Wisdom is the name God gives to religion, so telling the world what it will hardly believe, that the two great things which so engross the desire and designs of both the nobler and ignobler sort of mankind, are to be found in religion, viz.: wisdom and pleasure, and that the former is the direct way to the latter, as religion is to both.
—Robert South (1634–1716) English Theologian, Preacher
He who acquires knowledge, without imparting it to others, is like a myrtle in the desert, where there is no one to enjoy it.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
A wise man will see to it that his acts always seem voluntary and not done by compulsion, however much he may be compelled by necessity.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
Wisdom is to the mind what health is to the body.
—Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613–80) French Writer
He who wishes to be rich in a day will be hanged in a year.
—Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian Polymath, Painter, Sculptor, Architect
That is true wisdom, to know how to alter one’s mind when occasion demands it.
—Terence (c.195–159 BCE) Roman Comic Dramatist
Much wisdom often goes with fewer words.
—Sophocles (495–405 BCE) Ancient Greek Dramatist
Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.
—Hermann Hesse (1877–1962) German-born Swiss Novelist, Poet
Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) American Head of State, Lawyer
If a man has knowledge, he has all things; if he has no knowledge, he has nothing.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Teach the children of the poor without compensation, and do not favor the children of the rich.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Only the educated are free.
—Epictetus (55–135) Ancient Greek Philosopher
As it is with a play, so it is with life—what matters is not how long the acting lasts, but how good it is.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
A wise man thinks what is easy is difficult.
—John Churton Collins (1848–1908) British Literary Critic, Writer
The only one who is wiser than anyone is everyone.
—Napoleon I (1769–1821) Emperor of France
There is no wisdom below the girdle.
—Common Proverb
Wisdom is what’s left after we’ve run out of personal opinions.
—Cullen Hightower (b.1923) American Humorist
The wise know the value of riches, but the rich do not know the pleasures of wisdom.
—Hebrew Proverb
Ninety percent of all human wisdom is the ability to mind your own business.
—Robert A. Heinlein (1907–88) American Science Fiction Writer
Common-sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834) English Poet, Literary Critic, Philosopher
It’s the height of folly to want to be the only wise one.
—Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613–80) French Writer
Wisdom outweighs any wealth.
—Sophocles (495–405 BCE) Ancient Greek Dramatist
To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
And Wisdom be the Daughter of Experience.
—Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian Polymath, Painter, Sculptor, Architect
The world is only saved by the breath of the school-children.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Wisdom is found only in truth.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of the nonessentials.
—Lin Yutang (1895–1976) Chinese Author, Philologist
A word to the wise is not sufficient if it doesn’t make sense.
—James Thurber
The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
It is high time that we had lights
that are not incendiary torches.
—George Sand (1804–76) French Novelist, Dramatist
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