When the danger is past God is cheated.
—Italian Proverb
I needed some real danger and some mortal risk to run, to tranquilize me.
—Alexandre Dumas pere (1802–1870) French Novelist, Playwright
It is better to meet danger than to wait for it. He that is on a lee shore, and foresees a hurricane, stands out to sea and encounters a storm to avoid a shipwreck.
—Charles Caleb Colton (c.1780–1832) English Clergyman, Aphorist
It is the business of the future to be dangerous…. The major advances in civilization are processes that all but wreck the societies in which they occur.
—Alfred North Whitehead (1861–1947) English Mathematician, Philosopher
Unless you enter the tiger’s den you cannot take the cubs.
—Japanese Proverb
It is not manly to turn one’s back on fortune.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
If we are intended for great ends, we are called to great hazards.
—John Henry Newman (1801–90) British Theologian, Poet
When danger approaches, sing to it.
—Arabic Proverb
No one is worthy of a good home here or in heaven that is not willing to be in peril for a good cause.
—John Mason Brown (1900–69) American Columnist, Journalist, Author
Out of debt, out of danger.
—Common Proverb
The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
A wreck on shore is a beacon at sea.
—Common Proverb
Biggest profits mean gravest risks.
—Chinese Proverb
Would you learn the secret of the sea? Only those who brave its dangers, comprehend its mystery!
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–82) American Poet, Educator, Academic
It’s a dangerous thing to think we know everything.
—Jack Kuehler (1932–2008) American Engineer, Businessperson
A person’s fears are lighter when the danger is at hand.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
It is better to do thine own duty, however lacking in merit, than to do that of another, even though efficiently. It is better to die doing one’s own duty, for to do the duty of another is fraught with danger.
—The Bhagavad Gita Hindu Scripture
The most dangerous people are the ignorant.
—Henry Ward Beecher (1813–87) American Clergyman, Writer
Constant exposure to dangers will breed contempt for them.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
Don’t play for safety – it’s the most dangerous thing in the world
—Hugh Walpole (1884–1941) English Novelist, Short Story Writer, Dramatist
Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes the furthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The “sure thing” boat never gets far from shore.
—Dale Carnegie (1888–1955) American Self-Help Author
Kindness and intelligence don’t always deliver us from the pitfalls and traps: there are always failures of love, of will, of imagination. There is no way to take the danger out of human relationships.
—Barbara Grizzuti Harrison (1934–2002) American Journalist, Essayist, Memoirist, Travel Writer
Many have had their greatness made for them by their enemies.
—Baltasar Gracian (1601–58) Spanish Scholar, Prose Writer
Princes and governments are far more dangerous than other elements within society.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
Between the anvil and the hammer.
—German Proverb
Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.
—Helen Keller (1880–1968) American Author
Silent men like still waters, are deep and dangerous.
—Common Proverb
He that will not sail till all dangers are over must never put to sea.
—Thomas Fuller (1608–61) English Cleric, Historian
All work of man is as the swimmer’s: a vast ocean threatens to devour him; if he front it not bravely, it will keep its word.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
A timid person is frightened before a danger; a coward during the time; and a courageous person afterward.
—Jean Paul (1763–1825) German Novelist, Humorist
Let the fear of a danger be a spur to prevent it; he that fears not, gives advantage to the danger.
—Francis Quarles (1592–1644) English Religious Poet
It is in great dangers that we see great courage.
—Jean-Francois Regnard (1655–1709) French Dramatist
Out of this nettle, danger, we pluck this flower, safety.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
As soon as there is life, there is danger.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
It is only by risking … that we live at all.
—William James (1842–1910) American Philosopher, Psychologist, Physician
Every man is his own chief enemy.
—Anacharsis (fl. 6th century BCE) Scythian Prince
To achieve anything, you must be prepared to dabble on the boundary of disaster.
—Stirling Moss (1929–2020) English Motor-Racing Driver, Broadcaster
I postpone death by living, by suffering, by error, by risking, by giving, by losing.
—Anais Nin (1903–77) French-American Essayist
Courage in danger is half the battle.
—Plautus (Titus Maccius Plautus) (c.250–184 BCE) Roman Comic Playwright
To act is to be committed, and to be committed is to be in danger.
—James Baldwin (1924–87) American Novelist, Social Critic
Of course people are afraid. But honestly facing that fear, seeing it for what it is, is the only way of putting it to rest.
—Harvey Fierstein (b.1952) American Actor, Playwright, Civil Rights Activist
Our safety is not in blindness, but in facing our danger.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
Let me have men about me that are fat, sleek-headed men and such as sleep a-nights. Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look. He thinks too much. Such men are dangerous.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
There is often less danger in the things we fear than in the things we desire.
—John Churton Collins (1848–1908) English Literary Critic
A man’s opinion of danger varies at different times according to his animal spirits, and he is actuated by considerations which he dares not avow.
—Tobias Smollett (1721–71) Scottish Poet, Novelist
The most dangerous thing is illusion.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The secret of reaping the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment from life is to live dangerously.
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) German Philosopher, Scholar, Writer
Dangers by being despised grow great.
—Edmund Burke (1729–97) British Philosopher, Statesman
If a little dreaming is dangerous, the cure for it is not to dream less but to dream more, to dream all the time.
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922) French Novelist
The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis.’ One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger – but recognize the opportunity.
—John F. Kennedy (1917–63) American Head of State, Journalist