Reflections and Maxims [Réflexions et maximes] (1746) [tr. Lee (1903)] - Vauvenargues, Luc de

To accomplish great things we must live as though we had never to die.

[Pour exécuter de grandes choses, il faut vivre comme si on ne devait jamais mourir.]

Luc de Clapiers, Marquis de Vauvenargues (1715-1747) French moralist, essayist, soldier

Reflections and Maxims [Réflexions et maximes] (1746) [tr. Lee (1903)]

Alt. trans.:
"In order to carry out great enterprises, one must live as if one will never have to die."
"In order to achieve great things, we must live as though we were never going to die."