I have, alas! Philosophy, Medicine, Jurisprudence too, And to my cost Theology, With ardent labor, studied through. And here I stand, with all my lore, Poor fool, no wiser than before.
There is no past we can bring back by longing for it. There is only an eternal now that builds and creates out of the past something new and better.
Beware of her fair hair, for she excels All women in the magic of her locks; And when she winds them round a young man’s neck, She will not ever set him free again.
I nothing had, and yet enough for youth – Joy in Illusion, ardent thirst for Truth. Give unrestrained, the old emotion, The bliss that touched the verge of pain, The strength of Hate, Love’s deep devotion, – O, give me back my youth again!
When she sees the leaves fall, they raise no other idea in her mind than that winter is approaching.
And I like those authors best whose scenes describe my own situation in life – and the friends who are about me whose stories touch me with interest, from resembling my own homely existence.
My days are as happy as those reserved by God for his elect; and whatever be my fate hereafter, I can never say that I have not tasted joy – the purest joy of life.
The world runs on from one folly to another; and the man who, solely from regard to the opinion of others, and without any wish or necessity of his own, toils after gold, honour, or any other phantom, is no better than a fool.
I am amazed to see how deliberately I have entangled myself step by step. To have seen my position so clearly, and yet to have acted so like a child!
The suffering may be moral or physical; and in my opinion it is just as absurd to call a man a coward who destroys himself, as to call a man a coward who dies of a malignant fever.
How many kings are governed by their ministers, how many ministers by their secretaries? Who, in such cases, is really the chief?
What a torment it is to see so much loveliness passing and repassing before us, and yet not dare to lay hold of it!
Is this the destiny of man? Is he only happy before he has acquired his reason or after he has lost it?
I’ve often heard it said a preacher might learn with a comedian for a teacher.
Man is not born to solve the problem of the universe, but to find out what he has to do; and to restrain himself within the limits of his comprehension.
A rainbow which lasts for a quarter of an hour is looked at no longer.
Truth is contrary to our nature, not so error, and this for a very simple reason: truth demands that we should recognize ourselves as limited, error flatters us that, in one way or another, we are unlimited.
Everyone is deceived in his hopes, cheated in his expectations.
I was oppressed with the sensations I then felt; I sunk under the weight of them.
For many people, one of the most frustrating aspects of life is not being able to understand other people’s behavior.