Why are we here? Where do we come from? Traditionally, these are questions for philosophy, but philosophy is dead.

It is much more secure to be feared than to be loved.

Every art and every inquiry, and similarly every action and choice, is thought to aim at some good; and for this reason the good has rightly been declared to be that at which all things aim.

Only a philosophy of eternity, in the world today, could justify non-violence.

To free a person from error is to give, and not to take away.

Blessedness is not the reward of virtue but virtue itself.

The philosophical question before us is, when we make an observation of our track in the past, does the result of our observation become real in the same sense that the final state would be defined if an outside observer were to make the observation?

Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does.

Everything that exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be.

Base souls have no faith in great individuals.

O God, O God, how weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world!

There’s this lingering philosophy that movie stars shouldn’t do TV.

It is better to have your head in the clouds, and know where you are… than to breathe the clearer atmosphere below them, and think that you are in paradise.

Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.

One has to pay dearly for immortality; one has to die several times while one is still alive.

How could man rejoice in victory and delight in the slaughter of men?

Death does not concern us, because as long as we exist, death is not here. And when it does come, we no longer exist.

What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?

Whoever thinks a faultless piece to see, Thinks what ne’er was, nor is, nor e’er shall be.

What difference is there between us, save a restless dream that follows my soul but fears to come near you?

Only that thing is free which exists by the necessities of its own nature, and is determined in its actions by itself alone.

Art, like morality, consists in drawing the line somewhere.

Moderation is the center wherein all philosophies, both human and divine, meet.

I remain convinced that obstinate addiction to ordinary language in our private thoughts is one of the main obstacles to progress in philosophy.

The great quest of life has always been to discover truth.

He that does good to another does good also to himself.

Culture: the cry of men in face of their destiny.

Thought and theory must precede all salutary action; yet action is nobler in itself than either thought or theory.

A man’s as miserable as he thinks he is.

The foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.

The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.

That God does not exist, I cannot deny, That my whole being cries out for God I cannot forget.

In this possibly terminal phase of human existence, democracy and freedom are more than just ideals to be valued – they may be essential to survival.

With the possible exception of the equator, everything begins somewhere.

Reason is the enemy of faith.

I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road.

Paradise was made for tender hearts; hell, for loveless hearts.

Why am I here? I’m not lucky. That’s God.

There is no chance and anarchy in the universe. All is system and gradation. Every god is there sitting in his sphere.

Anybody can be specific and obvious. That’s always been the easy way. It’s not that it’s so difficult to be unspecific and less obvious; it’s just that there’s nothing, absolutely nothing, to be specific and obvious about.

That deep emotional conviction of the presence of a superior reasoning power, which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe, forms my idea of God.

I do not concern myself with gods and spirits either good or evil nor do I serve any.

Never in any case say I have lost such a thing, but I have returned it. Is your child dead? It is a return. Is your wife dead? It is a return. Are you deprived of your estate? Is not this also a return?

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.

It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.

Europe was created by history. America was created by philosophy.

Who shall decide when doctors disagree, And soundest casuists doubt, like you and me?

The question of whether or not there is a God or truth or reality or whatever you like to call it, can never be answered by books, by priests, philosopher’s or saviours. Nobody and nothing can answer the question but you yourself, and that is why you must know yourself – Immaturity lies only in total ignorance of self.

The first step in the evolution of ethics is a sense of solidarity with other human beings.

Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.

Man – a being in search of meaning.

You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist.

To be conscious means not simply to be, but to be reported, known, to have awareness of one’s being added to that being.

Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life.

We are not living in a world where all roads are radii of a circle and where all, if followed long enough, will therefore draw gradually nearer and finally meet at the centre: rather in a world where every road, after a few miles, forks into two, and each of those into two again, and at each fork, you must make a decision.

So act that your principle of action might safely be made a law for the whole world.

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.

Every man has the right to risk his own life in order to preserve it. Has it ever been said that a man who throws himself out the window to escape from a fire is guilty of suicide?

It seems to me that if you or I must choose between two courses of thought or action, we should remember our dying and try so to live that our death brings no pleasure on the world.

Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides.

Wisdom is found only in truth.