Great Throughts Treasury

This site is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Alan William Smolowe who gave birth to the creation of this database.

Related Quotes

Kautilya, aka Chanakya or Vishnu Gupta NULL

He who is overly attached to his family members experiences fear and sorrow, for the root of all grief is attachment. Thus one should discard attachment to be happy.

Feelings | Present | Soul |

Egyptian Proverbs

False ambition serves the neck.

Good | Light | Silence |

Eldridge Cleaver, fully Leroy Eldridge Cleaver

The white youth of today have begun to react to the fact that the American Way of Life is a fossil of history. What do they care if their old baldheaded and crew-cut elders don't dig their caveman mops? They couldn't care less about the old, stiff-assed honkies who don't like their new dances: Frog, Monkey, Jerk, Swim, Watusi. All they know is that it feels good to swing to way-out body-rhythms instead of dragging across the dance floor like zombies to the dead beat of mind-smothered Mickey Mouse music.

Heart | Law | Soul | Writing |

Elif Safak

My interest in Sufism began when I was a college student. At the time, I was a rebellious young woman who liked to wrap several shawls of '-isms' around her shoulders: I was a leftist, feminist, nihilist, environmentalist, anarcho-pacifist ... I wasn't interested in any religion and the difference between 'religiosity' and 'spirituality' was lost to me. Having spent some time of my childhood with a loving grandmother with many superstitions and beliefs, I had a sense the world was not composed of solely material things and there was more to life than I could see. But the truth is, I wasn't interested in understanding the world. I only wanted to Change it.

Love | Soul | World |

Elizabeth Bowen, Full name Elizabeth Dorothea Cole Bowen

Darling, I don't want you; I've got no place for you; I only want what you give. I don't want the whole of anyone.... What you want is the whole of me-isn't it, isn't it?-and the whole of me isn't there for anybody. In that full sense you want me I don't exist.

Abnormal | Laughter | Silence |

Elif Safak

I like to borrow a metaphor from the great poet and mystic Rumi who talks about living like a drawing compass. One leg of the compass is static. It is fixed and rooted in a certain spot. Meanwhile, the other leg draws a huge wide circle around the first one, constantly moving. Just like that, one part of my writing is based in Istanbul. It has strong local roots. Yet at the same time the other part travels the whole wide world, feeling connected to several cities, cultures, and peoples.

Humility | Nature | Peace | Strength | Will | World |

Albert Einstein

The misunderstanding here is due to a faulty translation of a German text, in particular the use of the word "mystical." I have never imputed to Nature a purpose or a goal, or anything that could be understood as anthropomorphic.

Body | Soul |

Eleanora Duse, aka Duse

The one happiness is to shut one's door upon a little room, with a table before one, and to create; to create life in that isolation from life.

Nature | Power | Soul |

Eleanor Brown, fully Nora Eleanor Louisa Hervey Brown

Not me, of course, as I am now officially a spinster librarian and must stay home with my cat and drink tea.

Bravery | Courage | Power | Strength | Thought | Thought |

Elif Safak

Sam know why - I said with a smile. - Spiritual development covers our entire consciousness and not its individual countries. Rule number thirty-two: Between you and God should not stand anything. Neither the imams or priests or rabbis or other guardians of morality or religious leadership. Neither spiritual teachers, or even faith. Believe in its values ​​and rules, but not impose them on others never. If you repeatedly break the hearts of the people, whatever religious duty to perform, it is useless. Beware of any idolatry idols because clouding your vision. Let us be your guide and only God. Learn the truth, my friend, but be careful not to become a fetish truths.

Life | Life | Love | Soul | World |

Elias Canetti

Nothing was better for you than humiliation, for there was nothing you felt more deeply.

Better | Diet | Goals | Mind | Novels | Personality | Pleasure | Size | Strength | Taste | Teach | Think | Understand |

Elizabeth Bowen, Full name Elizabeth Dorothea Cole Bowen

Anna Partridge, whose brain was all shreddy with rabbit-combing and raffia, had had electric light for years, just from living in England; even the Trents talked of harnessing their waterfall.

Little | Silence | Time |

William Shakespeare

Rebellion in this land shall lose his sway, Meeting the check of such another day; And since this business so fair is done, Let us not leave till all our own be won. King Henry the Fourth, Part I (King Henry at V, iv)

Soul |

William Shakespeare

Since the affairs of men rest still incertain, let's reason with the worst that may befall.

Choice | Distinguish | Judgment | Man | Men | Soul | Sound |

William Shakespeare

So, if a son that is by his father sent about merchandise do sinfully miscarry upon the sea, the imputation of his wickedness, by your rule, should be imposed upon his father that sent him; or if a servant, under his master's command transporting a sum of money, be assailed by robbers and die in many irreconciled iniquities, you may call the business of the master the author of the servant's damnation. But this is not so. The king is not bound to answer the particular endings of his soldiers, the father of his son, nor the master of his servant; for they purpose not their death when they purpose their services. Besides, there is no king, be his cause never so spotless, if it come to the arbitrement of swords, can try it out with all unspotted soldiers. Some peradventure have on them the guilt of premeditated and contrived murder; some, of beguiling virgins with the broken seals of perjury; some, making the wars their bulwark, that have before gored the gentle bosom of peace with pillage and robbery. Now, if these men have defeated the law and outrun native punishment, though they can outstrip men, they have no wings to fly from God. War is his beadle, war is his vengeance; so that here men are punished for before-breach of the king's laws in now the king's quarrel. Where they feared the death, they have borne life away; and where they would be safe, they perish. Then if they die unprovided, no more is the king guilty of their damnation than he was before guilty of those impieties for the which they are now visited. Every subject's duty is the king's, but every subject's soul is his own. Therefore should every soldier in the wars do as every sick man in his bed -- wash every mote out of his conscience; and dying so, death is to him advantage; or not dying, the time was blessedly lost wherein such preparation was gained; and in him that escapes, it were not sin to think that, making God so free an offer, he let him outlive that day to see his greatness and to teach others how they should prepare.

Slander | Soul | Slander |

Elizabeth Gilbert

People tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will descend like fine weather if you're fortunate. But happiness is the result of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly.

Good | Luck | Soul | Will | Work | Luck | Crisis | Happiness |

Elizabeth Gilbert

It's just your ego, which seeks to retain power. Holds and the feeling of ambivalence, trying to convince you that you are deficient, disturbed and lonely rather than complete. If you keep the spiritual path, your ego will soon be out of business, and all decisions will make your heart. Replied attention. Instead of trying to force izgurnuti thoughts from his mind, give him something healthier, which can be played. For example, love.

Distress | Enough | Good | Soul | Crisis |

Elizabeth Gilbert

I watched them, thinking that little girls who make their mothers live grow up to be such powerful women.

Addiction | Blame | Good | Irony | Looks | Love | Object | Obsession | Soul | Suffering |

William Shakespeare

So, of his gentleness, Knowing I loved my books, he furnished me from mine own library with volumes that I prize above my dukedom.

Business | Cause | Day | Death | Duty | Father | God | Greatness | Guilt | Law | Life | Life | Man | Men | Peace | Purpose | Purpose | Sin | Soul | Teach | Time | War | Business | God | Guilty | Think |

Elizabeth Gilbert

Please go to this pizzeria. Order the margherita pizza with double mozzarella. If you do not eat this pizza when you are in Naples, please lie to me and tell me that you did.

Distress | Effort | Enough | Good | Soul | Will | World | Crisis | Happiness | Think |