Top Ten Greatest Philosophical Quotes

No words of mine can ever do any justice to this man... All I can say is the quote shown above reflects what a great man he truly was and still is. I wonder what he would say if he lived in this world right now. Would he be disgusted or amazed?

Almost as reminiscent of what would Jesus say if he were to have seen what has been done in his name.

That was the most stupid thing he ever said! People can imagine real cruel things to do in life and if the same people had some knowledge of their sick and twisted imagination the world would maybe a better place to live in. I'm not saying that everyone has bad imaginations (some has exceptional good ideas), but knowledge (especially "know yourself") is more important in life to do things right.

Intelligences �"of varying kinds and degrees are gifts to be used wisely and compassionately for society's betterment; imagination, however, can be cultivated and inculcated in others, causing us to change our perspectives or think of possibilities within our domains.

If anyone else had said this, I'd laugh and call him a fool who knows nothing of intelligence. But the fact that Einstein said this... I just can't argue against the brilliance that he had.

He knows nothing, reverse it. He doesn't know everything/anything

He knows nothing is the opposite of He doesn't know everything/anything

Therefore Socrates knows everything/anything, and therefor he is the wisest. That's the true meaning of that quote.

Very true. Only a wise and all-knowing person knows they know nothing about everything, some things about nothing, nothing about some things and everything about nothing and...I think I've just proved Socrates point...

It is natural truth that no one knows everything but it is really very difficult to confess that. But one who accept that, his such a sentence reflect that he knows more than others.

Socrates truly valued knowledge, or rather enlightenment. Elenchus, and revelation. He sought to eliminate ignorance, but realized that people had the illusion of intelligence. He wouldn't have that.

Living simply gives others the chance to enjoy reserved resources so they can survive as well. This is the inverse of living a sophisticated life where your selfish desired lead to the deterioration and exhaustion of resources, which causes harm to innocent lives you may not even know. Some political leaders leave extravagant and authoritative lives they please, but adversely affect the citizenry and subsequent generations who follow.

These are words to live by in this world of extremes. We need to be more mindful of how our choices and acts affects people we have never met.

If your life style is simple then you have left many thing behind for other's to survive.

It show's gratefulness; something which human's desperately need.

Not really something to think about! It's a giving fact that we learn by nature (for instance, a little kid whose pet just died will grasp the meaning of death). We don't need a book for that (or a quote like this one).

It tells many things about humanity that many ignore or wish not to speak because they are scared, so it's a good way to tell the truth without telling someone that its how we all will end up one day.

@onlymusic:
You ask how one may write so well?
This is done by divine inspiration. The Bible in all of it's entirety was written in this way. From the earliest text to the newest; from Genesis to Revelation. The Book, or rather "Volume", that is the Holy Bible was constructed by the very hand of God, orchestrated through time.

This is so pretty and beautiful. The trick is that now we say "ooh how nicely said!" but if anybody nowadays would say anything like that we would be like "what's he talking about? Is he crazy?"

Where did he said that? I'm not familiar with that quote. The one I know of Socrates is where they asking him if it's better to be married or not and where he answers to that as follows: "If you get married, you will regret it, and if you don't get married, you will regret it as well".

My goodness! He's being ironic, that's all. This isn't an advertisement for marriage, more a sarcastic take on the apparent navel gazing those who don't marry engage in. It's self-deprecating comedy.

This is absolutely correct& truth.

You don't know his wife, don't you?

That's great, I have practised the front kick thousands of times and tell you what? Its perfectly dangerous to try it on someone! Brinya

The art of mastering. Not necessarily restricted to Kungfu - but almost every aspects of life.

When I am studying, my mind get divert. there is also one problem when I learn anything, I forget that in few minutes

So much truth in this quote.

That's cheap philosophy ( if you can call it philosophy? ). If I get a box of chocolates I know I get chocolates with different kind of flavors or one kind of flavor but I still know it's chocolate! Put this stupid quote out of this list!

Has Hollywood knowledge of philosophy? I don't think so! This stupid saying is ranked too high on this list! If you ask me it even really doesn't belong here!

I really think this quote is very cheap there's no philosophy in it and who ever listed it here was misguided.

Life literally means sweet, so the box of chocolate means you can not choose any chocolate out of the box,because it is the same chocolate so have no choice(live).

People push reason aside when it comes to God.
Humanity and God are like lovers, and love can make people blind.

The heart doesn't perceive anything it is an organ that pumps blood around the body, nothing more, nothing less.

Faith comes first before reason, although both are necessary to perceive God.

I have just read through the other quotes and find, at this time, that thisspeaksto me.

That's the basics of existentialism. They ask no questions of the meaning of something, but they ask questions like "what means it to me?". It's also more a way of life and attitude than a real philosophy. But it's also known that this attitude (how admirable it may be) stops progressions in the search of the absolute truth.

It's an opinion on the finiteness of life. From nothing we came, and to nothing we return. I guess it's up to you what you do with your time, plus your attitude to what happens with your time.

Nice philosophical quotes...
Extra ordinary...
Must be followed in a persons life...

Yes, I agree because I think that we should live like a ongoing river having no goal,blessing life with full of water.

Happiness is fleeting, elusive, and temporary. The best a person can do is to not suffer excessively and unnecessarily.

Happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the aim and end of one's existence.

Happiness is the ultimate reason why I live, only that man could not understand.

The definition of happiness...

I never asked for life, so I'm not grateful or ungrateful for it. My parents copulated, conceived, and here I am in the middle of nowhere responding to a philosophical thread. I don't recall ever signing up got life.

Be content today. Let the time do its thing. When you meet tomorrow - look back. Thick those unchecked box from yesterday. But tomorrow only adds to the stock - the unchecked boxes. So you be content again! Toady!

Very true. So many of us endlessly complained about the things that we don't have at the moment. The fact is, we already got so much of what once was a burning need.

I desire the lovely girl at the sandwich counter, and I'm going ok with her, and if she's the girl for me, I shall never desire another again. She's divine.

Perhaps those who don't experience life without enduring struggle and adversity, may not truly and wholly embrace, celebrate and or appreciate the smaller, simpler things that matter or are missed when not there and the epic personal triumphs humans achieve and strive for. For all he achieved he still displayed humility which I admire. For me that's what I get from this. Thanks Bruce.

Bruce acknowledging the harsh realities of life. Succinctly put, too.

A little bit stupid ( what do you expect from a Hollywood movie ). Sometimes we can learn from our mistakes while we're trying to do right afterwards.

George Lucas tried, and came up with Jar Jar Binks. Do not do or try ever again please, George.

The rest just make me feel worthless, this makes me determined...

Basically either do it or don't, don't half ass anything. Great quote

Who decides what Philosophy is and isn't? Philosophers aren't here to please and make us all feel better, they're here to make us question our beliefs, our ideals, and the endless paradox' that life presents. If you want to feel better, go hug a tree - while they're still here.

I'm a smart ass, but I can't argue with this one. He has encapsulated my life and aspirations in a nutshell.

Fancy words to explain the greek meaning of philosophy. Wisdom ( sophia ) and love ( philo ) for it!

President Kennedy is overrated as being one of the best presidents of the US. He announced the discovery of the installation in Cuba of nuclear missiles and proclaimed that any nuclear attack from Cuba would be regarded as an attack of the Soviet Union and would be responded accordingly. Cuba dismantled its nuclear missile to keep relations at peace but on the other hand president Kennedy had no problem by install nuclear missiles in Turkey. This man was " creating " enemies because of his " paranoia " and starting almost a nuclear war. Forgive your enemies by putting millions of people in danger? Was that his wise philosophy?

Forgiving them is good... And their names in this context is the lesson... So if something related to their names (lessons) comes up in future, you take the necessary precautions... It's a good one

So stupid! Why I have to forgive my enemies? If for instance someone would kill my mother why should I forgive a bastard like that?

If anyone did to me what they did to Kennedy would end up in an electric chair.

Lol! If I want children I'll go to a club and, if I get lucky, I can impregnate a woman. How miraculous. I want adults in this world, not children. There's far too many people on the planet as it is, and the one's that are here behave exactly like children.

Ah, so. Remember yelling for joy and leaping skyward because of that joy?

That' glee!

Children are quick to forgiveness and they are innocent! Who wouldn't want that?

It's a shame that we fail to love one another when love is rated so high and its for free!

Just another equivalent of the old saying " After rain comes the Sunshine ". Nice saying but no originality in Tupac's equivalent.

That's so true

It's true in a way what he's saying. About the atom bomb? Well, nobody was punished for it. He just don't say of the privilege is right or wrong. If he tought that it was wrong then you can concider this quote as a sarcastic critic against geniuses who thinks they can do anything they want and get away with it. I know that Lewis Carrol had a romantic nature, so I believe that he tought that privilege of geniuses was a wrong thing.

After analysed every radical doubt he came to the conclusion that one thing is sure ; that he exist. His saying " I think therefore I am " was true even if he was dreaming, even when his senses played tricks with his mind.It was even necessarily true because it's impossible to deny it without being in contradiction with yourself ( if you're saying that you have doubts about your existence it proves in fact that you exist otherwise you wouldn't have a doubt to begin with ). You can't ignore the existence of your thinking because it's with your thinking that you can get doubts. Therefore thinking and I ( my existence ) are the same. A proven selfidentity that has a body and mind.

The comment about the " olympic runner " is the comment that doesn't make sense. If you think that you are a olympic runner it proves that you exist otherwise you wouldn't be able to think your own lie. The quote of Descartes is about existence because you think ( no matter what you are thinking ) and not about your thoughts of something. If you understood the quote ( and I'm sure you don't ) you would have said " Just because you think you are an olympic runner, doesn't mean you exist ". Does that make sense to you?

Doesn't even make sense. Just because you think you are an Olympic runner, doesn't mean you are.

Pretty bland sentiment on sentience. Most life forms have it.

Just clever for clever's sake. I'm not sacrificing jack today because my tomorrow will be enriched by not sacrificing it.

Stupid! Like you know what day will be tomorrow? You can be dead tomorrow. I say ; Carpe Diem!

Whoa. Never heard of that one, but it's a good one to explain how people can do evil in the name of good.

I have spent my life being hated for what I am but as Socrates said in Apology, "and I would rather die having spoken after my manner, than speak in your manner and live." I would rather be hated for what I am and hope that someone out there loves me for what I truly am than deceive someone by having them love me for what I am not.

I'll take whatever love is thrown my way before whatever hate is thrown my way any day of the week.

Not a pacifist, more to the contrary. He believed that a revolution, which is a forceful transition, was inevitable, and the only right continuation of society. Religion dulled the workers pain and postponed this transition, most the same way a drug like opium would have.

This is much similar to Nietzsches way of thinking regarding both religion but also alcohol, as these things work as anti-catalysts to change - they make oppression and bad situations tolerable and delays change.

So true. It's a shame that Lenin has tried to eliminate the " opium " with radical acts. Karl Marx was a pacifist and wrote this just to make a point about organised religion that was part of the political structure at that time which people followed blindly without thinking about the hypocrisy of it. It prove that he was right after all when you see that nowadays most of the confrontations in this world are still religious conflicts.

Karl Marx was at the first place a theoritician. His writings about the revolution was not about starting a war but about a unite of the proleterian class ( the working class ) through unions ( those were still theories ) and that once the united class would be big enough it would be inevitable that a transistion of power would accure. Organised Religion had much power over people and in politics in those days. An atheist like Karl Marx was aware that as long people believed in " organised religion " a lot of people would never follow his theories about socialism just because he knew that religion works like a very addictive drug ( opium in this case ) in the mind of those " addicted or brainwashed to god-theories " people. The alienation ( Hegel ) of yourself and worship of a outside-human power created by the people works like a drug, like opium ( Feuerbach ). We all know that those two philosophers were a major influence in Marx's writings ( dialectic materialism as opposed to ...more