Quotes About Introspection

Enquire not what boils in another's pot.

Great is the difference betwixt a man's being frightened at, and humbled for his sins.

He is not laughed at who laughs at himself first.

Learning makes a man fit company for himself.

Search not a wound too deep lest thou make a new one.

What was it—I ask myself—that first vexed them into contemplations?

Yes, Germany is dark, and Berlin is darker. But it is not so clear in Berlin what part of the dark is now faux dark and what part of the dark is real.

A man with no one to revere, Julian said, is a man alone.' At that moment, he seemed to consider such loneliness the worst of fates, a sentence he would not have imposed upon the vilest man on earth. And yet, at times, I thought now, he had seemed to impose that very loneliness upon himself.

There are mysteries in science, and mysteries in art, but the greatest mystery has always been another person's deepest motivation.

A man's silence is wonderful to listen to.

This hobble of being alive is rather serious, don't you think so?

Only in formal meditation can there be the real beginning of understanding.

Words can point the way, but the path must be traveled in silence.

The trout fisher, like the landscape painter, haunts the loveliest places of the earth, and haunts them alone. Solitude and his own thoughts—he must be on the best terms with all of these; and he who can take kindly the largest allowance of these is likely to be the kindliest and truest with his fellow men.

...rousing himself from a reverie, which had degenerated into an absolute snooze.

All the problems of the world could be settled if people were only willing to think. The trouble is that people very often resort to all sorts of devices in order not to think, because thinking is such hard work.

Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, then that of blindfolded fear.

One travels more usefully when alone, because he reflects more.

He is happiest of whom the world says least, good or bad.

Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.

If you want to be free, he suggests, if you want to heal your relationship with God, with others and yourself, enter your inner room—the office, where the Divine Therapy takes place. Close the door so you don't run away. Quiet your interior dialogue so that you can listen to what the Spirit is saying to you.

When thinking and self-reflection begin, since the experience of God is missing, some other form of happiness has to take its place, just for the sake of survival.

Nothing is more helpful to reduce pride than the actual experience of self-knowledge. If we are discouraged by it, we have misunderstood its meaning.

In the world that lies ahead, religious pluralism is going to penetrate all cultures. How we live together with different points of view is going to become more and more important. I don't know whether we can make progress in such a project without a contemplative practice that alerts us to our own biases, prejudices, and self-centered programs for happiness, especially when they trample on other people's rights and needs.