quotations about wisdom
The wise man is but a clever infant spelling letters from a hierographical prophetic book, the lexicon of which lies in eternity.
THOMAS CARLYLE
attributed, Day's Collacon
It is almost everywhere the case that soon after it is begotten the greater part of human wisdom is laid to rest in repositories.
GEORG CHRISTOPH LICHTENBERG
"Notebook K", Aphorisms
The sun of the mind, and the life of the heart is Wisdom.
She is pure and full of light, crowning grey hairs with lustre,
And kindling the eye of youth with a fire not its own.
MARTIN FARQUHAR TUPPER
Proverbial Philosophy
The wise man is wise in vain who cannot be wise to his own advantage.
ENNIUS
attributed, De Officii
Wisdom is oftimes nearer when we stoop
Than when we soar.
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH
The Excursion
When wisdom leaves the house folly enters it.
EDWARD COUNSEL
Maxims
Justice without wisdom is impossible.
JAMES ANTHONY FROUDE
Short Studies on Great Subjects
We have all met people who seek wisdom so they can wear it like a lecturer wears his robes, clear proof that they "know" more than others. But spirituality is not about "having" more knowledge. It is about "being". A person can write eloquent novels about wisdom, but if they don't know how to "be" that, it means zilch.
DEVORAH HENDERSON
"Intro: Wisdom is Not Copyrighted", Walking Kabbalah
Wisdom is the only thing which can relieve us from the sway of the passions and the fear of danger, and which can teach us to bear the injuries of fortune itself with moderation, and which shows us all the ways which lead to tranquility and peace.
CICERO
The Academic Questions: Treatise De Finibus, and Tusculan Disputations of M. T. Cicero
A wise man who stands firm is a statesman; a foolish man who stands firm is a catastrophe.
ADLAI STEVENSON
attributed, 20,000 Quips & Quotes
The wealth of mankind is the wisdom they leave.
JOHN BOYLE O'REILLY
"Rules of the Road"
He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is safe.
BIBLE
Proverbs 28:26
Knowledge is horizontal; it's the accumulation of facts. Wisdom is vertical; it sees life from God's perspective.
BOB RUSSELL
"Praying for political leaders", Church Central, January 26, 2016
Even when we lose our way, wisdom never leaves us. And when we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that our relationship with and faith in wisdom is all we need to live a life rich with meaning, purpose, and joy, it gets simpler.
MICHAEL NEILL
"The Hedgehog of Wisdom", Huffington Post, January 14, 2016
What men call knowledge, is the reasoned acceptance of false appearances. Wisdom looks behind the veil and sees.
SRI AUROBINDO
Thoughts and Aphorisms
It is because the old have forgotten life that they preach wisdom.
PHILIP MOELLER
Helena's Husband
Wisdom is wisdom, wherever found.
G. DAVID NORDLEY
"The Fountain", Asimov's Science Fiction, June 1, 2013
All wisdom ends in paradox.
JEFFREY EUGENIDES
The Virgin Suicides
My wisdom has long accumulated like a cloud, it becomes stiller and darker. So does all wisdom which shall one day bear lightnings.
FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE
Thus Spoke Zarathustra
A wise man is out of the reach of fortune.
THOMAS BROWNE
Religio Medici