Quotable

[Boba Fit]

Numero Dos

"God writes the Gospel not in the Bible alone, but also on trees, and in the flowers and clouds and stars." - Martin Luther

 

[Alan]

"It seems to me that a body is only a machine for brains to direct, and those who have no brains themselves are liable to be directed by the brains of others" - The Wizard Of Oz

If this doesn't accurately describe the state of politics in the US, I have no idea what does.

 

[Pahn]

"Existence precedes essence." -Jean-Paul Sartre


We rule and decide what we make of our existence. This is a life mantra for me, and keeps me grounded and reminds me that we are defined by our choices and non-choices (choosing to not make a decision is a decision in itself).


I liked this explanation:

Sartre draws two important conclusions from this. First, he argues that there is no given human nature common to everyone because there is no God to give it in the first place. Human beings exist, that much is clear, but it is only after they exist that some “essence” that can be called “"human"” may develop. Human beings must develop, define, and decide what their “nature” will be through an engagement with themselves, their society, and the natural world around them.
Second, Sartre argues that because the “nature” of every human being is dependent upon that person, this radical freedom is accompanied by an equally radical responsibility. No one can simply say "“it was in my nature"” as an excuse for some behavior of theirs. Whatever a person is or does is wholly dependent upon their own choices and commitments -— there is nothing else to fall back upon. People have no one to blame (or praise) but themselves.

Existence Precedes Essence: Existentialist Thought

 

[Brovo]

Just one? Well, that's tough. Could present quotes for many different aspects of my life... But the most important one? It is surely this.

"You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength."
-Marcus Aurelius, Meditations.​

 

[Hana]

Can't say it's only one.

But I like these ones:

"If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking." - Norwegian Wood, by Haruki Murakami

"It may help to understand human affairs to be clear that most of the great triumphs and tragedies of history are caused, not by people being fundamentally good or fundamentally bad, but by people being fundamentally people." - Neil Gaiman, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

And among others, I remember:

More from Murakami's Norwegian Wood

"Nobody likes being alone that much. I don't go out of my way to make friends, that's all. It just leads to disappointment."

"Memory is a funny thing. When I was in the scene, I hardly paid it any mind. I never stopped to think of it as something that would make a lasting impression, certainly never imagined that eighteen years later I would recall it in such detail. I didn't give a damn about the scenery that day. I was thinking about myself. I was thinking about the beautiful girl walking next to me. I was thinking about the two of us together, and then about myself again. It was the age, that time of life when every sight, every feeling, every thought came back, like a boomerang, to me. And worse, I was in love. Love with complications. The scenery was the last thing on my mind."

"God does not play dice with the universe; He plays an ineffable game of His own devising, which might be compared, from the perspective of any of the other players [i.e. everybody], to being involved in an obscure and complex variant of poker in a pitch-dark room, with blank cards, for infinite stakes, with a Dealer who won't tell you the rules, and who smiles all the time." - Terry Pratchett, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

And those are just among two of my favorite books... ^^;

 

[Hellis]

"Respect my existence if not, expect my RESISTANCE."

 

[IntrusivePenDesperateSword]

A couple of unknown origin:

"If only the birds who sings the loudest would sing, the forest would be very quiet."

"I will respect your opinion, as long as your opinion doesn't disrespect anyone's existence."

 

[Firemind]

"You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash. Become like water my friend."


― Bruce Lee