I am, indeed, a king, because I know how to rule myself.

I am, indeed, a king, because I know how to rule myself.

When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one's self, and one always ends by deceiving others. That read more

When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one's self, and one always ends by deceiving others. That is what world calls a romance.

Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some read more

Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some orthodoxy. Every artistic innovation was denounced as fraud and folly. The entire web of culture and "progress," everything on earth that is man-made and not given to us by nature, is the concrete manifestation of some man's refusal to bow to Authority. We would own no more, know no more, and be no more than the first apelike hominids if it were not for the rebellious, the recalcitrant, and the intransigent. As Oscar Wilde truly said, "Disobedience was man's Original Virtue."

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.

I don't at all like knowing what people say of me behind my back. It makes me far too conceited.

I don't at all like knowing what people say of me behind my back. It makes me far too conceited.

A human being has so many skins inside, covering the depths of the heart. We know so many things, but read more

A human being has so many skins inside, covering the depths of the heart. We know so many things, but we don't know ourselves! Why, thirty or forty skins or hides, as thick and hard as an ox's or bear's, cover the soul. Go into your own ground and learn to know yourself there.

We must recognize ourselves in others before we can acknowledge otherness in ourselves.

We must recognize ourselves in others before we can acknowledge otherness in ourselves.

Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with read more

Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel, as a reminder of your strength.

The final mystery is oneself.

The final mystery is oneself.