The habit of looking for beauty in everything makes us notice the shortcomings of things, our sense, hungry for complete satisfaction, misses the perfection it demands. George Santayana More Quotes by George Santayana More Quotes From George Santayana Fanaticism consists of redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim. George Santayana effortgoalinspirational A child educated only at school is an uneducated child. George Santayana educationteacherchildren Nietzsche was personally more philosophical than his philosophy. His talk about power, harshness, and superb immorality was the hobby of a harmless young scholar and constitutional invalid. George Santayana hobbiesphilosophicalphilosophy Depression is rage spread thin. George Santayana depressingpaindepression Religion in its humility restores man to his only dignity, the courage to live by grace. George Santayana humilitycouragemen I like to walk about amidst the beautiful things that adorn the world. George Santayana simple-lifesimplicitybeautiful Religious doctrines would do well to withdraw their pretension to be dealing with matters of fact. That pretension is not only the source of the conflicts of religion with science and the vain and bitter controversies of sects; it is also the cause of the impurity and incoherence of religion in the soul. George Santayana atheismsoulreligious It is characteristic of spontaneous friendship to take on first, without enquiry and almost at first sight, the unseen doings and unspoken sentiments of our friends; the parts known give us evidence enough that the unknown parts cannot be much amiss. George Santayana sightfriendshipgiving Religion is the natural reaction of the imagination when confronted by the difficulties in a truculent world. George Santayana atheismimaginationreligion Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect... George Santayana chastityskepticismintellect Only the dead have seen the end of the war. George Santayana philosophicalmilitarywar Happiness is impossible, and even inconceivable, to a mind without scope and without pause, a mind driven by craving, pleasure, or fear. To be happy, you must be reasonable, or you must be tamed. You must have taken the measure of your powers, tasted the fruits of your passion, and learned your place in the world and what things in it can really serve you. To be happy, you must be wise. George Santayana passiontakenwise Man is not made to understand life, but to live it. George Santayana mademenlife There is no tyranny so hateful as a vulgar and anonymous tyranny. It is all-permeating, all-thwarting; it blasts every budding novelty and sprig of genius with its omnipresent and fierce stupidity. Such a headless people has the mind of a worm and the claws of a dragon. George Santayana stupiditydragonspeople Christianity persecuted, tortured, and burned. Like a hound it tracked the very scent of heresy. It kindled wars, and nursed furious hatreds and ambitions... Man, far from being freed from his natural passions, was plunged into artificial ones quite as violent and much more disappointing. George Santayana passionambitionwar To feel beauty is a better thing than to understand how we come to feel it. To have imagination and taste, to love the best, to be carried by the contemplation of nature to a vivid faith in the ideal, all this is more, a great deal more, than any science can hope to be. George Santayana vividtasteimagination People are usually more firmly convinced that their opinions are precious than that they are true. George Santayana convincedopinionpeople The best men in all ages keep classic traditions alive George Santayana aliveagemen To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring. George Santayana positivehappinesslove Character is the basis of happiness and happiness the sanction of character. George Santayana workhappinesscharacter
