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dc145cc The other day a monk told me, 'The resting place of the mind is the heart. The only thing the mind hears all day is clanging bells and noise and argument, and all it wants is quietude. The only place the mind will ever find peace is inside the silence of the heart. That's where you need to go. Elizabeth Gilbert
98bffe0 This sadness is one of the great trials of the human experiment. As far as we know, we are the only species on the planet who have been given the gift - or curse, perhaps - of awareness about our own mortality. Everything here eventually dies; we're just the lucky ones who get to think about this fact every day. Elizabeth Gilbert
4dec5b0 You must learn how to become a deeply disciplined half-ass. Elizabeth Gilbert
7ada459 The beauty and variety of the natural world are merely the visible legacies of endless war. Elizabeth Gilbert
6075242 Once Henry had heard a crying noise at sea, and had seen a mermaid floating on the ocean's surface. The mermaid had been injured by a shark. Henry had pulled the mermaid out of the water with a rope, and she had died in his arms..."what language did the mermaid speak?" Alma wanted to know, imagining that it like almost have to be Greek. "English!" Henry said. "By God, plum, why would I rescue a deuced foreign mermaid?" Elizabeth Gilbert
b3a7575 The whole sphere of air that surrounds us, Alma, is alive with invisible attractions -- electric, magnetic, fiery and thoughtful. There is a universal sympathy all around us... When we cease all argument and debate -- both internal and external -- our true questions can be heard and answered...That is the gathering of magic. Elizabeth Gilbert
060a7a6 mn lshl `lyn 'n nd`w wnHnu fy lshd@ , wlkn lstmrr fy ld` b`d mrwr l'zm@ hw 'shbh bDmn ys`d lrwH `l~ ltmsk bnjzth ljyd@ . Elizabeth Gilbert
c1acbd3 This person had arrived, he had illuminated her, he had ensorcelled her with notions of miracle and beauty, he had both understood and misunderstood her, he had married her, he had broken her heart, he had looked upon her with those sad and hopeless eyes, he had accepted his banishment, and now he was gone. What a stark and stunning thing was life- that such a cataclysm can enter and depart so quickly, and leave such wreckage behind! Elizabeth Gilbert
3e9cae1 The search for contentment is, therefore, not merely a self-preserving and self-benefiting act, but also a generous gift to the world. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself but to anyone else. Only then are you free to serve and enjoy other people. happiness life Elizabeth Gilbert
82e7a43 For the more a man has in himself, the less he will want from other people,--the less, indeed, other people can be to him. This is why a high degree of intellect tends to make a man unsocial. True, Arthur Schopenhauer
a6da02f In early youth, as we contemplate our coming life, we are like children in a theatre before the curtain is raised, sitting there in high spirits and eagerly waiting for the play to begin. It is a blessing that we do not know what is really going to happen. Could we foresee it, there are times when children might seem like innocent prisoners, condemned, not to death, but to life, and as yet all unconscious of what their sentence means. Arthur Schopenhauer
7f25a52 Why is it that, in spite of all the mirrors in the world, no one really knows what he looks like? Arthur Schopenhauer
496a244 What keeps all living things busy and in motion is the striving to exist. But when existence is secured, they do not know what to do: that is why the second thing that sets them in motion is a striving to get rid of the burden of existence, not to feel it any longer, 'to kill time', i.e. to escape boredom. existence Arthur Schopenhauer
05994d1 The ingenious person will above all strive for freedom from pain and annoyance, for tranquility and leisure, and consequently seek a quiet, modest life, as undisturbed as possible, and accordingly, after some acquaintance with so-called human beings, choose seclusion and, if in possession of a great mind, even solitude. For the more somebody has in himself, the less he needs from the outside and the less others can be to him. Therefore, int.. solitude unsociability Arthur Schopenhauer
2d10ec5 We should treat with indulgence every human folly, failing, and vice, bearing in mind that what we have before us are simply our own failings, follies, and vices. For they are just the failings of mankind to which we also belong and accordingly we have all the same failings buried within ourselves. We should not be indignant with others for these vices simply because they do not appear in us at the moment. Irvin D. Yalom
8956077 On the evenings when my parents held parties, the drawing-room mirrors multiplied to infinity the scintillations of a crystal chandelier. Mama would take her seat at the grand piano to accompany a lady dressed in a cloud of tulle who played the violin and a cousin who performed on a cello. I would crack between my teeth the candied shell of an artificial fruit, and a burst of light would illuminate my palate with a taste of blackcurrant or .. Simone de Beauvoir
9d21834 Few tasks are more like the torture of Sisyphus than housework, with its endless repetition: the clean becomes soiled, the soiled is made clean, over and over, day after day. The housewife wears herself out marking time: she makes nothing, simply perpetuates the present ... Eating, sleeping, cleaning - the years no longer rise up towards heaven, they lie spread out ahead, gray and identical. The battle against dust and dirt is never won. housework sisyphus Simone de Beauvoir
821de09 We will not let ourselves be intimidated by the number and violence of attacks against women; nor be fooled by the self-serving praise showered on the "real woman"; nor be won over by men's enthusiasm for her destiny, a destiny they would not for the world want to share." Simone de Beauvoir
4167536 The characteristic feature of all ethics is to consider human life as a game that can be won or lost and to teach man the means of winning. Simone de Beauvoir
06467cf If so few female geniuses are found in history, it is because society denies them any means of expression. philosophy simone-de-beauvoir the-second-sex Simone de Beauvoir
ec0e04c Les livres que j'aimais devinrent une Bible ou je puisais des conseils et des secours. Simone de Beauvoir
2b431cc He was particularly disgruntled to see what he had taken for a bundle of old rags on the tracks outside was a human body. He did not say "Not again" (what he said was "Shit on this"), but "Not again" was what he meant." Peter Straub
83a6e38 Intellectual labor is a common technique for the avoidance of thinking. peter-straub thinking Peter Straub
8ff6e88 Love is the answer, said the songs, and that's OK. It was OK, I supposed, as an answer. But no more than that. It was not a solution; it wasn't really even an answer, just a reply. Lorrie Moore
d6069ab This lunge at moral fastidiousness was something she'd noticed a lot in people around here. They were not good people. They were not kind. But they recycled their newspapers! Lorrie Moore
37a2a85 Women now were told not to settle for second best, told that they deserved better, but at a time, it seemed, when there was so much less to go around. Lorrie Moore
173021f How can it be described? How can any of it be described? The trip and the story of the trip are two different things. The narrator is the one who has stayed home, but then, afterward, presses her mouth upon the traveler's mouth, in order to make the mouth work, to make the mouth say, say, say. One cannot go to a place and speak of it; one cannot both see and say, not really. One can go, and upon returning make a lot of hand motions and indi.. Lorrie Moore
ef3d4c9 The problem with a beautiful woman is that she makes everyone around her feel hopelessly masculine, which if you're already male to begin with poses no particular problem. But if you're anyone else, your whole sexual identity gets dragged into the principal's office: "So what's this I hear about you prancing around, masquerading as a woman?" You are answerless. You are sitting on your hands. You are praying for your breasts to grow, your ha.. Lorrie Moore
8260309 And though he continued never to express a single word of love for me, not in any way of his several languages, I could not take a hint. Let the hint be written across the heavens in skywriting done by several planes - I was dense. Even skywriting, well, it wasn't always certain: it might not cover the whole entire sky, or some breeze might smudge it, so who could really say for sure what it said? Even skywriting wouldn't have worked! Sever.. Lorrie Moore
ad13013 PICKERING:Excuse the straight question, Higgins. Are you a man of good character where women are concerned? HIGGINS [moodily]:Have you ever met a man of good character where women are concerned? George Bernard Shaw
1c6aa29 Self-sacrifice enables us to sacrifice other people without blushing. preface sacrifice George Bernard Shaw
d73898e I know your head aches. I know you're tired. I know your nerves are as raw as meat in a butcher's window. But think what you're trying to accomplish - just think what you're dealing with. The majesty and grandeur of the English language; it's the greatest possession we have. The noblest thoughts that ever flowed through the hearts of men are contained in its extraordinary, imaginative and musical mixtures of sounds. And that's what you've s.. language George Bernard Shaw
3cdcb03 German and Spanish are accessible to foreigners: English is not accessible even to Englishmen. George Bernard Shaw
bed6b53 All professions are conspiracies against the laity. George Bernard Shaw
3c7950f Repressed and suppressed feelings require counter-energy to keep them submerged. It takes energy to hold down our feelings. As these feelings are relinquished, the energy that had been holding down the negativity is now freed for constructive uses. David R. Hawkins
131071d The only way to enhance one's power in the world is by increasing one's integrity, understanding, and capacity for compassion. David R. Hawkins
b3836c6 It hurts," Nellie said. "I know," Reagan said. "No pain, no gain." "Do you think they made that expression up for ?" Jude Watson
b674291 There is in this valley a beating heart. It is always and ever there. And when I am gone, it will beat for you and when you are gone, it will beat for your children and theirs, forever. Forever. Until there is no water, no air, no green in the spring or gold in the autumn, no stars in the sky or wind from the north. And when you cannot speak, it will speak for you. When you cannot see, it will be your eyes. When you cannot remember, it will.. remembrance Robert Goolrick
32e0b54 Our successes and failures in life can be traced to how well or how badly we deal with the inevitable conflicts that confront us in society. Robert Greene
40ae444 Your mind is the starting point of all war and all strategy. A mind that is easily overwhelmed by emotion, that is rooted in the past instead of the present, that cannot see the world with clarity and urgency, will create strategies that will always miss the mark. Robert Greene
f033cd2 If the world is like a giant scheming court and we are trapped inside it, there is no use in trying to opt out of the game. That will only render you powerless, and powerlessness will make you miserable. Instead of struggling against the inevitable, instead of arguing and whining and feeling guilty, it is far better to excel at power. In fact, the better you are at dealing with power, the better friend, lover, husband, wife, and person you .. Robert Greene
cda16a2 Learn to use the knowledge of the past and you will look like a genius, even when you are really just a clever borrower. Robert Greene
d3500fc When you have success, be extra wary. When you are angry, take no action. When you are fearful, know you are going to exaggerate the dangers you face. Robert Greene
1f1b1f7 The most important of these skills, and power's crucial foundation, is the ability to master your emotions. An emotional response to a situation is the single greatest barrier to power, a mistake that will cost you a lot more than any temporary satisfaction you might gain by expressing your feelings. Robert Greene