Wilhelm von Humboldt

"The idea we form of a misfortune is ever somewhat different from the misfortune itself, when it appears in all its frightful certainty. We must trust in nothing so little, and must labour for nothing so unceasingly, as for the strengthening of our soul and for self-government, both of which are the only sure foundations of earthly happiness."

"The men most to be pitied are those who have no command over themselves, who cannot do what they would, and who, even whilst they are performing virtuous deeds, do so from mean motives, from regard to happiness and mental satisfaction, fear of the reproaches of conscience, or else of future punishment. This is all very well and useful, supposing that man cannot be kept in the straight path by any other motives, but he who looks inwardly to the heart and soul can derive no satisfaction from such conduct. True nobility only exists when the good is sought for its own sake, either as a recognised law of pure duty, or from the feeling of the lofty dignity and constraining beauty of virtue. It is only these motives that show the disposition to be great and noble, and these alone react upon the character."

"Even sleep is characteristic. How charming are children in their lovely innocence! how angel-like their blooming hue! how painful and anxious is the sleep and expression in the countenance of the guilty!"

"I do not dread old age, and death I have, from a peculiarity of my constitution and from my youth, been accustomed to regard not simply as an event in human life but as something joyous. Such an occurrence cannot possibly excite feelings of regret in one who has meditated deeply on the destiny of man. My reckoning with the world has long been closed — I have nothing more to look for from length of life — I have no deep-laid plans extending to a distant futurity. I take any enjoyments gratefully from the hand of Providence, but would think it foolish to be so dependent upon them as to expect them to be of long continuance. My feelings are the precise central point in which I stand, and where my enjoyments are placed ; from anything external to myself I can derive no pleasure, and those thoughts and feelings are so peculiarly my own that I cannot imagine that they should not go with me. No one, however, can raise the veil which Providence has with profound wisdom drawn over the world beyond the grave."

"What lies in the nature of things and is dependent on fate, it would be silly and unmanly to lose one’s rest and inward equilibrium in thinking of it."

"Man is, above all, the central point of human action, and each man remains at last alone, so that what was in him and went forth from him is alone important. Man, during his life on earth, sympathising and active, is ever associated in his feelings with others; yet he treads alone the more important path, which leads over the confines of the earthly state: no one can accompany him there, though in every man there is the presentiment, that beyond the grave he will find again those who have gone before him, and will there gather around him again those whom he leaves behind. No man of affectionate feeling can be without this anticipation, yea, this firm belief, without giving up a large portion of his happiness, and that the purest and noblest."

"It is a proverbial expression that every man is the maker of his own fortune, and we usually regard it as implying that every man, by his folly or wisdom, prepares good or evil for himself. But we may view it in another light — namely, that we may so accommodate ourselves to the dispensations of Providence as to be happy in our lot, whatever may be its privations."

"A taste for sculpture belongs to the best, purest, and noblest of our enjoyments; and we feel most reluctant to be separated from those forms, from which, however often we contemplate them, we derive renewed and indeed heightened pleasure."

"Time is the most important thing in human life — for what is pleasure after the departure of time? and the most consolatory, since pain, when pain has passed, is nothing. Time is the wheeltrack, in which we roll on towards eternity, conducting us to the Incomprehensible. In its progress there is a ripening power, and it ripens us the more and the more powerfully, when we duly estimate it, listen to its voice, do not waste it, but regard it as the highest finite good, in which all finite things are resolved."

"It is a beautiful attribute of our nature, a privilege granted to man exclusively, and before all the other creatures of this world, that he ever feels that he can by forethought and determination control and govern every physical influence, however mighty it may be. An inward voice proclaims to him that he is free and independent; it imputes to him good and evil, and in the judgments which he passes on himself, which must always be more severe and strict than those of others, he must entirely throw out of sight all physical influences. Man is subject to two distinct laws, that of dependence and that of freedom, and the conflict is not to be settled by the mere understanding. In the visible world all things seem to be so connected together, that, if we were acquainted with all possible circumstances — the most minute and most remote — it looks as if we could show that man at any moment could not avoid acting exactly as he did. And yet there is always the feeling within us, that if we did but will it, we could grasp the revolving wheel, and free ourselves from the chain that binds us to it. In this consciousness of his freedom lies the true dignity of man."

"It is often found that those feelings which are best, noblest, and most self-denying, are exactly those which lead to a disastrous issue. It is as if, by the command of a higher and wiser Power, man’s fate were intentionally brought into variance with his inner feelings, in order that the latter might acquire a higher value, shine with greater purity, and thus become more precious by the very privations and sufferings to him who cherishes such feelings. However benevolent may be the intentions of Providence, they do not always advance the happiness of the individual. Providence has always higher ends in view, and works in a pre-eminent degree on the inner feelings and disposition."

"The thought of a persecuting power has always appeared quite strange to me. I have never been able to endure the idea, which admits the existence of a being inimical to all good and taking pleasure in everything evil. In the New Testament I consider such passages merely figurative, expressions connected with the representations of Judaism for the evil, which man, even if he is good and believes himself quite innocent, has yet ever to fight against."

"The mere reality of life would be inconceivably poor without the charm of fancy, which brings in its bosom, no doubt, as many vain fears as idle hopes, but lends much oftener to the allusions it calls up a gay flattering hue than one which inspires terror."

"It is incredible how important it is that the corporeal frame should be kept under the influence of constant, continuous, and unbroken order, and free from the impressions of vicissitude, which always more or less derange the corporeal functions. After all, it is continued temperance which sustains the body for the longest period of time, and which most surely preserves it free from sickness."

"To set ourselves against men and fate is not a disposition of mind which is the noblest, and which does honour to us, nor is it that which is likely to procure us the greatest amount of tranquillity and cheerfulness. We ought rather to try to accommodate ourselves, so far as it is possible, to circumstances, to look on all that fate bestows upon us as a gift, being careful not to desire more, and least of all to be dissatisfied because all our desires are not gratified."

"We are both the creatures of time; our fate rests upon it as upon an ever-agitated sea, as we never know whether we can safely trust the present, or whether a deceitful future may not yet be awaiting us."

"That all life is only an advancing towards apparent annihilation, can be nowhere so clearly seen as in the regular succession of the seasons. To behold the whole vegetable world starting forth into life with innocent unsuspecting joy, as if it did not once anticipate its wintry death, contains something as deeply affecting as the life of a child, who as yet has not dreamt of danger."

"But the simple thought that the stars are far beyond and above everything earthly — the feeling that everything earthly in comparison fades from the view, and that man himself is utterly insignificant when contrasted with those worlds scattered over the firmament, while his fate, his enjoyments, and wants are as nothing — then again that the stars bind together all men and all periods of the world’s history, as they have seen all from the beginning of time, and will see all that shall come hereafter; — when I meditate on all these things, I lose myself in serene delight while contemplating the starry heavens. Certainly it is a truly sublime spectacle, when in the stillness of the night, in an unclouded sky, the stars, like the world’s choir, rise and set, and as it were divide existence into two portions: — the one, belonging to the earthly, is silent in the perfect stillness of night, whilst the other alone comes forth in sublimity, pomp, and majesty. Viewed in this light the starry heavens truly exercise a moral influence over us; and who can readily stray into the paths of immorality, if he has been accustomed to live amidst such thoughts and feelings, and frequently to dwell upon them? How are we entranced by the simple splendours of this wonderful drama of nature?"

"I read the Indian poem for the first time when I was in my country estate in Silesia and, while doing so, I felt a sense of overwhelming gratitude to God for having let me live to be acquainted with this work. It must be the most profound and sublime thing to be found in the world."

"I have, besides, a great love for the past. Only what refers to it is eternal and unchangeable like death, and at the same time warm and gladsome like life."

"If the mind loves solitude, it has thereby acquired a loftier character, and it becomes still more noble when the taste is indulged in."

"It is certainly true that I am unable to forget or give up any one with whom I have been intimate; far from this, I follow up every trace that remains of the past. Every such tie, nay, every accidental meeting, unites so many things together, and life is such a medley and patchwork, that we can never sufficiently labour to join the connecting links more and more closely to each other."

"A letter is a conversation between the present and the absent. Its fate is that it cannot last, but must pass away like the sound of the voice."

"The fate of no man, not even the happiest, is free from struggles and privation; for true happiness is only then attained, when by the government of the feelings we become independent of all the chances of life."

"Women are in this respect more fortunate, and yet more unfortunate, than men — that most of their employments are of such a nature that they may at the same time be thinking of quite different things. I would pronounce this to be a lucky circumstance, for one may almost the whole day continue a train of deep thought without the slightest interruption to work, or being in any way distracted in our labours. This is no doubt one of the chief reasons why many women surpass men in everything which requires deep thought and a more subtle knowledge of ourselves and others. But when, on the other hand, these inner thoughts are not of a pleasant nature, or at least not in a pure and unmixed degree, but partly depressing and disquieting, then the danger is certainly greater, and more likely to destroy the inward peace; whereas men, in their business itself, and even against their will, find distraction and relief from inward troubles and vexations."

"Happiness passes away, leaving hardly the slightest trace behind, indeed can scarcely be called happiness, since nothing lasting is gained. Unhappiness also passes away (and that is a great comfort), but leaves deep traces behind; and if we know how to improve them, of a most wholesome nature, and is often the cause of the highest happiness, as it purifies and strengthens the character. Then, again, in life it is worthy of special remark, that when we are not too anxious about happiness and unhappiness, but devote ourselves to the strict and unsparing performance of duty, then happiness comes of itself — nay, even springs from the midst of a life of troubles, and anxieties, and privations. This I have often observed in the case of women who have been married unhappily, but who would rather sink into the grave than abandon the position in which fate has placed them."

"Friendship and love require the deepest and most entire confidence, but souls of a high character demand not communications of a familiar nature."

"Sorrows and reverses spring up independently of external circumstances, and Heaven has dealt them out so wisely to man, that those who are to outward appearance most highly favoured by fortune, are yet not on that account more exempt from the causes that originate inward pain."

"Man stands in need of a certain degree of firmness in all the circumstances of life, even those that appear most fortunate ; and when painful events occur, such as you now experience, they are perhaps sent only to try and prove us; and if we have the resolution to hold fast in our hour of trial, from this very firmness itself serenity soon returns to the mind, which always feels satisfaction in acting conformably to duty."

"The appearance of the heavens has under all circumstances a never-ending charm for me, in the clear starlight as well as in dark nights, in the soft blue as well as in the cloudy or dark-grey sky, in which the eye loses itself, without being able to distinguish anything."

"The complaint about the weather is to me specially strange, and I cannot endure it well in others. I like to look upon Nature as a mighty power, imparting the purest joy, when we live tranquilly with her in all her developments, and consider the sum of all these as one great whole, in which we are not to think whether any individual portion is pleasing if only the great general ends are accomplished. For me the peculiar charm of a country life in the society of Nature consists in this, that we see the different seasons of the year roll past our eyes. It is just the same with life; and it has therefore always appeared to me an idle question, to say nothing more, what period of life has the greatest attractions — youth or manhood, or any other portion of time. It is ever only self-deception when we imagine that we would really wish to continue in any one particular period. The charm of youth just consists in the joyous and unrestrained anticipations of life, and all these would vanish whenever it was evident to any one that he was ever striving and never advancing a step, very much like people condemned to the treadmill. With age it is just the same; when clearly and powerfully understood, it is nothing else than a looking beyond this life, a stage in our course, a feeling that we must leave all things without being able to dispense with them, loving meanwhile, and looking with cheerfulness on all we are leaving, as a scene in which we are interested, and on which our thoughts still love to linger."

"We often find that religion is not understood in its true greatness, but that man looks at it from a lower point of view. He who worships God only on selfish principles, that he may receive protection, aid, and blessing in return, and who demands, as it were, that he should concern himself about the petty fate of every individual, such a one makes himself the central point of the whole universe; whereas he who thoroughly comprehends the greatness and fatherly goodness of God, receiving the idea with admiring devotion and deep thankfulness, so that he removes from his mind everything that does not accord with the purest and noblest conceptions; as, for instance, the thought that what duty and virtue require of him is at the same time the will of the Most High, and necessary for the proper regulation of the affairs of the world; such a man possesses a truly religious and virtuous mind."

"When a man allows pain to get the mastery over him, when he is anxious to avoid it on all occasions, and is ever moaning over what is unavoidable, then he becomes an object of contempt rather than pity. It is not so in the case of a woman. In a woman it is becoming enough, and seems natural, that she lean upon another being. The man ought certainly to possess the power of endurance; but if he fail, it must be regarded as a want or weakness. A man ought ever to strive to stand on his own independent bottom."

"The man who allows himself to be deceived and carried away by his own weakness may be a very amiable person in other respects, but he cannot be called a man — only a sort of intermediate being between the two sexes."

"It is true, however, that I lay very little stress either upon asking or giving advice. Generally speaking, they who ask advice know what they wish to do, and remain firm to their intentions. A man may allow himself to be enlightened on various points, even upon matters of expediency and duty, but, after all, he must determine his course of action for himself."

"We must now simply regard education as a direct guide to propriety of conduct, a good character, and a pretty fair amount of knowledge. It effects often much more by the bringing together a number of influences, the intended result of which may indeed be frustrated, but which produces by the conflict with the individuality of the person being educated, that which the direct influences could never have brought about; for the result of any system of education depends entirely upon the power that a man possesses of applying the influences brought to bear upon him to the ends of self-culture, or whether he allows himself to be moulded by them."

"It has ever been my opinion that the essential features of a man's nature cannot be changed; he may give up errors — he may change from virtuous and good habits to vicious courses; but the natural bent of his disposition, whether devoted to active employment or inward contemplation — whether impetuous or gentle — whether penetrating to the hidden depths of things, or resting satisfied with superficial views — whether acting in the affairs of life with a firm and powerful grasp or with weakness — ever remains from childhood to death the same."

"The permission of the wicked in the world, the impunity of the vicious, as well as the misfortunes of the good, are some of those problems which man has tried to solve, sometimes this way, sometimes that, in considering the government of the world."

"I am more and more convinced that our happiness or unhappiness is much more dependent on the way that we meet the events of life than upon the nature of these events themselves. The joyous cheerful temper a man cannot exactly give himself, for that is the gift of Heaven; but we can do much in preparing ourselves to encounter with tranquillity, to bear courageously, and by prudent forethought to turn aside or lessen, the many sorrows which the chances of life, more or less, bring upon all. One may at least avoid bringing on oneself unnecessary and groundless cares and troubles."

"Resignation to whatever may happen, hope and trust that only that will happen which is good and beneficial, and firmness when adversity overtakes us: these are the only efficient bulwarks that we can raise against destiny."

"To me it has always appeared to he best to bow with heartfelt humility to the inscrutable but unerring counsels of Heaven, and to remember that we can only in this life see a small portion of man’s existence, and therefore can form no judgment of the whole."

"Your expression that "it appears as if God would only pour his blessings into pure vessels," pleases me exceedingly. If a man be without this blessing, he cannot charm it towards him. I agree with you in thinking that this blessing is given to man in a mysterious way which we cannot see. But the ideas attached to the words happiness and unhappiness are of so vague and undetermined a nature, even in the minds of those who usually entertain correct views and opinions, that I have from early youth endeavoured to get clear conceptions upon this subject ; and the conclusion at which I have arrived is, that man is ever sure to enjoy a certain amount of happiness at least, if he render himself independent of external circumstances — if he learn to draw happiness from every event of a pleasing nature, whether relating to man or things, at the same time maintaining his independence of both sources."

"All merit ceases the moment we perform an act for the sake of its consequences. Truly in this respect "we have our reward.""

"Since it is Providence that determines the fates of men, their inner nature is thus brought into unison. There is such harmony, as in all things of nature, that one might explain the whole without referring to a higher Providence. But this only proves the more clearly and certainly this higher Providence, which has given existence to this harmony."

"We cannot get rid of the idea that life must be regarded as an ocean, through which we are to conduct our bark more or less successfully, and then it is a natural feeling that we should contemplate with more satisfaction the short distance than the long voyage. This idea of viewing life as a whole, as a work to be got through, has ever appeared to me to be a powerful reason why we should regard death with indifference. On the other hand, if we look at life in detached portions, we have only to strive to associate one happy day with another, as if this would continue for an eternity; and then nothing can be more void of a comfortable feeling than to find ourselves standing on the brink of that bourn at which the thread of life must be at once snapped."

"Investigations into early times charmed me at an early period of my life, and it is this which now constitutes my real study. When man was nearer to the dawn of his existence, he showed more heroism and simplicity of character, more depth and artlessness in his thoughts and emotions, as also in the language in which he clothed them."

"However great the power of time may be, yet it never entirely obliterates the remembrance and influences of the past; even though the mind may have long remained unoccupied by the emotions immediately produced by those events. With all its changes, it is time itself which has given that which may be regarded as true existence, and which may be justly said to be independent even of time."

"That respect which the child owes to his parents, and every man to those of higher intellectual power with whom he may come in contact, and which every well-regulated and well-disposed mind so readily pays, is much oftener founded upon an imaginary worth than upon a distinct and actual experience of its existence — upon a something, which may not perhaps have attained perfect development, but which shines forth in the carriage, gestures, and whole character."

"It is resignation and contentment that are best calculated to lead us safely through life. Whoever has not sufficient power to endure privations, and even suffering, can never feel that he is armour-proof against painful emotions — nay, he must attribute to himself, or at least to the morbid sensitiveness of his nature, every disagreeable feeling he may suffer."

"Providence certainly does not attend merely to the interests of individuals, but the profound wisdom of its counsels extends to the right ordering and betterment of all."