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Abafi (1854)
A rossz társaságba keveredett, korhelykedő lovag úrfit egy fogadalma jó útra téríti. Rádöbben arra, mivel tartozik hazájának, és meg is tesz Erdélyért mindent, mind a közéletben, mind a csatamezőn. Derekasságáért el is nyeri három asszony és egy lány szerelmét. A törökellenes harcok és a lovagi párbajok hősének a szíve azonban Krisztierna fejedelemasszonyé… Hogyan áll helyt a szilárd jellemű, vitéz nemesifjú ebben a minden eddiginél veszélyesebb helyzetben? Hogyan sietnek segítségére szerelmei, ezek az áldozatos szívű, kitűnő teremtések? Nem kétséges: a kedves, szép, romantikus történet ma is szórakoztat, és tanulságul szolgál, számíthat a fiatal olvasók érdeklődésére. Hiszen valamikor – csaknem százötven éve – hatalmas sikert aratott, és nemzedékek nevelkedtek rajta egy évszázadon át. Most felújított és megfrissített szövegével ismét népszerű olvasmánya lehet közönségünknek.
- GenresFiction
444 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1836
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 27, 2020
I only read this book because Nikola Tesla said in his autobiography: "This work somehow awakened my dormant powers of will and I began to practice self-control. At first my resolutions faded like snow in April, but in a little while I conquered my weakness and felt a pleasure I never knew before - that of doing as I willed."
I couldn't pass up the opportunity to read a book that could potentially awaken my powers of will, so I bought the English translation of the e-book. The translation wasn't the best, and at times the story wasn't very readable, but the parts that were crucial to practicing self-control and practicing the power of will were clear. So, I have decided to take the quotes from the book that most likely inspired Tesla to begin practicing self-control to save others from having to slog through the novel to find them. Here they are:
Foreword: "I give you, the reader, a picture of a soul. Its intentions are serious and it shows that, with a strong will, every evil can be beaten. The road of perfection is hard, there are many setbacks to the bad things we are used to; but the greatness of the soul will win if it is able to want it."
Chapter 11: "We mentioned before that he vowed not to do anything bad for three months, and he got used to doing good. It was a half a year ago that the three months have passed, and he kept his word. What made him keep it is hard to understand, but from a psychological point of view, it is reasonable. We have seen his way of thinking; that he has seen the consequences of his acts. We also know, that he was noble and proud, but his decision was not because of pride. It was more likely because he wanted to go against the ones who said he was not able to practice abstinence."
"The first two weeks passed with boredom. He asked his henchmen often for wine. They brought it to him and sometimes he almost drank it, but then remembered the face of the man who called him a drunk and pushed the drink away. He spent the nights with a priest and argued with his servants. Everything bored him and he was drawn to his vices, but he had tremendous strength. This strength helped him to keep his word, down to the smallest details. A few days later Abafi started to change. He slept better, after all the nights he spent being awake with a messy life, and his body healed slowly. He started to feel lighter and happier. He woke up with more joy and his life seemed less boring. He was almost surprised how his life was happier and stronger this way."
"Abafi started to feel more like working as well. He vowed not to ride a horse, not to hunt, and some other nobler actions which provided joy to him before. Time started to feel empty and long for the healing and strong young man. He started looking after his fields, firstly because of boredom, later with more and more enthusiasm, which he could not unfold. But its root is east to find for someone who understands this process."
"The priest called him unique and told him many times that he is a man who can achieve great success and, because he is strong, he only needs to want it... The way Abafi became a better man is interesting for everyone. But, for him, it was a goal. He decided to achieve greatness."
Chapter 15: "These things can be explained easily. He sunk down back to his former life several times for a little while, and his will was not always there to stop him. But we can't say that these feelings disappeared easily and fast, and so his will to avoid such actions got stronger and stronger. As long as the regret of such actions hurt him very little, it was hard to resist them. But since his heart reacted strongly, his feelings got deeper and he felt stronger remorse... he believed his soul could be better and how he thought he was marching fast towards perfection. No! He decided not to leave this path again, and that he would despise everything wrong from this point on. He felt that he was strong enough to do so and kept his vows."
Chapter 27: "He started to believe and know how much the soul can do and take if it wants to. He trained his soul as well as he trained his body. At these times, Abafi was already considered to be among the most interesting young men in Transylvania, and how people treated him after his change just convinced him more that this was the way he had to take and follow."
So, the formula that Miklos Josika gives for strengthening one's power of will is the following:
1. Make a decision to refrain from evil and to do good.
2. Foresee the consequences of your actions.
3. Keep those in mind who say that you cannot do it; keep them in mind when you are tempted to do an action that you do not want to do.
4. The more regret/remorse/pain an action brings, the easier it will be to not do the action in the future. (Tesla wrote about this in his autobiography when his mother found out about his gambling addiction; seeing his mother hurt by his actions immediately brought his gambling addiction to an end.)
5. Willpower and confidence are increased by doing 1-3 above; so, it is best to start with small things that will eventually increase the willpower to do or resist greater things.
This may seem superficial, but its actually quite profound. I've been practicing with small things such as candy, which I was addicted to eating for quite some time, and certain foods that are not good for me. I make a decision to not eat them, and whenever I come across them at the store I think about how I will feel after I eat them. I do this with other foods that may have unhealthy food colorings and/or carcinogens listed on the ingredients. Although, it's not an easy thing to do, I know that my body will thank me for it later in life.
And, practicing with these smaller pleasures helps me build resistance against greater pleasures. For example as a teacher it's easy for me to put off grading papers because I don't like to do it and would rather spend time doing other leisure activities. But practicing willpower on small things (resisting pleasures such as candy, for example) gives me the confidence to resist putting off leisure because I've already been successful at exercising my willpower on candy.
The key is to PRACTICE steps 1-3 above, just like Abafi and Nikola Tesla did. When I stop practicing, I succumb easily to all pleasures.
At the end of the day, it's up to you to make the decision to refrain from doing something, to want not to do it, and to follow through on your decision using foresight of consequences and/or envisioning your detractors.
I couldn't pass up the opportunity to read a book that could potentially awaken my powers of will, so I bought the English translation of the e-book. The translation wasn't the best, and at times the story wasn't very readable, but the parts that were crucial to practicing self-control and practicing the power of will were clear. So, I have decided to take the quotes from the book that most likely inspired Tesla to begin practicing self-control to save others from having to slog through the novel to find them. Here they are:
Foreword: "I give you, the reader, a picture of a soul. Its intentions are serious and it shows that, with a strong will, every evil can be beaten. The road of perfection is hard, there are many setbacks to the bad things we are used to; but the greatness of the soul will win if it is able to want it."
Chapter 11: "We mentioned before that he vowed not to do anything bad for three months, and he got used to doing good. It was a half a year ago that the three months have passed, and he kept his word. What made him keep it is hard to understand, but from a psychological point of view, it is reasonable. We have seen his way of thinking; that he has seen the consequences of his acts. We also know, that he was noble and proud, but his decision was not because of pride. It was more likely because he wanted to go against the ones who said he was not able to practice abstinence."
"The first two weeks passed with boredom. He asked his henchmen often for wine. They brought it to him and sometimes he almost drank it, but then remembered the face of the man who called him a drunk and pushed the drink away. He spent the nights with a priest and argued with his servants. Everything bored him and he was drawn to his vices, but he had tremendous strength. This strength helped him to keep his word, down to the smallest details. A few days later Abafi started to change. He slept better, after all the nights he spent being awake with a messy life, and his body healed slowly. He started to feel lighter and happier. He woke up with more joy and his life seemed less boring. He was almost surprised how his life was happier and stronger this way."
"Abafi started to feel more like working as well. He vowed not to ride a horse, not to hunt, and some other nobler actions which provided joy to him before. Time started to feel empty and long for the healing and strong young man. He started looking after his fields, firstly because of boredom, later with more and more enthusiasm, which he could not unfold. But its root is east to find for someone who understands this process."
"The priest called him unique and told him many times that he is a man who can achieve great success and, because he is strong, he only needs to want it... The way Abafi became a better man is interesting for everyone. But, for him, it was a goal. He decided to achieve greatness."
Chapter 15: "These things can be explained easily. He sunk down back to his former life several times for a little while, and his will was not always there to stop him. But we can't say that these feelings disappeared easily and fast, and so his will to avoid such actions got stronger and stronger. As long as the regret of such actions hurt him very little, it was hard to resist them. But since his heart reacted strongly, his feelings got deeper and he felt stronger remorse... he believed his soul could be better and how he thought he was marching fast towards perfection. No! He decided not to leave this path again, and that he would despise everything wrong from this point on. He felt that he was strong enough to do so and kept his vows."
Chapter 27: "He started to believe and know how much the soul can do and take if it wants to. He trained his soul as well as he trained his body. At these times, Abafi was already considered to be among the most interesting young men in Transylvania, and how people treated him after his change just convinced him more that this was the way he had to take and follow."
So, the formula that Miklos Josika gives for strengthening one's power of will is the following:
1. Make a decision to refrain from evil and to do good.
2. Foresee the consequences of your actions.
3. Keep those in mind who say that you cannot do it; keep them in mind when you are tempted to do an action that you do not want to do.
4. The more regret/remorse/pain an action brings, the easier it will be to not do the action in the future. (Tesla wrote about this in his autobiography when his mother found out about his gambling addiction; seeing his mother hurt by his actions immediately brought his gambling addiction to an end.)
5. Willpower and confidence are increased by doing 1-3 above; so, it is best to start with small things that will eventually increase the willpower to do or resist greater things.
This may seem superficial, but its actually quite profound. I've been practicing with small things such as candy, which I was addicted to eating for quite some time, and certain foods that are not good for me. I make a decision to not eat them, and whenever I come across them at the store I think about how I will feel after I eat them. I do this with other foods that may have unhealthy food colorings and/or carcinogens listed on the ingredients. Although, it's not an easy thing to do, I know that my body will thank me for it later in life.
And, practicing with these smaller pleasures helps me build resistance against greater pleasures. For example as a teacher it's easy for me to put off grading papers because I don't like to do it and would rather spend time doing other leisure activities. But practicing willpower on small things (resisting pleasures such as candy, for example) gives me the confidence to resist putting off leisure because I've already been successful at exercising my willpower on candy.
The key is to PRACTICE steps 1-3 above, just like Abafi and Nikola Tesla did. When I stop practicing, I succumb easily to all pleasures.
At the end of the day, it's up to you to make the decision to refrain from doing something, to want not to do it, and to follow through on your decision using foresight of consequences and/or envisioning your detractors.
September 27, 2025
I originally picked up this book because of my interest in Nikola Tesla, and I was expecting something completely different. To my surprise, it left a much deeper impression on me than I anticipated. Beyond its surface, the story resonates with themes of respect, loyalty, and profound emotions that touch the reader on a very personal level.
I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates stories filled with sincerity, respect, and heartfelt depth.
I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates stories filled with sincerity, respect, and heartfelt depth.
December 13, 2015
Must read this
October 1, 2017
Its pretty dated, a good read trough. The author doesn't fail to make his point across sadly i t shows how much writing has improved over the ages.
July 11, 2018
A great read. A slight digression from the general trend in these genres of books. The last comments by the author do make you realize the beauty of this piece.
July 13, 2021
Me cambió la vida
March 22, 2017
If I can, I will give this book six star. It is so meaningful, it touches deeply my soul. It taught people how to use will overcome desire. Taught so well.
January 25, 2026
Inner strength, courage, perseverance, and nobility are a kind of inner capacities that the great Nikola Tesla also valued.
Want to Read
February 15, 2015
December 26, 2018
Disappointed
I’m really disappointed, whether I didn’t understand it well or it’s not a good novel.
I read it only because Nikola Tesla mentioned it, hoping that it would help me with self control, but there is not much there.
I’m really disappointed, whether I didn’t understand it well or it’s not a good novel.
I read it only because Nikola Tesla mentioned it, hoping that it would help me with self control, but there is not much there.
June 6, 2015
Nice book I guess.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews