break them one after another, and you say: That is all it is. Braid them and twist them together, they become an enormity.
[tr. Wilbour/Fahnestock/MacAfee (1987)]
One can dream of something more terrible than a hell where one suffers; it’s a hell where one would get bored.
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
(Attributed)
There are thoughts which are prayers. There are moments when, whatever the posture of the body, the soul is on its knees.
[De certaines pensées sont des prières. Il y a des moments où, quelle que soit l’attitude du corps, l’âme est à genoux.]
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) French writer
Les Misérables, Part 4 “Saint Denis,” Book 5 “The End of Which Does Not Resemble the Beginning,” ch. 4 (4.5.4) (1862) [tr. Denny (1976)]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Certain thoughts are prayers. There are moments when, whatever be the attitude of the body, the soul is on its knees.
[tr. Wilbour (1862)]Certain thoughts are prayers. There are moments when the soul is kneeling, no matter what the attitude of the body may be.
[tr. Wraxall (1862)]Certain thoughts are prayers. There are moments when, whatever the attitude of the body may be, the soul is on its knees.
[tr. Hapgood (1887)]Certain thoughts are prayers. There are moments when, whatever the attitude of the body, the soul is on its knees.
[tr. Wilbour/Fahnestock/MacAfee (1987)]
If you play it safe in life, you’ve decided that you don’t want to grow anymore.
Shirley Hufstedler (1925-2016) American jurist, US Secty of Education (1979-81)
(Attributed)
I never, ever say, “I can’t,” about anything. I might say, “I don’t have the authority to make that decision,” or, “Building A is too heavy for me to lift,” or, “I will need training before I pilot that space shuttle.”
(Other Authors and Sources)
Mike Huber, Techwr-L
Don’t knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn’t start a conversation if it didn’t change once in a while.
Frank McKinney "Kin" Hubbard (1868-1930) American caricaturist and humorist
(Attributed)
Variant: "'Don't knock the weather. If it didn't change once in a while, nine out of ten people couldn't start a conversation."
When a feller says, “It hain’t th’ money, but th’ principle o’ th’ thing,” it’s th’ money.
[When a fellow says, “It ain’t the money, but the principle of the thing,” it’s the money.]
Frank McKinney "Kin" Hubbard (1868-1930) American caricaturist and humorist
Hoss Sense and Nonsense (1926)
Honesty pays, but it don’t seem to pay enough to suit some people.
Frank McKinney "Kin" Hubbard (1868-1930) American caricaturist and humorist
(Attributed)
Quoted in Time (2 Jul 1973) Also given as "It pays t'be honest, but it don't pay enough t'suit some fellers."
Live so that you can at least get the benefit of the doubt.
Frank McKinney "Kin" Hubbard (1868-1930) American caricaturist and humorist
(Attributed)
The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
The Philistine, Vol. 13, #5 (Nov 1901)
Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus handicapped.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
The Philistine, Vol. 23, #4 (Sep 1906)
If you would escape moral and physical assassination, do nothing, say nothing, be nothing — court obscurity, for only in oblivion does safety lie.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
Little Journeys to the Homes of American Statemen, “William H. Seward” (1916)
(Source)
Variants show up elsewhere in Hubbard's writings and and his quote epigrams.Often misattributed to Aristotle.
- To escape criticism -- do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.
- To avoid unkind criticism: do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.
- There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing and be nothing.
Life is just one damned thing after another.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
A Thousand and One Epigrams (1911)
Variant: "Life is just one damn thing after another."
Every man is a dam fool at least ten minutes a day. Wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
The Philistine, Vol. 29, #6 (Nov 1909)Full text.
Sometimes given: "Every man is a damn fool at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit."
I would rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to appreciate.
Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher
The Notebook of Elbert Hubbard [ed. E. Hubbard II] (1927)
Although gold dust is precious, when it gets in your eyes it obstructs your vision.
Hsi-Tang Chih Tsang (735-814) Chinese Zen master
(Attributed)
Lean too much on the approval of people, and it becomes a bed of thorns.
Tehyi Hsieh (1884-1972) Chinese philosopher, educator, diplomat
Chinese epigrams inside out, and proverbs (1948)
There is a coherent plan in the universe, though I don’t know what it’s a plan for.
Fred Hoyle (1915-2001) English astronomer, author
(Attributed)
Space isn’t remote at all. It’s only an hour’s drive away if your car could go straight upwards.
Fred Hoyle (1915-2001) English astronomer, author
(Attributed)
Quoted in "Sayings of the Week", The Observer (9 Sep 1979)
Don’t abuse your friends and expect them to consider it criticism.
Edgar Watson "Ed" Howe (1853-1937) American journalist and author [E. W. Howe]
(Attributed)
A good scare is worth more to a man than good advice.
Edgar Watson "Ed" Howe (1853-1937) American journalist and author [E. W. Howe]
Country Town Sayings (1911)
Abuse a man unjustly, and you will make friends for him.
Edgar Watson "Ed" Howe (1853-1937) American journalist and author [E. W. Howe]
Country Town Sayings (1911)
Three minutes thought would suffice to find this out; but thought is irksome and three minutes is a long time.
A. E. Housman (1859-1936) English scholar and poet [Alfred Edward Housman]
Saturae of Juvenal (1905)
And how am I to face the odds
Of man’s bedevilment and God’s?
I, a stranger and afraid
In a world I never made.A. E. Housman (1859-1936) English scholar and poet [Alfred Edward Housman]
Last Poems, No. 12, ll. 15-18 (1922)
(Source)
Success lies, not in achieving what you aim at, but in aiming at what you ought to achieve, and pressing forward, sure of achievement here, or if not here, hereafter.
R. F. Horton (1855-1934) English nonconformist minister, reformer [Robert Forman Horton]
Success and Failure (1897)
Why are you laughing? Just change the name, and the story could be told of you.
[Quid rides? Mutato nomine de te / fabula narratur.]
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Sermonum, I.1.69Sometimes "... fabula de te narratur."
Alternate translations:
- "Do you but change the name / Of you is saide the same."
- "Change but the name, of you the tale is told."
- "Change only the name and this story is also about you."
- "Change but the name, and the tale is told of you."
- "What are you laughing at? Just change the name and the joke's on you."
- "You laugh? Well, just change the name and you'll find that this story, / as a matter of fact, means YOU." (tr. S.P. Bovie (2002))
Many brave men lived before Agamemnon, but all unwept and unknown they sleep in endless night, for they had no poets to sound their praises.
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Odes [Carmina], Book 4, Ode 9, l. 25
Alt. trans.: "Brave men were living before Agamemnon."
Drink! O friends, stamp wild
Bare feet on the ground.[Nunc est bibendum, nunc pede libero
pulsanda tellus.]Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Odes [Carmina], Book 1, # 37, l. 1ff (1.37.1-2) (23 BC) [tr. Raffel (1983)]
(Source)
A light-hearted opening for a celebration of Caesar's success at the battle of Actium and the defeat and death of Cleopatra (and, not mentioned, Marc Antony).
(Source (Latin)). Alternate translations:Now let us drink, now dance (Companions) now.
[tr. Sir T. H.; ed. Brome (1666)]Now now tis time to dance and play,
And drink, and frollick all the Day.
[tr. Creech (1684)]Now drink we deep, now featly tread
A measure.
[tr. Conington (1872)]Now, my companions, is the time to carouse, now to beat the ground with a light foot.
[tr. Smart/Buckley (1853)]Now, comrades, fill each goblet to the brim,
Now, now with bounding footsteps strike the ground.
[tr. Martin (1864)]Drink, companions, the moment has come for carousal,
And the foot is now free to strike earth in brisk measures.
[tr. Bulwer-Lytton (1870)]'Tis time we drink, 'tis time we dance.
[tr. Gladstone (1894)]Now is the time to quaff, and to beat the ground
With foot untrammell'd.
[tr. Phelps (1897)]Now 'tis to drink: now with free foot
To smite the ground.
[tr. Garnsey (1907)]Now 'tis the hour for wine, now without check
To trip it gaily.
[tr. Marshall (1908)]Now is the time to drain the flowing bowl, now with unfettered foot to beat the ground with dancing.
[tr. Bennett (Loeb) (1912)]Bumpers! Let free foot beat the earth!
To drink, dance ....
[tr. Mills (1924)]Now drink and dance, my comrades.
[tr. Edgar (1893)]Today is the day to drink and dance on. Dance, then,
Merrily, friends, till the earth shakes.
[tr. Michie (1963)]At last the day has come for celebration,
For dancing and for drinking.
[tr. Ferry (1997)]To drinking now, now all to the nimble foot
that beats the earth.
[tr. Willett (1998)]Now is the time for drinking, O my friends!
Now with a free foot beating the earth in dance!
[tr. Alexander (1999)]Now’s the time for drinking deep, and now’s the time
to beat the earth with unfettered feet.
[tr. Kline (2015)]Now it is time to drink; now with loose feet
it is time for beating the earth.
[tr. Wikisource (2021)]
He will always be a slave who does not know how to live upon a little.
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
(Attributed)
In the moment of our talking, envious time has ebb’d away.
Seize the present; trust tomorrow e’en as little as you may.
[Dum loquimur, fugerit invida
aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero.]Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Odes [Carmina], Book 1, # 11, l. 8ff (1.11.8-9) (23 BC) [tr. Conington (1872)]
Often titled "To Leuconoë." This is the source of the famous phrase, "carpe diem," commonly translated "seize the day." Many scholars give it a more horticultural spin, to harvest the day now, while it is ripe. More discussion here. More quotations along this theme here.
(Source (Latin)). Alternate translations:Whilest we are talking, envious Time doth slide:
This day's thine own, the next may be deny'd.
[tr. Sir T. H.; ed. Brome (1666)]Time, while we speak on't flyes; now banish sorrow,
Live well to day, and never trust to morrow.
[tr. S. W., Esq.; ed. Brome (1666)]E'en whil'st we speak the Envious time
Doth make swift hast away,
Then seize the present, use thy prime,
Nor trust another Day.
[tr. Creech (1684)]While we are conversing, envious age has been flying; seize the present day, not giving the least credit to the succeeding one.
[tr. Smart/Buckley (1853)]Use all life's powers,
The envious hours
Fly as we talk ; then live to-day,
Nor fondly to to-morrow trust more than you must and may.
[tr. Martin (1864)]While we talk, grudging Time will be gone, and a part of ourselves be no more.
Seize to-day -- for the morrow it is in which thy belief should be least.
[tr. Bulwer-Lytton (1870)]Our span is brief. The niggard hour,
in chatting, ebbs away;
Trust nothing for to-morrow's sun:
make harvest of to-day.
[tr. Gladstone (1894)]E'en while we speak, envious life will fly; --
So make use of to-day, trusting the next, little as possible.
[tr. Phelps (1897)]While we are talking envious time steals on:
Catch to-day's joy and give the morrow but a minimum of trust.
[tr. Garnsey (1907)]Ev'n as we speak, grim Time
speeds swift away;
Seize now and here the hour that is. nor trust
some later day!
[tr. Marshall (1908)]Even while we speak, envious Time has sped. Reap the harvest of to-day, putting as little trust as may be in the morrow!
[tr. Bennett (Loeb) (1912)]E'en while we speak time, grudging time, has fled; snatch eagerly
Each day, and trust the morrow's grace as little as may be.
[tr. Mills (1924)]Even while
We talk Time, hateful, runs a mile.
Don't trust tomorrow's bough
For fruit. Pluck this, here, now.
[tr. Michie (1963)]Time goes running, even
As we talk. Take the present, the future's no one's affair.
[tr. Raffel (1983)]Now as I say these words,
Time has already fled
Backwards away --
Leuconoe --
Hold on to the day.
[tr. Ferry (1997)]While we converse, envious time will have vanished: harvest
Today, placing the least credence on what’s to come.
[tr. Willett (1998)]Even as we speak, envious Time is fleeing.
Seize the day: entrusting as little as possible to tomorrow.
[tr. Alexander (1999)]The envious moment is flying now, now, while we’re speaking:
Seize the day, place in the hours that come as little faith as you can.
[tr. Kline (2015)]While we are speaking, envious life
will have fled: seize the day, trusting the future as little as possible.
[tr. Wikisource (2021)]
When your neighbor’s wall is on fire, it becomes your business.
[Num tua res agitur paries cum proximus ardet.]
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Epistles, Book 1, Epistle 18, l. 84 (c. 20 BC and 14 BC)
Alt trans.: "It is your concern when your neighbor's wall is on fire."
It is sweet to let the mind unbend on occasion.
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
(Attributed)
A host is like a general. It takes a mishap to reveal his genius.
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
Satires, Book II, Satire 8 (35 BC)
A jest often decides matters of importance more effectively and happily than seriousness.
Horace (65-8 BC) Roman poet and satirist [Quintus Horacius Flaccus]
(Attributed)