Hey all! I have a friend who is always throwing quotes at me, and we've each started our own lists (hence the Draeisms in my signature and statuses). I just reached Draeism #57: "The bee that stings surely dies. Revenge is not so sweet a nectar as forgiveness." So I was wondering, what are your favorite "words of wisdom?" From whom? Do you have any of your own? I'm itching to see what quotes we writers hold onto. They can be funny, deep, whatever you got. If you've got one or two or however many to share, comment below, let me know! Here are some to start: "Whatever you are, be a good one." - Abraham Lincoln "Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age 18" - Albert Einstein "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used to create them." - Albert Einstein
My favorite (right now) is pretty obvious. It's Shakespeare, from Hamlet: "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy." It's a nice, poetic way of saying, "Shut up, you ignorant jackass." I'm sure I'll think of more.
I'll have to remember that one! I love it! I really love Polonius' advice to Laertes. Not really a quote, but a monologue loaded full of things to remember:
Unless you've got a DeLorean and a flux capacitor, don't stress over shit you can't change. - Garball
The biggest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he never existed. - the usual suspects Lets show this prehistoric bitch how we do things down town - ghostbusters ITS DR VENKMAN - ghostbusters QUAPLA - Klingon for success Live long and prosper, peace and long life - Vulcan philosophy Always 2 there are - yoda One shall stand one shall fall - Optimus Prime No way two can play - Blaster (Transformers) The enemy's gate is down - Enders game EPIC - a friend of mine always says this, just had to put it in here Anyway Quapla quit your fracken "greetin" ya wee wayne oh and go eat shtako, shtako brain...
I have 12 pages of quotes, collected over several years, but I'll just pick a few favorites of mine (in addition to the one in my signature). What the heck, let's make it an even dozen to match the number of pages: “It is good taste, and good taste alone, that possesses the power to sterilize and is always the first handicap to any creative functioning.” -Salvador Dali “We step from one piece of holy ground to the next, under stars that ask: ‘Imagine for one second you could drop in on a past life. What would charm you, make you proud?’ Ask yourself that, and the question of what to do in this life becomes so simple it’s terrifying.” -Alex Ventoux “The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.” -William Blake “Hard pressed on my right. My center is yielding. Impossible to maneuver. Situation excellent. I am attacking.” -Ferdinand Foch “I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him.” -Mark Twain “Learn to lick your wounds for the taste.” -Jay Randall “From one thing, know ten thousand things.” -Miyamoto Musashi “If it is not tempered in the forge of experience, knowledge can become a wank-fest of self-congratulatory narcissism.” -Geoff Thompson “Without deviation from the norm, ‘progress’ is not possible.” -Frank Zappa “Michelle, I don't regret this, but I both rue and lament it.” -Philip J. Fry “Wherever we go, whatever happens, Mickey, when I look up at the stars, I’ll know you’ll be lookin’ up at the same ones.” -Mallory Knox
T. Trian I just noticed your quote at the bottom - Albert Einstein now that one I like a lot... One word for that. EPIC And that girl Mr Einstein will win my heart more than the phoney baloney crowd surfing tool.
@T.Trian Thanks for such a full list! Those are some nice ones. but My favorite of the list has to be: followed by :
Pleasant it is, when over the great sea the winds shake the waters, To gaze down from shore on the trials of others; Not because seeing other people struggle is sweet to us, But because the fact that we ourselves are free from such ills strikes us as pleasant. Pleasant it is also to behold great armies battling on a plain, When we ourselves have no part in their peril. But nothing is sweeter than to occupy a lofty sanctuary of the mind, Well fortified with the teachings of the wise, Where we may look down on others as they stumble along, Vainly searching for the true path of life. - Lucretius, On the Nature of Things
A diamond with a flaw is more valuable then a pebble without imperfections. (Chinese proverb). Lie to me, but lie originally, and I'll kiss you for it. To go wrong in one's own way is better than to go right in someone else's. In the first case you are a man, in the second you're no better than a parrot. (Razumihin in 'Crime and Punishment' ) Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world. (Marilyn Monroe)
Original maïa profundities [via ‘mother’/whatever?] That some do evil gives none the right to do evil in return. maïa Having once recognized truth, one can never again take comfort or pleasure from its compromise. maïa Philosophy is not something you can learn, but you can learn to think philosophically. maïa Nothing is impossible until you quit & nothing is possible unless you start. maïa Though I may frequently do & think stupid, dumb things, I have been designed to be capable of greatness in my smallest, least self-serving act toward others... it only remains for me to prove this, by LIVING it. maïa When a man isn’t conducting a war against others, he’s at war with himself. maïa Time is never wasted on thinking/doing foolish things, if it leads one to a useful truth. maïa The only person one has a right [&, in my opinion, a duty!] to laugh at, is oneself! maïa Confucius say [or should have!]: Man of small intelligence need to shout. Those with words of great import can whisper and will be heard around the world. maïa a few of my 'profound blends': Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. George Santayana Those who teach the past ensure that it will be repeated. maïa Man is the only creature that refuses to be what he is. Albert Camus Man is the only creature that refuses to see what he is. maïa I think, therefore I am. René Descartes I am, therefore I will think. maïa some from the 'greats': The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. Edmund Burke You must be the change you wish to see in the world. Gandhi There are two sides to every issue: one side is right and the other is wrong, but the middle is always evil. Ayn Rand for many more: http://www.saysmom.com/maia/content.asp?Writing=112
Ow! I dislike this one. Major schadenfreude here. I know Lucretius disavowed that in the third line, but I don't believe him. Methinks he protests too much. I find this being-happy-while-looking-down-on-the-miserable attitude rather ugly.
'A society grows great when old men plant trees under whose shade they know they will not sit in' - Greek proverb. 'As child to the mother, as the cub to the bitch. Small things grow, and become large and important.' - Virgil, Eclogue 1 (my own translation) 'While we've spoke, time would have slowly slipped away. Seize the day, and trust little in the next one' - Horace, Ode 1.11
Ah, those Greeks and their fondness for superabundances of prepositions! Here's one of my favorites, from Confucius: "A man who has made a mistake and does not correct it is making another mistake."
@Kramitdfrog, I've often wondered why he used the word "girl" instead of "man" as is often customary, especially in older quotes, but I like the fact that he did. @minstrel, Cheers. I would've never expected anyone to pick Randall's as one of their favorites from the bunch, but I guess good ideas come from all walks of life and good lyrics from all genres of music. Although Yamamoto Tsunetomo was never in a fight himself and Hagakure does have it's short-comings, there are some good insights in it as well as nice anecdotes: "At the time when there was a council concerning the promotion of a certain man, the council members were at the point of deciding that promotion was useless because of the fact that the man had previously been involved in a drunken brawl. But someone said, 'If we were to cast aside every man who had made a mistake once, useful men could probably not be come by. A man who makes a mistake once will be considerably more prudent and useful because of his repentance. I feel that he should be promoted.' Someone else then asked, 'Will you guarantee him?' The man replied, 'Of course I will.' The others asked, 'By what will you guarantee him?' And he replied, 'I can guarentee him by the fact that he is a man who has erred once. A man who has never once erred is dangerous.' This said, the man was promoted."
A one I like and find quite wise: 'Man is not a Yahoo, but he is rather like a Yahoo and needs to be reminded of it from time to time' - George Orwell
Seeing some real good ones here, guys! I love the variety! @mammamaia I was hoping you would share what you've learned, and you have come through! ha ha those are brilliant! ^These two here is now on my favorites list! Here are a few more: Draeism #8: "To reflect on the past is to learn from it. To dwell on the past is to live in it. In a world that is constantly moving forward, walking in the past only take us that much further from the blessings of the future." Draeism #49: "If you want peace, practice humility. If you want joy, practice kindness. If you want love, practice love." "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." - Albert Einstein "Everything should be as simple as it is, but not simpler." Albert Einstein "Books are as useful to a stupid person as a mirrors is useful to a blind person. Chanakya "Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." Francis of Assisi "There are book of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts." - Charles Dickens
I like the things Albert Einstein has said. My possible favorite: "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." -Oscar Wilde
@We Are Cartographers I know what you mean, and I try not to quote people unless I'm convinced the attribution is worth holding. This one, , is brought into question a bit and can often be traced back to a poet whose name I forget. Even so, I am well aware of the error margin for quotations on the internet. Everyone has their own agenda...(-.-) So if I'm not quite sure, who said what, but I like the quote, I just put uncertain.
thanks for your kind words, andrae!... glad you liked 'em... 'less compelling'?! the truth in that statement is unassailable, imo, no matter who said it, or what the context was... but some oft-quoted words of wisdom do get skewed over time, as did what i used to quote from the mahatma [or so i assumed], 'you must be the change you wish to see in the world'... while that is good advice indeed, i recently discovered that he never said those words... so had to change my sig quote to be accurate, though i much prefer the 'original' that wasn't the original at all!
I wear Agoraphobic Nosebleed, how's that for obscure? Though that doesn't mean I don't like the occasional, more fashionable accessory as long as it looks good on me.