Quotes About Wisdom

Let us then suppose the mind to be, as we say, a white paper, void of all characters, without any ideas. How comes it to be furnished? ... To this I answer, in one word, from experience.

Virtue is harder to be got than a knowledge of the world; and, if lost in a young man, is seldom recovered.

The improvement of understanding is for two ends: first, our own increase of knowledge secondly, to enable us to deliver that knowledge to others.

Where all is but dream, reasoning and arguments are of no use, truth and knowledge nothing.

If by gaining knowledge we destroy our health, we labour for a thing that will be useless in our hands.

Till a man can judge whether they be truths or not, his understanding is but little improved, and thus men of much reading, though greatly learned, but may be little knowing.

Every man carries about him a touchstone, if he will make use of it, to distinguish substantial gold from superficial glitterings, truth from appearances. And indeed the use and benefit of this touchstone, which is natural reason, is spoiled and lost only by assumed prejudices, overweening presumption, and narrowing our minds.

This is that which I think great readers are apt to be mistaken in. Those who have read of every thing are thought to understand every thing too; but it is not always so. Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking makes what we read ours. We are of the ruminating kind, and it is not enough to cram ourselves with a great load of collections; unless we chew them over again, they will not give us strength and nourishment.

Truths are not the better nor the worse for their obviousness or difficulty, but their value is to be measured by their usefulness and tendency.

We are born to be, if we please, rational creatures, but it is use and exercise only that makes us so, and we are indeed so no farther than industry and application has carried us.

It is of great use to the sailor to know the length of his line, though he cannot with it fathom all the depths of the ocean.

Virtue is harder to be got than knowledge of the world; and, if lost in a young man, is seldom recovered.

Let not men think there is no truth but in the sciences that they study, or the books that they read. To prejudge other men's notions before we have looked into them is not to shew their darkness, but to put out our own eyes.

He that takes away Reason to make way for Revelation puts out the Light of both , as one who pokes out eye to see .

If we will disbelieve everything, because we cannot certainly know all things, we shall do muchwhat as wisely as he who would not use his legs, but sit still and perish, because he had no wings to fly.

This is to think that men are so foolish that they take care to avoid what mischiefs can be done them by polecats and foxes, but are content, nay, think it safety, to be devoured by lions.

No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience.

Reason must be our last judge and guide in everything.

we consult reason or revelation

A wise system of education will at last teach us how little man yet knows, how much he has still to learn.

A comely old man as busy as a bee.

Far more seemly were it for thee to have thy study full of books, than thy purse full of money.

Your eyes are so sharp that you cannot only look through a millstone, but clean through the mind.

It is far more seemly to have thy Studie full of Bookes, than thy Purse full of money.