Echoes

Silence is a fence around wisdom.

Let us be silent, that we may hear the whisper of the gods.

To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.

To the quiet mind all things are possible.

In the midst of silence there was spoken within me a secret word. But to hear this word in stillness, all things must be hushed and at rest in this silence — there must be a stillness, and then we may hear it. The very best and noblest attainment in this life is to be silent and let God work and speak within.

I would prefer inarticulate wisdom to loquacious foolishness.

All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.

In silence and in stillness a devout soul maketh progress, and learneth the mysteries of Holy Scripture.

The best fighter is never angry.

The primary indication, to my thinking, of a well-ordered mind is a man's ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company.

Not all of us are called to be hermits, but all of us need enough silence and solitude to enable the deeper voice of our own self to be heard.

First keep the peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others.

Our patience will achieve more than our force.

I have always been fond of the West African proverb "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far."

Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.

To do nothing is sometimes a good remedy.

Men seek retreats for themselves, houses in the country, sea-shores, and mountains. But this is altogether a mark of the most common sort of men, for it is in thy power whenever thou shalt choose to retire into thyself. For nowhere either with more quiet or more freedom from trouble does a man retire than into his own soul.

Nowhere you can go is more peaceful — more free of interruptions — than your own soul.

The Tao is like a bellows: it is empty yet infinitely capable. The more you use it, the more it produces; the more you talk of it, the less you understand.

It is better to be alone than in bad company.

Students, when you want to say something, think about it three times before you say it. Speak only if your words will benefit yourselves and others. Do not speak if it brings no benefit.

The man of perfect virtue is cautious and slow in his speech. When a man feels the difficulty of doing, can he be other than cautious and slow in speaking?

They are never alone that are accompanied with noble thoughts.

I find it wholesome to be alone the greater part of the time. To be in company, even with the best, is soon wearisome and dissipating. I love to be alone. I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude. We are for the most part more lonely when we go abroad among men than when we stay in our chambers. A man thinking or working is always alone, let him be where he will... The really diligent student... is as solitary as a dervish in the desert. The farmer can work alone in the field or the woods all day, hoeing or chopping, and not feel lonesome.