New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.

New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.

Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from none but self expect applause;He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes read more

Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from none but self expect applause;He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes and keeps his self-made laws.

It is important that man dreams, but it is perhaps equally important that he can laugh at his own dreams.

It is important that man dreams, but it is perhaps equally important that he can laugh at his own dreams.

It is the acquisition of skills in particular, irrespective of their utility, that is potent in making life meaningful. Since read more

It is the acquisition of skills in particular, irrespective of their utility, that is potent in making life meaningful. Since man has no inborn skills, the survival of the species has depended on the ability to acquire and perfect skills. Hence the mastery of skills is a uniquely human activity and yields deep satisfaction.

Truth...never comes into the world but like a Bastard, to the ignominy of him that brought her forth.

Truth...never comes into the world but like a Bastard, to the ignominy of him that brought her forth.

To ripen a person for self-sacrifice he must be stripped of his individual identity and distinctness. He must cease to read more

To ripen a person for self-sacrifice he must be stripped of his individual identity and distinctness. He must cease to be George, Hans, Ivan or Tadao- a human atom with an existence bounded by birth and death. The most drastic way to achieve this end is by complete assimilation of the individual into a collective body. The fully assimilated individual does not see himself and others as human beings. When asked who he is, his automatic response is that he is a German, a Russian, a Japanese, a Christian, a Moslem, a member of a certain tribe or family. He has no purpose, worth and destiny apart from his collective body; and as long as that body lives he cannot really die.

A line runs from the meditations of the heart to the words of the mouth. The meditations are not clear read more

A line runs from the meditations of the heart to the words of the mouth. The meditations are not clear to us until the mouth utters its words. If what the mouth utters is unclear or foolish or mendacious, it must be that the meditations are the same. But the line runs both ways. The words of the mouth will become the meditations of the heart, and the habit of loose talk loosens the fastenings of our understanding.

What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone, cease to exist.

What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone, cease to exist.

Now as of old the gods give men all good things, excepting only those that are baneful and injurious and read more

Now as of old the gods give men all good things, excepting only those that are baneful and injurious and useless. These, now as of old, are not gifts of the gods: men stumble into them themselves because of their own blindness and folly.