Famous quotes

Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,269 quotes Who coined it · How we decide

English Italiano Polski עברית Français Português فارسی Español 中文 Русский Deutsch العربية हिन्दी 日本語 Ελληνικά Latina

Happiness

Love Friendship Happiness Hope Fear Courage Death Life Time War Peace Freedom Truth Wisdom Knowledge Science Art Music Nature Money Work Power God Beauty Laughter Family Success and failure Change Dreams Books and reading

“LSD wanted to tell me something. … It gave me an inner joy, an open mindedness, a gratefulness, open eyes and an internal sensitivity for the miracles of creation.”
Albert Hofmann (1906–2008) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Address on the first day of LSD: Problem Child and Wonder Drug, an International Symposium on the Occasion of the 100th Birthday of Albert Hofmann (13 January 2006)
“My people are in the world again. No sorrow will live in my heart as long as that joy — save one, and I thank you for that, too.”
Peter S. Beagle (born 1939) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Ah, spam. Where would we be without spam? I'll tell you where. We'll be living in a lush, verdant paradise, unspoilt by rejected technology, where men and women of all creeds and races can join hands and sing for the sheer joy of being alive. (The Spam Man Cometh)”
Ben Croshaw (born 1983) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The beauty of the sacred is a symbol or a foretaste of, and sometimes a means for, the joy that God alone procures.”
Frithjof Schuon (1907–1998) said by 1998 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“What these thinkers despise in the man of study is precisely the man who … does not predicate the capture of its environment by the species, or who, if he does predicate it, as the scientist does by his discoveries, retains for himself only the joy of knowledge and abandons the practical exploitation of his discoveries to others.”
Julien Benda (1867–1956) said by 1956 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Pity the planet, all joy gone from this sweet volcanic cone; peace to our children when they fall in small war on the heels of small war—until the end of time to police the earth, a ghost orbiting forever lost in our monotonous sublime.”
Robert Lowell (1917–1977) said by 1977 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The body is a sacred garment: it is what you enter life in and what you depart life with, and it should be treated with honour, and with joy and with fear as well. But always, though, with blessing.”
Martha Graham (1894–1991) said by 1991 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The stars of heaven are free because In amplitude of liberty Their joy is to obey the laws.”
William Watson (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Deemest thou, labour Only is earnest? Grave is all beauty, Solemn is joy.”
William Watson (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I need more than a bedtime story, I need more than a youth group God.I am looking for a savior. A guide. An existential answer to my questions about purpose and meaning. I want true fulfillment in my Christian faith. I am looking for joy.”
Don Miller (author) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The multitude of formulas (for living the Christian life with success) proposed by Christian writers, preacher, conference speakers, and televangelists simply confuse me. They have different ideas about how it is done, offering promises of fulfillment and joy based on three easy steps, four points of action, or the five smooth stones that David threw.”
Don Miller (author) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Fade, fade, each earthly joy; Jesus is mine! Break every earthly tie; Jesus is mine; Dark is the wilderness; Earth has no resting-place; Jesus alone can bless; Jesus is mine.”
Horatius Bonar (1808–1889) said by 1889 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Too long,” said my father, “have we lived under the terror of the matchless perfection of the Demiurge. Too long has the perfection of his handiwork paralysed our own creativity. We do not wish to compete with him. We have no ambition to rival him. We wish merely to be creators in our own, lower sphere. We crave creativity for ourselves. We crave the joy of creation. In a word, we crave Demiurgy.”
Bruno Schulz (1892–1942) said by 1942 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Children love and want to be loved and they very much prefer the joy of accomplishment to the triumph of hateful failure. Do not mistake a child for his symptom.”
Erik Erikson (1902–1994) first seen 1950 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Childhood and Society (1950)
“How pure the joy, when first my hands unfold The small, rare volume, black with tarnished gold!”
John Ferriar (1761–1815) said by 1815 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Illustrations of Sterne, Bibliomania, line 137, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“The west has always shown a sympathetic, although patronizing, appreciation of the old Japan. Many a foreign observer would remark with a sigh: 'What a pity that things of the past, of beauty and joy forever, should be so mercilessly sacrificed on the altar of modernism!'”
Toshio Shiratori (1887–1949) first seen 1942 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Quoted in "Behind the Face of Japan"- Page 265 - by Upton Close, Josef Washington Hall - 1942.
“My father joy'd to show the pleasant road, That leads thro' nature, up to nature's God. While others teach their sons the love of gold, He to my opening judgment would unfold The classic page.—My mother would inspire And fan the sallies of the muse's fire: She taught me to be great, was to be good; That goodness far excell'd the noblest blood.”
William Julius Mickle (1734–1788) first seen 1734 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Early and unfinished epsile to a friend", quoted in Sister M. Eustace's William Julius Mickle (1734–1788): A Critical Study (1937), p. 2
“Knowledge or wealth to few are given, But mark how just the ways of Heaven: True joy to all is free. Nor wealth nor knowledge grant the boon: 'Tis thine, O conscience, thine alone, It all belongs to thee.”
William Julius Mickle (1734–1788) first seen 1761 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Knowledge: an Ode (c. 1761)
“Thus hand in hand through life we'll go; Its checker'd paths of joy and woe With cautious steps we'll tread”
Nathaniel Cotton (1705–1788) said by 1788 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Fireside, Stanza 31, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“Poor indeed must thou be, if around thee Thou no ray of light and joy canst throw—”
Harriet Winslow Sewall (1819–1889) said by 1889 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Why thus longing? reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“You are wrong if you think Joy emanates only of principaly [sic] from human relation[ships]. God has placed it all around us. It is in everything and anything we might experience. We just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living.”
Christopher McCandless (1968–1992) first seen 1992 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In a letter to Russell Fritz (as known as Ron Franz), April 1992
“Far beneath the tainted foam That frets above our peaceful home, We dream in joy and wake in love Nor know the rage that yells above.”
John Gardiner Calkins Brainard (1795–1828) said by 1828 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Deep, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919). See also Harriet Beecher Stowe, When winds are raging o'er the upper ocean.
“The desire of love, Joy: The desire of life, Peace: The desire of the soul, Heaven: The desire of God … a flame-white secret forever.”
William Sharp (writer) first seen 1919 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Desire, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“How near another's heart we oft may stand, Yet all unknowing what we fain would know Its heights of joy, its depths of bitter woe, As, wrecked upon some desert island's strand, They watch our white sails near and nearer grow; Then we, who for their rescue death would dare, Unheeding pass, and leave them to despair.”
Julia Abigail Fletcher Carney (1823–1908) first seen 1881 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Soul Blindness", as quoted Our Woman Workers: Biographical Sketches of Women Eminent in the Universalist Church for Literary, Philanthropic and Christian Work (1881) by E. R. Hanson
“Faith does not first ask what the bread is made of, but eats it. It does not analyze the components of the living stream, but with joy draws water from the " wells of salvation.”
John Ross Macduff (1818–1895) said by 1895 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Nor peace nor ease the heart can know Which, like the needle true, Turns at the touch of joy or woe, But turning, trembles too.”
Frances Greville (1727–1789) said by 1789 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: A Prayer for Indifference, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
Also quoted by: David Garrick
“Jehovah is the Lord of the universe, and no responsible creature can feel itself in its right place except in cheerful loyalty to its Creator. And Jehovah is the Joy of the universe, and no intelligent being but must feel a great void in its affections, till once it love the Lord its God with all its strength and mind.”
James Hamilton (1814–1871) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Yes, in the poor man's garden grow Far more than herbs and flowers— Kind thoughts, contentment, peace of mind, And joy for weary hours.”
Mary Howitt (1799–1888) said by 1888 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The poor Man's , reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“In his joy, he said again, ‘Thank you, sir.’ The man did not reply; he was talking to his friend again, with a cigarette in his mouth.”
Chinua Achebe (1930–2013) said by 2013 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If our devotees’ (may Allah give them success in obeying Him) hearts are gathered on meeting their obligation, their good fortune of meeting us would not have been delayed, and their joy of seeing us would have been expedited.”
Muhammad al-Mahdi (born 869) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“How base is the world for people, unless God gives them joy; and how great is this life, if God is not angry with them.":157”
Musa al-Kadhim (745–799) said by 799 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Republicans bring out Colin Powell and J.C. Watts because they have no program, no policy. The play that game because they have no other game. They have no love and no joy. They'd rather take pictures with black children than feed them.”
Donna Brazile (born 1959) first seen 2000 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Gore Aide Dealt From Bottom of Race Deck, Powell Says" (7 January 2000), by Ceci Connolly, The Washington Post
“Life is a tragedy full of joy.”
Bernard Malamud (1914–1986) first seen 1979 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The New York Times (21 January 1979)
“The wanton smil'd, father wept, Mother cried, baby lept; More he crow'd, more we cried, Nature could not sorrow hide: He must go, he must kiss Child and mother, baby bless, For he left his pretty boy, Father's sorrow, father's joy.”
Robert Greene (dramatist) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The raw materials of story are the raw materials of all human cultures. Story deals with the same questions as theology, philosophy, psychology. It is concerned with polarities: love and hate, birth and death, joy and sorrow, loss and recovery.”
Lloyd Alexander (1924–2007) first seen 1981 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Grammar of Story", in Celebrating Children's Books (1981), pp. 10–11
“If I fret over tomorrow, I'll have little joy today.”
Lloyd Alexander (1924–2007) said by 2007 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Death is a port whereby we pass to joy, Life is a lake that drowneth all in payn.”
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey (1516–1547) said by 1547 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Attributed in England's Parnassus (1600)
“So cruel prison how could betide, alas, As proud Windsor? where I, in lust and joy, With a King's son, my childish years did pass, In greater feast than Priam's sons of Troy. Where each sweet place returns a taste full sour.”
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey (1516–1547) said by 1547 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But man, being, as I have said, essentially an active being, he must find in activity his joy, as well as his duty and glory. And labor, like everything else that is good, is its own exceeding great reward.”
Edwin Percy Whipple (1819–1886) said by 1886 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Loafing and Laboring", The North American Review, Vol. CLIII, No. 416 (July 1891), p. 34. Sometimes misattributed to Henry Benjamin Whipple.
“The contemplation of beauty in nature, in art, in literature, in human character, diffuses through our being a soothing and subtle joy, by which the heart's anxious and aching cares are softly smiled away.”
Edwin Percy Whipple (1819–1886) said by 1886 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I mean, even Joy Division are a bit over-rated, I think. They're very good live, but on record...”
Ian McCulloch (born 1959) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The religious naturalist is provisioned with tales of natural emergence that are, to my mind, far more magical than traditional miracles. Emergence is inherent in everything that is alive, allowing our yearning for supernatural miracles to be subsumed by our joy in the countless miracles that surround us.”
Ursula Goodenough (born 1943) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The most reliable joy is to be out of doors, to be a creature among other creatures. I find it very restful.”
Ursula Goodenough (born 1943) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I saw the passers-by on the avenue clearly and simply, in the way they are in Japanese prints [she saw some earlier, together with Mary Casatt in the 'Ecole des Beaux Arts', Paris]. I was thrilled, I knew definitely why I had been painting badly and why I would never paint that way again. I mean to say, I am fifty years old and once a year at least I have the same joy and the same hope.”
Berthe Morisot (1841–1895) first seen 1891 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Quote of Berthe Morisot, Jan. 1891; in 'Carnet Noir'; as cited in Berthe Morisot by Monique Angoulvent, Morance, Paris, 1933, p. 97
“Music is one of those things that brings great joy to people, singing is a sort of unifier of people, no matter what political place or original place you come from.”
Brian Viglione (born 1979) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: June 1, 2006 - OndaRock Interview
“If there is any thing that can render the soul calm, dissipate its scruples, and dispel its fears, sweeten its sufferings by the anointing of love, impart strength to it in all its actions, and spread abroad the joy of the Holy Spirit in its countenance and words, it is a simple, free, and child-like repose in the arms of God.”
François Fénelon (1651–1715) said by 1715 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Hast thou left thy blue course in heaven, golden-haired son of the sky? The west has opened its gates; the bed of thy repose is there. The waves come to behold thy beauty. They lift their trembling heads. They see thee lovely in thy sleep; they shrink away with fear. Rest, in thy shadowy cave, O sun! let thy return be in joy.”
James Macpherson (1736–1796) said by 1796 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“O lay me, ye that see the light, near some rock of my hills! let the thick hazels be around, let the rustling oak be near. Green be the place of my rest; let the sound of the distant torrent be heard. Daughter of Toscar, take the harp, and raise the lovely song of Selma, that sleep may overtake my soul in the midst of joy; that the dreams of my youth may return, and the days of the mighty Fingal.”
James Macpherson (1736–1796) said by 1796 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Before my encounter with Thomist philosophy through Maritain, I had almost reached the same conclusions through the logical development of my work, intuition and thought, but what a great sense of joy I felt upon discovering, in Maritain, the confirmation of certain thought patterns, certain ways of clarifying these to myself and to others.”
Gino Severini (1883–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Reality? Is it then so certain that Life is made of four Absurdities? Is it not far more certain that life is made up of Four Beauties of Calmness, Joy, Harmony, Rhythm... The truest reality. And what of the expression of all this — Art? Must Pandemonium and Ugliness ever stand for Strength?”
Edward Gordon Craig (1872–1966) first seen 1906 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Introduction to Isadora Duncan : Six Movement Designs (1906)