The bad thing about all religions is that, instead of being able to confess their allegorical nature, they have to conceal it. Arthur Schopenhauer More Quotes by Arthur Schopenhauer More Quotes From Arthur Schopenhauer The progress of life shows a man the stuff of which he is made. Arthur Schopenhauer progress men life ...a genuine work of art, can never be false, nor can it be discredited through the lapse of time, for it does not present an opinion but the thing itself. Arthur Schopenhauer lapses doe art As the strata of the earth preserve in succession the living creatures of past epochs, so the shelves of libraries preserve in succession the errors of the past and their expositions, which like the former were very lively and made a great commotion in their own age but now stand petrified and stiff in a place where only the literary palaeontologist regards them. Arthur Schopenhauer errors age past Memory works like the collection glass in the Camera obscura: it gathers everything together and therewith produces a far more beautiful picture than was present originally. Arthur Schopenhauer glasses beautiful memories What now on the other hand makes people sociable is their incapacity to endure solitude and thus themselves. Arthur Schopenhauer solitude hands people He who writes carelessly confesses thereby at the very outset that he does not attach much importance to his own thoughts. Arthur Schopenhauer importance doe writing Whether we are in a pleasant or a painful state depends, finally, upon the kind of matter that pervades and engrosses our consciousness and what we compare it to - better and we envious and sad, worse and we feel grateful and happy. Arthur Schopenhauer gratitude grateful matter There are, first of all, two kinds of authors: those who write for the subject's sake, and those who write for writing's sake. ... The truth is that when an author begins to write for the sake of covering paper, he is cheating the reader; because he writes under the pretext that he has something to say. Arthur Schopenhauer writing two cheating It is the courage to make a clean breast of it in the face of every question that makes the philosopher. He must be like Sophocles' Oedipus, who, seeking enlightenment concerning his terrible fate, pursues his indefatigable inquiry even though he divines that appalling horror awaits him in the answer. But most of us carry with us the Jocasta in our hearts, who begs Oedipus, for God's sake, not to inquire further. Arthur Schopenhauer fate heart philosophy The intellectual attainments of a man who thinks for himself resemble a fine painting, where the light and shade are correct, the tone sustained, the colour perfectly harmonised; it is true to life. On the other hand, the intellectual attainments of the mere man of learning are like a large palette, full of all sorts of colours, which at most are systematically arranged, but devoid of harmony, connection and meaning. Arthur Schopenhauer light men thinking Gaiety alone, as it were, is the hard cash of happiness; everything else is just a promissory note. Arthur Schopenhauer happiness-and-love cash notes The little honesty that exists among authors is discernible in the unconscionable way they misquote from the writings of others. Arthur Schopenhauer honesty writing littles If at any moment Time stays his hand, it is only when we are delivered over to the miseries of boredom. Arthur Schopenhauer boredom misery hands Philosophy ... is a science, and as such has no articles of faith; accordingly, in it nothing can be assumed as existing except what is either positively given empirically, or demonstrated through indubitable conclusions. Arthur Schopenhauer conclusion given philosophy Descartes is rightly regarded as the father of modern philosophy primarily and generally because he helped the faculty of reason to stand on its own feet by teaching men to use their brains Arthur Schopenhauer teaching philosophy father Pride works _from within_; it is the direct appreciation of oneself. Vanity is the desire to arrive at this appreciation indirectly, from without. Arthur Schopenhauer vanity pride appreciation For, after all, the foundation of our whole nature, and, therefore, of our happiness, is our physique, and the most essential factor in happiness is health, and, next in importance after health, the ability to maintain ourselves in independence and freedom from care. Arthur Schopenhauer independence foundation essentials Although as a rule the absurd culminates, and it seems impossible for the voice of the individual ever to penetrate through the chorus of foolers and fooled, still there is left to the genuine works of all times a quite peculiar, silent, slow, and powerful influence; and as if by a miracle, we see them rise at last out of the turmoil like a balloon that floats up out of the thick atmosphere of this globe into purer regions. Having once arrived there, it remains at rest, and no one can any longer draw it down again. Arthur Schopenhauer voice miracle powerful Men of learning are those who have read the contents of books. Thinkers, geniuses, and those who have enlightened the world and furthered the race of men, are those who have made direct use Arthur Schopenhauer race men book Genuine contempt, on the other hand, is the unsullied conviction of the worthlessness of another. Arthur Schopenhauer genuine conviction hands
