Extremes are for us as if they were not, and as if we were not in regard to them; they escape from us, or we from them. Blaise Pascal More Quotes by Blaise Pascal More Quotes From Blaise Pascal Mutual cheating is the foundation of society. Blaise Pascal mutual foundation cheating No one is offended at not seeing everything; but one does not like to be mistaken, and that perhaps arises from the fact that man naturally cannot see everything, and that naturally he cannot err in the side he looks at, since the perceptions of our senses are always true. Blaise Pascal perception doe men If we do not know ourselves to be full of pride, ambition, lust, weakness, misery, and injustice, we are indeed blind. And if, knowing this, we do not desire deliverance, what can we say of a man...? Blaise Pascal pride ambition men It is not from space that I must seek my dignity, but from the government of my thought. I shall have no more if I possess worlds. By space the universe encompasses and swallows me up like an atom; by thought I comprehend the world. Blaise Pascal atoms government space There are people who lie simply for the sake of lying. Blaise Pascal people-who-lie lying people If I had more time I would write a shorter letter. Blaise Pascal letters writing inspirational One must have deeper motives and judge everything accordingly, but go on talking like an ordinary person. Blaise Pascal judging ordinary talking The parts of the universe ... all are connected with each other in such a way that I think it to be impossible to understand any one without the whole. Blaise Pascal science way thinking Everyone, without exception, is searching for happiness. Blaise Pascal searching-for-happiness exception happiness In proportion as our own mind is enlarged we discover a greater number of men of originality. Commonplace people see no difference between one man and another. Blaise Pascal differences appreciation men Reverend Fathers, my letters did not usually follow each other at such close intervals, nor were they so long.... This one would not be so long had I but the leisure to make it shorter. Blaise Pascal math long father It is of dangerous consequence to represent to man how near he is to the level of beasts, without showing him at the same time his greatness. It is likewise dangerous to let him see his greatness without his meanness. It is more dangerous yet to leave him ignorant of either; but very beneficial that he should be made sensible of both. Blaise Pascal ignorant greatness men All the troubles of life come upon us because we refuse to sit quietly for a while each day in our rooms. Blaise Pascal each-day prayer rooms There is a virtuous fear, which is the effect of faith; and there is a vicious fear, which is the product of doubt. The former leads to hope, as relying on God, in whom we believe; the latter inclines to despair, as not relying on God, in whom we do not believe. Persons of the one character fear to lose God; persons of the other character fear to find Him. Blaise Pascal fear character believe All the maxims have been written. It only remains to put them into practice. Blaise Pascal maxims remains practice There are two equally dangerous extremes-to shut reason out, and to let nothing else in. Blaise Pascal dangerous reason two In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't. Blaise Pascal christian faith life There are two excesses: to exclude reason, to admit nothing but reason. The supreme achievement of reason is to realise that there is a limit to reason. Reason's last step is the recognition that there are an infinite number of things which are beyond it. It is merely feeble if it does not go as far as to realise that. Blaise Pascal achievement numbers two All of our reasoning ends in surrender to feeling. Blaise Pascal being-alone letting-go feelings Since we cannot be universal and know all that is to be known of everything, we ought to know a little about everything. For it is far better to know something about everything than to know all about one thing. This universality is the best. If we can have both, still better; but if we must choose, we ought to choose the former. Blaise Pascal one-thing knows knowledge
