Men at sometime are the masters of their fate.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
The less we deserve good fortune, the more we hope for it.
—Moliere (1622–73) French Playwright
Chance is a word devoid of sense, nothing can exist without a cause.
—Voltaire (1694–1778) French Philosopher, Author
No man ever wetted clay and then left it, as if there would be bricks by chance and fortune.
—Plutarch (c.46–c.120 CE) Greek Biographer, Philosopher
What fate imposes, men must needs abide; it boots not to resist both wind and tide.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves; we are underlings.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Fate steals along with silent tread, Found oftenest in what least we dread; Frowns in the storm with angry brow, But in the sunshine strikes the blow.
—William Cowper (1731–1800) English Anglican Poet, Hymn writer
I see it only that thyself is here, and art and nature, hope and fate, friends, angels and the supreme being shall not be absent from the chamber where thou sittest.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Destiny has a constant passion for the incongruous.
—Booth Tarkington (1869–1946) American Novelist, Dramatist
Fate is the endless chain of causation, whereby things are; the reason or formula by which the world goes on.
—Zeno of Citium (c.334–c.265 BCE) Greek Philosopher
All things are ordered by God, but his providence takes in our free agency, as well as his own sovereignty.
—Tryon Edwards (1809–94) American Theologian, Author
The sad truth is that opportunity doesn’t knock twice. You can put things off until tomorrow but tomorrow may never come. Where will you be a few years down the line. Will it be everything you dreamed of. We seal our fate with the choices we take, but don’t give a second thought to the chances we take.
—Gloria Estefan (b.1957) Cuban-American Singer, Actress
Ill fortune never crushed that man whom good fortune deceived not.
—Francis Bacon (1561–1626) English Philosopher
Dreadful is the mysterious power of fate; there is no deliverance from it by wealth or by war, by walled city or dark, seabeaten ships.
—Sophocles (495–405 BCE) Ancient Greek Dramatist
If fate means you to lose, give him a good fight anyhow.
—William McFee (1881–1966) English Writer
When it rains, it pours.
—Common Proverb
All is created and goes according to order, yet o’er our lifetime rules an uncertain fate.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
What must be shall be; and that which is a necessity to him that struggles, is little more than choice to him that is willing.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
The experiences of camp life show that a man does have a choice of action. There were enough examples, often of a heroic nature, which proved that apathy could be overcome, irritability suppressed. Man can preserve a vestige of spiritual freedom, of independence of mind, even in such terrible conditions of psychic and physical stress. We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s way. The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, gives him ample opportunity—even in the most difficult circumstances—to add a deeper meaning to life.
—Viktor Frankl (1905–97) Austrian Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist
Chance generally favors the prudent.
—Joseph Joubert (1754–1824) French Writer, Moralist
We shun the rugged battle of fate where strength is born.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Everything that exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be.
—Marcus Aurelius (121–180) Emperor of Rome, Stoic Philosopher
Tempted fate will leave the loftiest star.
—Lord Byron (George Gordon Byron) (1788–1824) English Romantic Poet
He cannot complain of a hard sentence, who is made master of his own fate.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
Whosoever quarrels with his fate does not understand it, says Bettine; and among all her sayings she spoke none wiser.
—Lydia Maria Child (1802–80) American Abolitionist, Writer
Fate leads the willing, and drags along the reluctant.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.
—Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850–1919) American Poet, Journalist
Whatever limits us we call Fate.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Fate is nothing but the deeds committed in a prior state of existence.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate.
—Donald Trump (b.1946) American Businessperson, Head of State
Leave a Reply