The proper study of Man is anything but Man; and the most improper job of any man, even saints (who at any rate were at least unwilling to take it on), is bossing other men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek the opportunity.

Can the mind see the truth of its own incapacity to know the unknown? Surely if I see very clearly that my mind cannot know the unknown, there is absolute quietness.

When it comes to the qualifications that we should demand of our president, to start with, we need someone who will take the job seriously.

All sciences are now under the obligation to prepare the ground for the future task of the philosopher, which is to solve the problem of value, to determine the true hierarchy of values.

There is nothing so terrible as activity without insight.

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new.

He is lost who is possessed by carnal desire.

Create a ladder of values and priorities in your life, reminding yourself of what really matters to you.

The fact is that people are good, Give people affection and security, and they will give affection and be secure in their feelings and their behavior.

We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.

It is not when truth is dirty, but when it is shallow, that the lover of knowledge is reluctant to step into its waters.

Every man casts a shadow; not his body only, but his imperfectly mingled spirit. This is his grief. Let him turn which way he will, it falls opposite to the sun; short at noon, long at eve. Did you never see it?

If you are living out of a sense of obligation you are slave.

Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.

Hatred is self-punishment.

I believe Karl Marx could have subscribed to the Sermon on the Mount.

Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued.

I don’t make people bend over backwards, and I don’t like that in people. I am definitely no diva.

The art of being a slave is to rule one’s master.

Fame doesn’t fulfill you. It warms you a bit, but that warmth is temporary.

He that overvalues himself will undervalue others, and he that undervalues others will oppress them.

The power of our thoughts may never be measured or appreciated, but it became obvious to me as a young boy that there was value and power in being aware of my thoughts and how I expressed myself.

In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.

If you’re losing your soul and you know it, then you’ve still got a soul left to lose.

It is important to remember yourself.

A little philosophy inclineth man’s mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy bringeth men’s minds about to religion.

It sure is hell to be president.

Philosophy begins in wonder.

If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid.

He who doesn’t pray to the Lord prays to the devil.

As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy.

My theory has always been, that if we are to dream, the flatteries of hope are as cheap, and pleasanter, than the gloom of despair.

All nature is but art unknown to thee.

Silence is a source of great strength.

I’m a strict, strict agnostic. It’s very different from a casual, ‚I don’t know.‘ It’s that you cannot present as knowledge something that is not knowledge. You can present it as faith, you can present it as belief, but you can’t present it as fact.

My message isn’t perfectly defined. I have, as a human being, fallen to peer pressure.

To observations which ourselves we make, we grow more partial for th‘ observer’s sake.

A new philosophy generally means in practice the praise of some old vice.

Things in themselves have no life in them. A car can’t comfort or encourage you. A house means nothing if there’s no life and love inside.

The Canteen Boy, the reason you feel bad for him and you can laugh is because he, and I guess a lot of my characters, they don’t notice they’re getting made fun of. So they’ll say something back that’s not that great a quip, but in their mind they won the argument.

Gray Davis can run a dirty campaign better than anyone, but he can’t run a state.

Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, something is out of tune.

We are to admit no more causes of natural things than such as are both true and sufficient to explain their appearances.

There’s only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.

I had a period in my life where I decided that I would never be bored again and that, if I had any free time at all, I would make plans, and I would always be doing things. It actually was great for a year or so, but then I lost all of my friends.

The President is not only the leader of a party, he is the President of the whole people. He must interpret the conscience of America. He must guide his conduct by the idealism of our people.

You know, when I have a bad game, it continues to humble me and know that, you know, you still have work to do and you still have a lot of people to impress.

To be a real philosopher all that is necessary is to hate some one else’s type of thinking.

At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.

I talk to myself all the time. Just make sure you answer.

Certainly I’m not going to sit on the Internet all day and read what Sam from Iowa is saying about me. But I’m a sponge. I’ve always been a sponge.

Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.

You know I vowed when I became President not to talk about the loneliest toughest job in the world and I didn’t.

Some single mind must be master, else there will be no agreement in anything.

I actually don’t want a throne at all, because I don’t view myself as a queen; I view myself as one of my fans.

I am often asked if, when I was secretary, I had problems with foreign men. That is not who I had problems with, because I arrived in a very large plane that said United States of America. I had more problems with the men in our own government.

My ‚fear‘ is my substance, and probably the best part of me.

If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking.

There are a lot of people who don’t know me and what I am all about.

You don’t need anybody to tell you who you are or what you are. You are what you are!

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