Sometimes, indeed, there is such a discrepancy between the genius and his human qualities that one has to ask oneself whether a little less talent might not have been better.

In less than a hundred years, we have found a new way to think of ourselves. From sitting at the center of the universe, we now find ourselves orbiting an average-sized sun, which is just one of millions of stars in our own Milky Way galaxy.

You say that you are my judge; I do not know if you are; but take good heed not to judge me ill, because you would put yourself in great peril.

The slave is doomed to worship time and fate and death, because they are greater than anything he finds in himself, and because all his thoughts are of things which they devour.

I feel that my fans have cultivated my talent and they continue to nurture me.

Adversity leads us to think properly of our state, and so is most beneficial to us.

All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.

It is impossible to underrate human intelligence – beginning with one’s own.

There is a piece of me that likes to fondly imagine my maverick and rebellious nature. But, more accurately, I like to have a nice and cosy institution that I can rub up against a little bit.

There are some singers that know exactly when to go, and others hang on much too long and that is the same, that is the same with judges.

Sometimes I write stuff that strangely predicts what’s going to happen in my life.

The greatest pride, or the greatest despondency, is the greatest ignorance of one’s self.

To be angry is to revenge the faults of others on ourselves.

Whosoever is delighted in solitude is either a wild beast or a god.

Desperation is sometimes as powerful an inspirer as genius.

I am always wary of decisions made hastily. I am always wary of the first decision, that is, the first thing that comes to my mind if I have to make a decision. This is usually the wrong thing. I have to wait and assess, looking deep into myself, taking the necessary time.

I am proud of having done what I’ve done. Very proud.

To be ashamed of one’s immorality: that is a step on the staircase at whose end one is also ashamed of one’s morality.

Genius is patience.

Man the individual consoles himself for his passing with the thought of the offspring or the works which he leaves behind.

Now, you lose something in your life, or you come into a conflict, and there’s gonna come a time that you’re gonna know: There was a reason for that. And at the end of your life, all the things you thought were periods, they turn out to be commas. There was never a full stop in any of it.

I’m not going to lie; listen, I’m nice at basketball.

One’s real life is so often the life that one does not lead.

Why do I not seek some real good; one which I could feel, not one which I could display?

I will be unhappy if I know I have not accomplished something I should have done that was possible.

I thought it completely absurd to mention my name in the same breath as the presidency.

A just and reasonable modesty does not only recommend eloquence, but sets off every great talent which a man can be possessed of.

Today, I’d like to talk to Bob Marley. I’d just like to ask him what was his method. Bob is one of the greatest songwriters ever. I don’t know if people understand how powerful his songs are and the simplicity and genius behind them, from ‚Redemption Song‘ to ‚Is This Love?‘ and ‚I Shot the Sheriff.‘

In whatever adulation you get, there’s truth and there’s not truth. And wherever they dog you, and they say it was horrible – there’s truth and there’s not truth. It’s human nature to like to read the adulation more.

It’s much worse to read criticism about your son than yourself.

I like to recede away from classifications. You might say that indicates a fundamental lack of commitment. I suppose that’s true to some degree.

How do I confront aging? With a wonder and a terror. Yeah, I’ll say that. Wonder and terror.

The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm.

In each action we must look beyond the action at our past, present, and future state, and at others whom it affects, and see the relations of all those things. And then we shall be very cautious.

I used to worry about every little thing, trying to figure out every problem. Well, I realize now how foolish that was. I was no more in control of my life than the man on the moon.

The man who complains about the way the ball bounces is likely the one who dropped it.

There are things which a man is afraid to tell even to himself, and every decent man has a number of such things stored away in his mind.

People don’t usually compliment your character.

If I had any talent that God could give me, I would be a great diva.

The hippie movement politicized my generation. When it ended, we all started looking back at our own history, looking, in my case, for motives of rebellion.

If you are lonely when you’re alone, you are in bad company.

We identify in our experience a differentiation between what we do and what happens to us.

What comes out when life squeezes you? When someone hurts or offends you? If anger, pain and fear come out of you, it’s because that’s what’s inside.

I would like to be remembered as someone who did the best she could with the talent she had.

Children’s talent to endure stems from their ignorance of alternatives.

It is not enough to be busy. So are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?

At fifty everyone has the face he deserves.

I believe things cannot make themselves impossible.

I don’t think I’m tangible to myself.

Have you ever asked yourselves what you are going to do when you grow up? In all likelihood you will get married, and before you know where you are, you will be mothers and fathers; and you will then be tied to a job, or to the kitchen, in which you will gradually wither away. Is that all that your life is going to be?

Some people can just let things go, but I can’t, especially if there’s something that worries me or makes me sad.

Genius is a potential that lives within you and every other human being. You have many moments of genius in your lifetime. These are the times when you have a uniquely brilliant idea and implement it even if only you are aware of how fantastic it is.

It is a most mortifying reflection for a man to consider what he has done, compared to what he might have done.

Everyone has noticed how hard it is to turn our thoughts to God when everything is going well with us… While what we call ‚our own life‘ remains agreeable, we will not surrender it to Him. What, then, can God do in our interests but make ‚our own life‘ less agreeable to us, and take away the plausible sources of false happiness?

To see things in the seed, that is genius.

I walk every day, and I look at the mountains and the fields and the small city, and I say: ‚Oh my God, what a blessing.‘ Then you realise it’s important to put it in a context beyond this woman, this man, this city, this country, this universe.

We are all geniuses up to the age of ten.

Confession of errors is like a broom which sweeps away the dirt and leaves the surface brighter and clearer. I feel stronger for confession.

I think my worst problem is actually living in the moment and understanding everything that’s going on. I feel like I’m in my own bubble.

I more fear what is within me than what comes from without.

Hip-hop saved my life, man. It’s the only thing I’ve ever been even decent at. I don’t know how to do anything else.