All our knowledge merely helps us to die a more painful death than animals that know nothing.
—Maurice Maeterlinck (1862–1949) Belgian Poet, Playwright, Essayist
He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that.
—John Stuart Mill (1806–73) English Philosopher, Economist
The knowledge that we consider knowledge proves itself in action. What we now mean by knowledge is information in action, information focused on results.
—Peter Drucker (1909–2005) Austrian-born Management Consultant
Though completely armed with knowledge and endowed with power, we are blind and impotent in a world we have equipped and organized-a world of which we now fear the inextricable complexity.
—Paul Valery (1871–1945) French Critic, Poet
The knower and the known are one. Simple people imagine that they should see God as if he stood there and they here. This is not so. God and I, we are one in knowledge.
—Meister Eckhart (c.1260–1327) German Christian Mystic
I said that an expert was a fella who was afraid to learn anything new because then he wouldn’t be an expert anymore.
—Harry S. Truman (1884–1972) American Head of State
There is much pleasure to be gained from useless knowledge.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
A desire of knowledge is the natural feeling of mankind; and every human being whose mind is not debauched will be willing to give all that he has to get knowledge.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) Irish Playwright
Do not try to entrap others with your haughty knowledge. To your wide surprise, they will entrap you with their lengthy ignorance.
—Sri Chinmoy (1931–2007) Indian Yoga Teacher
To know is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
In many things it is not well to say, “Know thyself” it is better to say, “Know others.”
—Menander (c.343–c.291 BCE) Greek Comic Dramatist, Poet
Familiarity breeds contempt; and children.
—Mark Twain (1835–1910) American Humorist
Wherefore a man can know nothing by himself, save after a natural manner, which is only that which he attains by means of the senses. For this cause he must have the phantasms and the forms of objects present in themselves and in their likenesses; otherwise it cannot be, for, as philosophers say: Ab objecto et potentia paritur notitia. That is: From the object that is present and from the faculty, knowledge is born in the soul. Wherefore, if one should speak to a man of things which he has never been able to understand, and whose likeness he has never seen, he would have no more illumination from them whatever than if naught had been said of them to him.
—John of the Cross (1542–1591) Spanish Roman Catholic Mystic
It is in knowledge as it is in plants; if you mean to use the plant, it is no matter for the roots; if you mean it to grow, it is safer to rest upon roots than upon slips.
—Francis Bacon (1561–1626) English Philosopher
Men love to wonder, and that is the seed of science.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
I envy no man that knows more than myself, but pity them that know less.
—Thomas Browne (1605–82) English Author, Physician
Knowledge is like money: the more he gets, the more he craves.
—Josh Billings (Henry Wheeler Shaw) (1818–85) American Humorist, Author, Lecturer
If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it away from him.—An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.
—Benjamin Franklin (1706–90) American Political Leader, Inventor, Diplomat
Knowledge does not come to us in details, but in flashes of light from heaven.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
Know thyself is a good saying, but not in all situations. In many it is better to say “Know others.”
—Menander (c.343–c.291 BCE) Greek Comic Dramatist, Poet
Boys, I may not know much, but I know chicken shit from chicken salad.
—Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–73) American Head of State, Political leader
There is one quality that one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants, and a burning desire to possess it.
—Napoleon Hill (1883–1970) American Author, Journalist, Attorney, Lecturer
In your thirst for knowledge, be sure not to drown in all the information.
—Anthony J. D’Angelo
Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification.
—Martin H. Fischer
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
We don’t know one-millionth of one percent about anything.
—Thomas Edison (1847–1931) American Inventor, Scientist, Entrepreneur
We are here and it is now. Further than that all human knowledge is moonshine.
—H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) American Journalist, Literary Critic
Children with Hyacinth’s temperament don’t know better as they grow older; they merely know more.
—Saki (Hector Hugh Munro) (1870–1916) British Short Story Writer, Satirist, Historian
Knowledge becomes wisdom only after it has been put to practical use.
—Indian Proverb
Knowledge is the antidote to fear.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
It is right it should be so; Man was made for joy and woe; And when this we rightly know Through the world we safely go.
—William Blake (1757–1827) English Poet, Painter, Printmaker
Any piece of knowledge I acquire today has a value at this moment exactly proportional to my skill to deal with it. Tomorrow, when I know more, I recall that piece of knowledge and use it better.
—Mark Van Doren (1894–1972) American Poet, Writer, Critic
The larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of wonder.
—Ralph Washington Sockman (1889–1970) American United Methodist Pastor
Experts kill me. Economic experts, that is. Corporations, foundations, publications and governments pay them by the bucketful, and they fill buckets with forecasts that change more frequently than white-collar, workers do shirts. What Lies Ahead is the usual title. What Lies would often be more appropriate. If women’s hemlines changed as rapidly as an economist’s forecasts, the fashion people and the textile industry would be more profitable than any other. In fact, if all the country’s economists were laid end to end, they still wouldn’t reach a conclusion.
—Malcolm S. Forbes (1919–1990) American Publisher, Businessperson
Learn as though you would never be able to master it; hold it as though you would be in fear of losing it.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
If we really love ourselves, everything in our life works.
—Louise Hay (b.1926) American Author
All wish to possess knowledge, but few, comparatively speaking, are willing to pay the price.
—Juvenal (c.60–c.136 CE) Roman Poet
Ignorance is the curse of God; knowledge the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Again and again I therefore admonish my students in Europe and America: Don’t aim at success—the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one’s personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one’s surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it. I want you to listen to what your conscience commands you to do and go on to carry it out to the best of your knowledge. Then you will live to see that in the long-run—in the long-run, I say!—success will follow you precisely because you had forgotten to think about it.
—Viktor Frankl (1905–97) Austrian Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist
Our knowledge is a little island in a great ocean of non-knowledge.
—Isaac Bashevis Singer (1902–91) Polish-born American Children’s Books Writer, Novelist, Short Story Writer
In my experience, getting rich takes focus, courage, knowledge, expertise, 100 percent of your effort, a never-give-up attitude and of course a rich mind-set.
—T. Harv Eker (b.1954) American Motivational Speaker, Lecturer, Author
Knowledge is a sacred cow, and my problem will be how we can milk her while keeping clear of her horns.
—Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1893–1986) Hungarian-American Biochemist
Information is not knowledge.
—Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born Physicist
But all knowledge has to be won — like every other thing that is worthy of us sons of God.
—Wilfred Grenfell (1865–1940) Canadian Humanitarian, Doctor
To wisdom belongs the intellectual apprehension of things eternal; to knowledge, the rational apprehension of things temporal.
—Augustine of Hippo (354–430) Roman-African Christian Philosopher
More knowledge may be gained of a man’s real character by a short conversation with one of his servants than from a formal and studied narrative, begun with his pedigree and ended with his funeral.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Each problem that I solved became a rule which served afterwards to solve other problems.
—Rene Descartes (1596–1650) French Mathematician, Philosopher
Those who come last enter with advantage—They are born to the wealth of antiquity.—The materials for judging are prepared, and the foundations of knowledge are laid to their hands.—Besides, if the point was tried by antiquity, antiquity would lose it, for the present age is really the oldest, and has the largest experience to plead.
—Jeremy Collier (1650–1726) Anglican Church Historian, Clergyman
Knowledge rests not upon truth alone, but upon error also.
—Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) Swiss Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Philosopher