It is the sign of a great mind to dislike greatness, and to prefer things in measure to things in excess.

When you are right you cannot be too radical; when you are wrong, you cannot be too conservative.

Forty is the old age of youth, fifty is the youth of old age.

Always the beautiful answer who asks a more beautiful question.

The man who throws a bomb is an artist, because he prefers a great moment to everything.

Great indebtedness does not make men grateful, but vengeful; and if a little charity is not forgotten, it turns into a gnawing worm.

But Satan now is wiser than of yore, and tempts by making rich, not making poor.

A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.

Virtue is a habit of the mind, consistent with nature and moderation and reason.

Great men, unknown to their generation, have their fame among the great who have preceded them, and all true worldly fame subsides from their high estimate beyond the stars.

It’s pretty hard to be efficient without being obnoxious.

I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.

In the vain laughter of folly wisdom hears half its applause.

Admiration is the daughter of ignorance.

It is not by muscle, speed, or physical dexterity that great things are achieved, but by reflection, force of character, and judgment.

The endeavor to understand is the first and only basis of virtue.

The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding.

It is said that the present is pregnant with the future.

After many years of great mercy, after tasting of the powers of the world to come, we still are so weak, so foolish; but, oh! when we get away from self to God, there all is truth and purity and holiness, and our heart finds peace, wisdom, completeness, delight, joy, victory.

‚Do you spell it with a ‚V‘ or a ‚W‘?‘ inquired the judge. ‚That depends upon the taste and fancy of the speller, my Lord‘.

True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.

To be great is to be misunderstood.

Life being very short, and the quiet hours of it few, we ought to waste none of them in reading valueless books.

The assumption is that your personal life has to be a mess to create, but how much chaos can you allow in before it takes over?

Sometimes the majority just means all the fools are on the same side.

Shun no toil to make yourself remarkable by some talent or other; yet do not devote yourself to one branch exclusively. Strive to get clear notions about all. Give up no science entirely; for science is but one.

If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men’s cottage princes‘ palaces.

Those who have knowledge, don’t predict. Those who predict, don’t have knowledge.

Nature abhors annihilation.

Common sense is genius dressed in its working clothes.

Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.

To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge.

There is a very fine line between loving life and being greedy for it.

In America the young are always ready to give to those who are older than themselves the full benefits of their inexperience.

I’m considered wise, and sometimes I see myself as knowing. Most of the time, I see myself as wanting to know. And I see myself as a very interested person. I’ve never been bored in my life.

Magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom; and a great empire and little minds go ill together.

He who loves 50 people has 50 woes; he who loves no one has no woes.

Clearly older women and especially older women who have led an active life or elder women who successfully maneuver through their own family life have so much to teach us about sharing, patience, and wisdom.

Just as discipline and freedom are opposing forces that must be balanced, leadership requires finding the equilibrium in the dichotomy of many seemingly contradictory qualities between one extreme and another.

Many foxes grow gray but few grow good.

I never give advice unless someone asks me for it. One thing I’ve learned, and possibly the only advice I have to give, is to not be that person giving out unsolicited advice based on your own personal experience.

The least initial deviation from the truth is multiplied later a thousandfold.

Old age is like everything else. To make a success of it, you’ve got to start young.

As the eagle was killed by the arrow winged with his own feather, so the hand of the world is wounded by its own skill.

No man can taste the fruits of autumn while he is delighting his scent with the flowers of spring.

Moderation has been called a virtue to limit the ambition of great men, and to console undistinguished people for their want of fortune and their lack of merit.

They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it’s not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.

He is a hard man who is only just, and a sad one who is only wise.

Information is not knowledge.

The most perfect political community is one in which the middle class is in control, and outnumbers both of the other classes.

One man that has a mind and knows it can always beat ten men who haven’t and don’t.

Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.

As a lifestyle you always being the focal point is innately unhealthy.

I have many regrets, and I’m sure everyone does. The stupid things you do, you regret… if you have any sense, and if you don’t regret them, maybe you’re stupid.

To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.

Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.

When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.

Never was anything great achieved without danger.

So many people have this idea: I want to achieve something great or be somebody great. And they neglect the step that leads to greatness. They don’t honor this step at this moment because they have this idea of some future moment where they are going to be great.

It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.

The two powers which in my opinion constitute a wise man are those of bearing and forbearing.