When I was taken to the concentration camp of Auschwitz, a manuscript of mine ready for publication was confiscated. Certainly, my deep desire to write this manuscript anew helped me to survive the rigors of the camps I was in. Viktor E. Frankl More Quotes by Viktor E. Frankl More Quotes From Viktor E. Frankl I had wanted simply to convey to the reader by way of concrete example that life holds a potential meaning under any conditions, even the most miserable ones. And I thought that if the point were demonstrated in a situation as extreme as that in a concentration camp, my book might gain a hearing. I therefore felt responsible for writing down what I had gone through, for I thought it might be helpful to people who are prone to despair. Viktor E. Frankl writing life book Man ultimately decides for himself! And in the end, education must be education towards the ability to decide Viktor E. Frankl learning teaching men What is demanded of man is not, as some existential philosophers teach, to endure the meaninglessness of life, but rather to bear his incapacity to grasp its unconditional meaningfulness in rational terms. Viktor E. Frankl philosopher bears men I do the unpleasant tasks before I do the pleasant ones. Viktor E. Frankl pleasant tasks There are only two races, the decent and the indecent. Viktor E. Frankl decent race two To draw an analogy: a man's suffering is similar to the behavior of a gas. If a certain quantity of gas is pumped into an empty chamber, it will fill the chamber completely and evenly, no matter how big the chamber. Thus suffering completely fills the human soul and conscious mind, no matter whether the suffering is great or little. Therefore the "size" of human suffering is absolutely relative. Viktor E. Frankl soul mind men Pain from problems and disappointments, etc., is inevitable in life, but suffering is a choice determined by whether you choose to compare your experience and pain to something better and therefore feel unlucky and bitter or to something worse and therefore feel lucky and grateful! Viktor E. Frankl gratitude pain disappointment Happiness cannot be attained by wanting to be happy - it must come as the unintended consequence of working for a goal greater than oneself. Viktor E. Frankl unintended-consequences psychology goal I try to do everything as soon as possible, and not at the last moment. This ensures that, when I am overburdened with work, I will not face the added pressure of knowing that something is still to be done. Viktor E. Frankl done knowing trying View your life from your funeral, looking back at your life experiences, what have you accomplished? What would you have wanted to accomplish but didn't? What were the happy moments? What were the sad? What would you do again, and what you wouldn't Viktor E. Frankl spiritual views happiness Austrian public-opinion pollsters recently reported that those held in highest esteem by most of the people interviewed are neither the great artists nor the great scientists, neither the great statesmen nor the great sport figures, but those who master a hard lot with their heads held high. Viktor E. Frankl artist sports people If there is meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death human life cannot be complete. Viktor E. Frankl suffering-and-death meaning-of-life fate Ironically enough, in the same way that fear brings to pass what one is afraid of, likewise a forced intention makes impossible what one forcibly wishes... Pleasure is, and must remain, a side-effect or by-product, and is destroyed and spoiled to the degree to which it is made a goal in itself. Viktor E. Frankl goal wish sides It is this spiritual freedom - which cannot be taken away - Viktor E. Frankl taken spiritual meaningful In his creative work the artist is dependent on sources and resources deriving from the spiritual unconscious. Viktor E. Frankl creative artist spiritual In psychiatry there is a certain condition known as delusion of reprieve. The condemned man, immediately before his execution, gets the illusion that he might be reprieved at the very last minute. No one could yet grasp the fact that everything would be taken away. all we possessed, literally, was our naked existence. Viktor E. Frankl execution taken men A life of short duration...could be so rich in joy and love that it could contain more meaning than a life lasting eighty years. Viktor E. Frankl and-love joy years Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked. Viktor E. Frankl meaning-of-life challenges men Challenging the meaning of life is the truest expression of the state of being human. Viktor E. Frankl expression challenges motivational I understood how a man who has nothing left in this world still may know bliss, be it only for a brief moment, in the contemplation of his beloved. Viktor E. Frankl may men world
