Antwan Istfan > Antwan's Quotes

“The greatest tragedy of the family is the unlived lives of the parents.”
― Carl Gustav Jung

“Distraction is the only thing that consoles us for miseries and yet it is itself the greatest of our miseries.”
― Blaise Pascal

“Psychological or spiritual development always requires a greater capacity for anxiety and ambiguity.”
― Carl Jung

“We never live; we are always in the expectation of living.”
― Voltaire

“We do not place especial value on the possession of a virtue until we notice its total absence in our opponent.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

“We are never so defenseless against suffering as when we love.”
― Sigmund Freud

“But a desperate heart will seduce the mind.”
― Mitch Albom, The Time Keeper

“In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it. (Mr. Dumby, Act III)”
― Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan

“If you keep silent, keep silent by love: if you speak, speak by love; if you correct, correct by love; if you pardon, pardon by love; let love be rooted in you, and from the root nothing but good can grow.
Love and do what you will.

Love endures in adversity, is moderate in prosperity; brave under harsh sufferings, cheerful in good works; utterly reliable in temptation, utterly open-handed in hospitality; as happy as can be among true brothers and sisters, as patient as you can get among the false one's.
The soul of the scriptures, the force of prophecy, the saving power of the sacraments, the fruit of faith, the wealth of the poor, the life of the dying.
Love is all.”
― Saint Augustine of Hippo

“Optimism is not only a false but also a pernicious doctrine, for it presents life as a desirable state and man's happiness as its aim and object. Starting from this, everyone then believes he has the most legitimate claim to happiness and enjoyment. If, as usually happens, these do not fall to his lot, he believes that he suffers an injustice, in fact that he misses the whole point of his existence.”
― Arthur Schopenhauer, The World as Will and Representation, Volume I

“People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof but on the basis of what they find attractive.”
― Blaise Pascal, De l'art de persuader

“We are all insane. That is what original sin means. Sin is insanity. It is preferring finite joy to infinite joy, creatures to the Creator, an unhappy, Godless self to a happy, God-filled self Only God can save us from this disease. That is what the name "Jesus" means: 'God saves'.”
― Peter Kreeft

“In our dreams we can have our eggs cooked exactly how we want them, but we can't eat them.”
― Anna Freud

“Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.”
― Allen Saunders

“You always admire what you really don't understand.”
― Blaise Pascal

“The attempt to escape from pain, is what creates more pain.”
― Gabor Maté

“To find out your real opinion of someone, judge the impression you have when you first see a letter from them.”
― Arthur Schopenhauer

“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.”
― Voltaire

“A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.”
― Elbert Hubbard

“Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people we personally dislike.”
― Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband

“It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it.”
― Maurice Switzer, Mrs. Goose, Her Book

“Let us not underestimate how hard it is to be compassionate. Compassion is hard because it requires the inner disposition to go with others to place where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, and broken. But this is not our spontaneous response to suffering. What we desire most is to do away with suffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick cure for it.”
― Henri J.M. Nouwen

“The advantage of a bad memory is that one enjoys several times the same good things for the first time.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

“The appearance of things changes according to the emotions; and thus we see magic and beauty in them, while the magic and beauty are really in ourselves.”
― Kahlil Gibran, The Broken Wings

“If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid.”
― Epictetus

“When I am sharply judgmental of any other person, it's because I sense or see reflected in them some aspect of myself that I don't want to acknowledge.”
― Gabor Maté, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction

“We cannot live better than in seeking to become better.”
― Socrates

“Least effort is expended when our actions are motivated by love, because nature is held together by the energy of love.”
― Deepak Chopra, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams

“Beware the barrenness of a busy life.”
― Socrates

“True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.”
― Socrates