Quotes from Frank Herbert

He was aware now of many things—of statecraft and profound consequences in the smallest decisions. Yet he felt this knowledge and subtlety as a thin veneer covering an iron core of simpler, more deterministic awareness. And that older core called out to him, pleaded with him for a return to cleaner values.

I can think of nothing more poisonous than to rot in the stink of your own reflections.

Kad sam se školovao za mentata...Bilo je vrlo teško, Alija, nau?iti kako rabiti vlastiti um. Prvo nau?iš dopuštati umu samostalno djelovanje. To je vrlo ?udno. Ti možeš rabiti svoje miši?e, vježbati ih, oja?avati, ali um radi sam od sebe. Ponekad, nakon što ve? nau?iš to o umu, on ti pokazuje stvari koje ne želiš vidjeti.

Bojim se slijepih, Stil. Bojim ih se. Oni tako lako mogu slomiti sve što im se na?e na putu.

Neki doga?aji imaju kraj, ali nemaju po?etak; drugi zapo?inju, ali ne završe. Sve to ovisi o to?ki na kojoj promatra? stoji.

Enclosures of any kind are a fertile breeding ground for hatred of outsiders," she said. "That produces a bitter harvest.

All around the Lady Jessica—piled in corners of the Arrakeen great hall, mounded in the open spaces—stood the packaged freight of their lives: boxes, trunks, cartons, cases—some partly unpacked.

Postoje stvari koje rije?i ne mogu objasniti. Moraš ih doživjeti bez rije?i.

Every man carries his own past with him, Hayt said.

Oholi podižu bedeme oko sebe iza kojih pokušavaju sakriti svoje sumnje i strahove.

You must cultivate ecological literacy among the people.

The night is a tunnel, she thought, a hole into tomorrow…

Previše znanja nikad ne dopušta jednostavne odluke.

Order generally was a product of human activity. Chaos existed as raw material from which to create order. That was the Mentat approach, giving no unalterable truths but a remarkable lever for decision-making: orderly assemblage of data in a non-discrete system.

Mentats cultivated naivete. Thinking you knew something was a sure way to blind yourself. It was not growing up that slowly applied brakes to learning (Mentats were taught) but an accumulation of "things I know.

Leto smiled. "Duncan, have I not told you that when you think you know something, that is a most perfect barrier against learning?

The Universe is God's. It is one thing, a wholeness against which all separations may be identified. Transient life, even that self-aware and reasoning life which we call sentient, holds only fragile trusteeship on any portion of the wholeness.

El miedo mata la mente. El miedo es la pequeña muerte que conduce a la destrucción total. Afrontaré mi miedo. Permitiré que pase sobre mí y a través de mí. Y cuando haya pasado, giraré mi ojo interior para escrutar su camino. Allá donde haya pasado el miedo ya no habrá nada. Sólo estaré yo.

We don't need any more Atreides gods! We need a space for some humanity!

In the perfect society, there is neither emotion nor mercy; precious space cannot be wasted on those who have outlived their usefulness.

He's awake and listening to us," said the old woman. "Sly little rascal." She chuckled. "But royalty has need of slyness. And if he's really the Kwisatz Haderach…well….

Paul sat back. He had used the questions and hyperawareness to do what his mother called "registering" the person. He had Kynes now—tone of voice, each detail of face and gesture.

Economics versus beauty, a story older than Sheba.

I will await below," Stilgar said, "while Idaho makes farewell with his friends. Turok was the name of our dead friend. Remember that when it comes time to release his spirit. You are friends of Turok.