In accordance with the divine wisdom, genesis can only take place through destruction. Maimonides More Quotes by Maimonides More Quotes From Maimonides All attributes ascribed to God are attributes of His acts, and do not imply that God has any qualities. Maimonides attributes quality god The being which has absolute existence, which has never been and will never be without existence, is not in need of an agent. Maimonides agents existence needs To the totality of purposes of the perfect Law there belong the abandonment, depreciation, and restraint of desires in so far as possible. Maimonides law perfect desire Whatever form it has, it [matter] will be disposed to receive another form; it never leaves off moving and casting off the form which it has in order to receive another. ...It is therefore clear that all corruption, destruction, or defect comes from matter. Maimonides casting-off order moving The prophet Isaiah ... points out what will be the cause of this change; for he says that hatred, quarrel, and fighting will come to an end, because men will have a true knowledge of God. "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters which cover the sea" (Isa. xi. ver. 9) Note it. Maimonides fighting hurt men Man's shortcomings and sins are all due to the substance of the body and not to its form; while all his merits are exclusively due to his form. Maimonides substance body men Now, we occupy a lowly position, both in space and rank in comparison with the heavenly sphere, and the Almighty is Most High not in space, but with respect to absolute existence, greatness and power. Maimonides spheres greatness space To sum up: I am the man who when the concern pressed him and his way was straitened and he could find no other device by which to teach a demonstrable truth other than by giving satisfaction to a single virtuous man while displeasing ten thousand ignoramuses - I am he who prefers to address that single man by himself, and I do not heed the blame of those many creatures. Maimonides education men science If men possessed wisdom, which stands in the same relation to the form of man as the sight to the eye, they would not cause any injury to themselves or to others; for the knowledge of truth removes hatred and quarrels, and prevents mutual injuries. Maimonides man wisdom men knowledge All the great evils which men cause to each other because of certain intentions, desires, opinions, or religious principles, are likewise due to non-existence, because they originate in ignorance, which is absence of wisdom. Maimonides great ignorance wisdom men The numerous evils to which individual persons are exposed are due to the defects existing in the persons themselves. We complain and seek relief from our own faults; we suffer from the evils which we, by our own free will, inflict on ourselves and ascribe them to God, who is far from being connected with them! Maimonides own will free god Form can only be destroyed accidentally, i.e., on account of its connexion with substance, the true nature of which consists in the property of never being without a disposition to receive form. Maimonides true never being nature Man's shortcomings and sins are all due to substance of the body and not to its form, while all his merits are exclusively due to his form. Maimonides sins man shortcomings body When man possesses a good, sound body that does not overpower him nor disturb the equilibrium in him, he possesses a divine gift. In short, a good constitution facilitates the rule of the soul over the body, but it is not impossible to conquer a bad constitution by training. Maimonides good man constitution soul However great the exertion of our mind may be to comprehend the Divine Being or any of the ideals, we find a screen and partition between Him and ourselves. Thus the prophets frequently hint at the existence of a partition between God and us. Maimonides find great god mind
