If the secret of being a bore is to tell all, the secret of pleasing is to say just enough to be—not understood, but divined.
—Remy de Gourmont (1858–1915) French Critic, Novelist
I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
A man who pretends to understand women is ad manners. For him to really to understand them is bad morals.
—Henry James (1843–1916) American-born British Novelist, Writer
All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.
—Galileo Galilei (1564–1642) Italian Astronomer, Physicist, Mathematician
There is a great difference between knowing and understanding: you can know a lot about something and not really understand it.
—Charles F. Kettering (1876–1958) American Inventor, Entrepreneur, Businessperson
Contentment is accepting the world as an imperfect place.
—Anonymous
I hear, I forget. I see, I remember. I do, I understand.
—Chinese Proverb
Understanding is a two-way street.
—Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American First Lady, Diplomat, Humanitarian
Never do today what you can put off till tomorrow.—Delay may give clearer light as to what is best to be done.
—Aaron Burr
No man thoroughly understands a truth until he has contended against it.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery.
—J. K. Rowling (b.1965) English Novelist
Return to the root and you will find the meaning.
—Jianzhi Sengcan (d.606 CE) Chinese-Buddhist Monk
To be surprised, to wonder, is to begin to understand.
—Jose Ortega y. Gasset (1883–1955) Spanish Critic, Journalist, Philosopher
If you want to understand today, you have to search yesterday.
—Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) American Novelist, Human Rights Activist
The less you know about a field, the better your odds. Dumb boldness is the best way to approach a new challenge.
—Jerry Seinfeld (b.1954) American Comedian
If you can keep your head about you when all about you are losing theirs, its just possible you haven’t grasped the situation.
—Jean Kerr (1922–2003) Irish-American Author, Playwright
Understanding can overcome any situation, however mysterious or insurmountable it may appear to be.
—Norman Vincent Peale (1898–1993) American Clergyman, Self-Help Author
A single moment of understanding can flood a whole life with meaning.
—Anonymous
A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are.
—Indian Proverb
Things are not always what they seem; the first appearance deceives many; the intelligence of a few perceives what has been carefully hidden.
—Plato (428 BCE–347 BCE) Ancient Greek Philosopher, Mathematician, Educator
People in high life are hardened to the wants and distresses of mankind as surgeons are to their bodily pains.
—G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) English Journalist, Novelist, Essayist, Poet
Said the little boy, Sometimes I drop my spoon.
Said the little old man, I do that too.
The little boy whispered, I wet my pants.
I do too, laughed the old man.
Said the little boy, I often cry.
The old man nodded. So do I.
But worst of all, said the boy, it seems
Grown-ups don’t pay attention to me.
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
I know what you mean, said the little old man.
—Shel Silverstein (1932–99) American Cartoonist, Author
Nothing can be love or hated unless it is first known.
—Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian Polymath, Painter, Sculptor, Inventor, Architect
The eye of the understanding is like the eye of the sense; for as you may see great objects through small crannies or holes, so you may see great axioms of nature through small and contemptible instances.
—Francis Bacon (1561–1626) English Philosopher
The fact that you are willing to say, “I do not understand, and it is fine,” is the greatest understanding you could exhibit.
—Wayne Dyer (1940–2015) American Self-Help Author
Don’t write merely to be understood. Write so that you cannot possibly be misunderstood.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
Do not expect to arrive at certainty in every subject which you pursue. There are a hundred things wherein we mortals… must be content with probability, where our best light and reasoning will reach no farther.
—Isaac Watts (1674–1748) English Hymn writer
Two parts of empathy: Skill (tip of iceberg) and Attitude (mass of the iceberg).
—Unknown
If I am to care for people in hospital I really must know every aspect of their treatment and to understand their suffering.
—Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–97) English Royal, Humanitarian, Peace Activist
The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible.
—Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born Physicist
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