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Wisdom

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“It is wise not to confuse information and inspiration. The former is the result of studious application, the latter is what happens when you don't think about it. Each has a role to play, but must not look to play the role of the other. Inspiration may be the bright tower in the clouds; information is the solid rock where the foundations are.”
John Howe (illustrator) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naïve forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget.”
Thomas Szasz (1920–2012) said by 2012 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The wise treat self-respect as non-negotiable, and will not trade it for health or wealth or anything else.”
Thomas Szasz (1920–2012) said by 2012 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Concerning the female sorcerer. Roman law also prescribes this. Why does the law name women more than men here, even though men are also guilty of this? Because women are more susceptible to those superstitions of Satan; take Eve, for example. They are commonly called “wise women.” Let them be killed.”
Martin Luther (1483–1546) first seen 1526 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Sermon on Exodus, 1526, WA XVI, p. 551 as quoted in Luther on Women: A Sourcebook, edited by Susan C. Karant-Nunn, Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks, (2003), p. 231
“But since the devil's bride, Reason, that pretty whore, comes in and thinks she's wise, and what she says, what she thinks, is from the Holy Spirit, who can help us, then? Not judges, not doctors, no king or emperor, because [reason] is the Devil's greatest whore.”
Martin Luther (1483–1546) first seen 1546 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Martin Luther's Last Sermon in Wittenberg … Second Sunday in Epiphany, 17 January 1546. Dr. Martin Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe. (Weimar: Herman Boehlaus Nachfolger, 1914), Band 51:126, Line 7ff
“Instead of looking on discussion as a stumbling block in the way of action, we think it an indispensable preliminary to any wise action at all.”
Pericles (494–429 BC) said by 429 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As translated by Richard Crawley (1951)
“No Man is wise at all Times, or is without his blind Side.”
Erasmus (1466–1536) said by 1536 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“When you come to see you are not as wise today as you thought you were yesterday, you are wiser today.”
Anthony de Mello (1931–1987) said by 1987 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I was instructed long ago by a wise editor, "If you understand something you can explain it so that almost anyone can understand it. If you don't, you won't be able to understand your own explanation." That is why 90% of academic film theory is bullshit. Jargon is the last refuge of the scoundrel.”
Roger Ebert (1942–2013) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: O, Synecdoche, my Synecdoche!," (10 November 2008)
“The director, whose name is Pitof, was probably issued with two names at birth and would be wise to use the other one on his next project.”
Roger Ebert (1942–2013) first seen 2004 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Review of Catwoman (23 July 2004)
“What happened at the prison, it is now clear, was not the result of random acts by "a few bad apples," it was the natural consequence of the Bush Administration policy that has dismantled those wise constraints and has made war on America's checks and balances.”
Al Gore (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Within the body there are billions of different particles. Similarly, there are many different thoughts and a variety of states of mind. It is wise to take a close look into the world of your mind and to make the distinction between beneficial and harmful states of mind. Once you can recognize the value of good states of mind, you can increase or foster them.”
Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama (born 1935) first seen 2000 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Dalai Lama's Book of Wisdom (2000).
“In utter loneliness a writer tries to explain the inexplicable. And sometimes if he is very fortunate and if the time is right, a very little of what he is trying to do trickles through — not ever much. And if he is a writer wise enough to know it can't be done, then he is not a writer at all. A good writer always works at the impossible.”
John Steinbeck (1902–1968) first seen 1951 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: January 29, 1951
“Credit means that a certain confidence is given, and a certain trust reposed. Is that trust justified? and is that confidence wise? These are the cardinal questions. To put it more simply credit is a set of promises to pay; will those promises be kept?”
Walter Bagehot (1826–1877) said by 1877 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“His voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy.”
William Golding (1911–1993) said by 1993 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[P]rofessional politics is a trade in which the sly outweigh the wise.”
Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953) said by 1953 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Kings live in Palaces, and Pigs in sties, And youth in Expectation. Youth is wise.”
Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953) said by 1953 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[About the death of Henry Kissinger ] An outstanding diplomat, a wise and far-sighted statesman who enjoyed well-deserved respect around the world for decades, has passed away.”
Vladimir Putin (born 1952) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I did exhibitions with the Surrealists [in Paris, c. 1929] because their attitude revolted against 'art' and their attitude toward life itself was wise, as was Dada's.”
Jean Arp (1886–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Through failures one becomes intelligent; but the one who has trained himself in this subject so that he can make others wise through their own failures, has used his intelligence. Ignorance is not stupidity.”
Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) said by 1804 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Kant, Immanuel (1996), page 100
“The philosopher must teach these pupils [French students] that it is far less essential to understand nature than to enjoy and respect its laws; that these laws are both wise and simple; that they are written in all human hearts, and that one need merely question a heart in order to appreciate its impulses.”
Marquis de Sade (1740–1814) said by 1814 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There has never been any country at every moment so virtuous and so wise that it has not sometimes needed to be saved from itself.”
Havelock Ellis (1859–1939) said by 1939 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“None but God is wise.”
Pythagoras (583–491 BC) said by 491 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in The Diegesis (1829) by Robert Taylor, p. 219
“When the wise man opens his mouth, the beauties of his soul present themselves to the view, like the statues in a temple”
Pythagoras (583–491 BC) said by 491 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Pythagorean Ethical Sentences From Stobæus" (1904)
Also quoted by: Stobaeus
“Happy is that City that hath a wise man to govern it.”
Pythagoras (583–491 BC) said by 491 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are very wise and very beautiful; but I never read in either of them, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden.”
Augustine of Hippo (354–430) said by 430 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Man is free; yet we must not suppose that he is at liberty to do everything he pleases, for he becomes a slave the moment he allows his actions to be ruled by passion. The man who has sufficient power over himself to wait until his nature has recovered its even balance is the truly wise man, but such beings are seldom met with.”
Giacomo Casanova (1725–1798) said by 1798 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I have written the history of my life, and I have a perfect right to do so; but am I wise in throwing it before a public of which I know nothing but evil? No, I am aware it is sheer folly, but I want to be busy, I want to laugh, and why should I deny myself this gratification?”
Giacomo Casanova (1725–1798) said by 1798 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The spirit of rebellion is present in every great city, and the great task of wise government is to keep it dormant, for if it wakes it is a torrent which no dam can hold back.”
Giacomo Casanova (1725–1798) said by 1798 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: History of My Life (trans. Trask 1967), 1997 reprint, v. 9, chapter 7, p. 174
“If Diddy already knows what he does that's foolish and stupid, why can't he become wise? Act wisely. For, oh, Diddy has perceived his follies countless times. Is heartily ashamed of them, strenuously repudiates them. It's only that he doesn't understand. Not really. A hopeless, bumbling tourist in the somber labyrinth of his own consciousness.”
Susan Sontag (1933–2004) said by 2004 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Necessary for Diddy the Disciplined to proceed systematically, or he'll get lost. There's a system of priorities here, as anywhere else, that Diddy might be wise to observe.”
Susan Sontag (1933–2004) said by 2004 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I support the Kinder-Guardians program. We in America would be wise to implement it, too. It's something that we should think about, America, about putting guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens, good guys, whether they be teachers or whether they actually be talented children or highly-trained preschoolers.”
Trent Lott (born 1941) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Wise words are like arrows flung at your forehead. What do you do? Why, you duck of course.”
Steven Erikson (born 1959) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Manmohan Singh is a wise, wonderful man.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On Manmohan Singh, (4 April 2009)
“Leadership means a wise application of military power, and rallying the world behind causes that are right. It means seeing our foreign assistance as part of our national security, not something separate, not charity.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Our own political life is predicated on openness. We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to enquire. We know that the wages of secrecy are corruption. We know that in secrecy error, undetected, will flourish and subvert.”
Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967) first seen 1950 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Encouragement of Science", an address at Science Talent Institute (6 March 1950), Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Vol. 7, #1 (Jan 1951) p. 6-8
“There was a time when only wise books were read helping us to bear our pain and misery. This, after all, is not quite the same as leafing through a thousand works fresh from psychiatric clinics. And yet the world is different from what it seems to be and we are other than how we see ourselves in our ravings.”
Czesław Miłosz (1911–2004) said by 2004 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Wise men say that time is like a river. I say time is like a river of SHIT... and as you float down that river in your little canoe, your paddles are getting smaller and smaller.”
Lewis Black (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“They who study mathematiks only to fix their minds, and render them the steadyer to apply to all other things, as there are many who profess to do, are as wise as those who think by rowing boats, to learn to swim.”
Samuel Butler (poet) first seen 1979 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Prose Observations (Oxford: 1979), p. 4
“But Hudibras gave him a twitch As quick as lightning in the breech, Just in the place where honour's lodg'd, As wise philosophers have judg'd; Because a kick in that part more Hurts honour than deep wounds before.”
Samuel Butler (poet) first seen 1065 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Canto III, line 1065
Also quoted by: Samuel Butler
“Let us close the springs of racial poison. Let us pray for wise and understanding hearts. Let us lay aside irrelevant differences and make our Nation whole.”
Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We will mean what we say from here on about full employment. We will have a government that doesn't waste a penny doing what is foolish, but doesn't waste a minute doing what is wise.”
Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Presidents and Congresses, laws and lawsuits can open the doors to the polling places and open the doors to the wondrous rewards which await the wise use of the ballot. But only the individual Negro, and all others who have been denied the right to vote, can really walk through those doors, and can use that right, and can transform the vote into an instrument of justice and fulfillment.”
Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A revolution is coming — a revolution which will be peaceful if we are wise enough; compassionate if we care enough; successful if we are fortunate enough — But a revolution which is coming whether we will it or not. We can affect its character; we cannot alter its inevitability.”
Robert F. Kennedy (1925–1968) first seen 1966 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Robert F. Kennedy, in a speech in the US Senate (9 May 1966)
Also quoted by: John F. Kennedy (misattributed)
“It all began with the three wise men, followed a star took them to Bethelehem, and made it heard throughout the land — born was the leader of man. All going down to see the Lord Jesus.”
Freddie Mercury (1946–1991) first seen 1973 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Jesus" on Queen (1973).
“I am convinced that upon every religious, as well as upon every political ground, the true and the wise course is not to deal out religious liberty by halves, by quarters, and by fractions; but to deal it out entire, and to leave no distinction between man and man on the ground of religious differences from one end of the land to the other.”
William Ewart Gladstone (1809–1898) first seen 1883 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Except from a speech in the House of Commons (26 April 1883) in support of the atheist Charles Bradlaugh being permitted to take his seat in Parliament.
“Wise children always choose a mother who was a shocking flirt in her maiden days, and so had several offers before she accepted their fortunate papa.”
J. M. Barrie (1860–1937) said by 1937 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“From that time forth he believed that the wise man is one who never sets himself apart from other living things, whether they have speech or not, and in later years he strove long to learn what can be learned, in silence, from the eyes of animals, the flight of birds, the great slow gestures of trees.”
Ursula K. Le Guin (1929–2018) said by 2018 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“To claim power over what you do not understand is not wise, nor is the end of it likely to be good.”
Ursula K. Le Guin (1929–2018) said by 2018 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There’s people all over these parts, and maybe beyond, who think, as you said, that nobody can be wise alone. So these people try to hold to each other.”
Ursula K. Le Guin (1929–2018) said by 2018 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source