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

William James

We can act as if there were a God; feel as if we were free; consider Nature as if she were full of special designs; lay plans as if we were to be immortal; and we find then that these words do make a genuine difference in our moral life.

Character | God | Life | Life | Nature | Words |

William Jay

Though a good motive cannot sanctify a bad action, a bad motive will always vitiate a good action.

Action | Character | Good | Will |

Saint Jerome, aka Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymous, Hierom or Jerom NULL

Have something to do, so that the devil will always find you occupied.

Character | Devil | Will |

Gloria D. Karpinski

Anything unforgiven is held in the body, the emotions, the mind, and even the soul. Unreleased, it crystallizes, forming obstructions in the very pathways along which energy must flow. Given enough time to harden, it will result in sickness.

Body | Character | Emotions | Energy | Enough | Mind | Soul | Time | Will |

Garrison Keillor, fully Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor

I look upon the world as my fatherland... I look upon true patriotism as the brotherhood of man and the service of all to all.

Brotherhood | Character | Man | Patriotism | Service | World |

Søren Kierkegaard, fully Søren Aabye Kierkegaard

It’s quite true what philosophy says, that life must be understood backwards. But one then forgets the other principle, that it must be lived forwards. A principle which, the more one thinks it through, precisely leads to the conclusion that life in time can never properly be understood, just because no moment can acquire the complete stillness needed to orient oneself backwards.

Character | Life | Life | Philosophy | Time |

James Joll

The tragedy of all political action is that some problems have no solution; none of the alternatives are intellectually consistent or morally uncompromising; and whatever decision is taken will harm somebody.

Action | Character | Decision | Harm | Problems | Tragedy | Will |

Jiddu Krishnamurti

Relationship means contact, communion. There cannot be communion where people are divided by ideas. A belief may gather a group of people around itself. Such a group will inevitably breed opposition and so form another group with a different belief. Ideas postpone direct relationship with the problem.

Belief | Character | Ideas | Means | Opposition | People | Relationship | Will |

Jiddu Krishnamurti

The world is your problem and to comprehend it you must understand yourself... You exist only in relationship; otherwise you are not... Relationship is the mirror in which you can see yourself as you are... Preconception of what relationship should be... prevents the uncovering, the unfoldment of “what is.”

Character | Relationship | World | Understand |

Carl Jung, fully Carl Gustav Jung

We meet ourselves time and again in a thousand disguises on the path of life.

Character | Life | Life | Time | Wisdom |

Walter Savage Landor

Everything that looks to the future elevates human nature; for never is life so low or so little as when occupied with the present.

Character | Future | Human nature | Life | Life | Little | Looks | Nature | Present |

Carl Jung, fully Carl Gustav Jung

Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.

Character | Dreams | Heart | Looks | Vision | Will |

Ya’akov Dov "Katzele" Katz

A person’s first obligation is to work on having an orderly mind and to decide on what thoughts he will think about.

Character | Mind | Obligation | Will | Work | Think |

David Kimchi, aka Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK

He whose heart is closed will not be benefited by open eyes.

Character | Heart | Will |