“There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the present moment. A man's whole life is a succession of moment after moment. There will be nothing else to do, and nothing else to pursue. Live being true to the single purpose of the moment.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you will still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Even if it seems certain that you will lose, retaliate. Neither wisdom nor technique has a place in this. A real man does not think of victory or defeat. He plunges recklessly towards an irrational death. By doing this, you will awaken from your dreams.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“To give a person an opinion one must first judge well whether that person is of the disposition to receive it or not.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Be true to the thought of the moment and avoid distraction. Other than continuing to exert yourself, enter into nothing else, but go to the extent of living single thought by single thought.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“It is a wretched thing that the young men of today are so contriving and so proud of their material posessions. Men with contriving hearts are lacking in duty. Lacking in duty, they will have no self-respect.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“It is said that what is called "the spirit of an age" is something to which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is due to the world's coming to an end. For this reason, although one would like to change today's world back to the spirit of one hundred years or more ago, it cannot be done. Thus it is important to make the best out of every generation.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“When one is writing a letter, he should think that the recipient will make it into a hanging scroll.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“There is nothing we should be quite so grateful for as the last line of the poem that goes, 'When your own heart asks.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“If a warrior is not unattached to life and death, he will be of no use whatsoever. The saying that “All abilities come from one mind” sounds as though it has to do with sentient matters, but it is in fact a matter of being unattached to life and death. With such non-attachment one can accomplish any feat.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“In the Kamigata area, they have a sort of tiered lunchbox they use for a single day when flower viewing. Upon returning, they throw them away, trampling them underfoot. The end is important in all things.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Matters of great concern should be treated lightly.” Master Ittei commented, “Matters of small concern should be treated seriously.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“If one is but secure at the foundation, he will not be pained by departure from minor details or affairs that are contrary to expectation. But in the end, the details of a matter are important. The right and wrong of one's way of doing things are found in trivial matters.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“It is spiritless to think that you cannot attain to that which you have seen and heard the masters attain. The masters are men. You are also a man. If you think that you will be inferior in doing something, you will be on that road very soon.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Respect, Honesty, Courage, Rectitude, Loyalty, Honour, Benevolence”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“If by setting one’s heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he gains freedom in the Way.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Sincerity does not only complete the self; it is the means by which all things are completed. As the self is completed, there is human-heartedness; as things are completed, there is wisdom. This is the virtue of one’s character, and the Way of joining the internal and external. Thus, when we use this, everything is correct.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“in china there was once a man who liked pictures of dragons, and his clothing and furnishings were all designed accordingly. his deep affections for dragons was brought to the attention of the dragon god, and one day a real dragon appeared before his window. it is said that he died of fright. he was probably a man who always spoke big words but acted differently when facing the real thing.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Purity is something that cannot be attained except by piling effort upon effort.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Although this may be a most difficult thing, if one will do it, it can be done. There is nothing that one should suppose cannot be done.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“No matter if the enemy has thousands of men, there is fulfillment in simply standing them off and being determined to cut them all down, starting from one end.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“In the highest level a man has the look of knowing nothing .”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Human life is truly a short affair. It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Even if it seems certain that you will lose, retaliate.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“If one has no earnest daily intention, does not consider what it is to be a warrior even in his dreams, and lives through the day idly, he can be said to be worthy of punishment.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“If one does not get it into his head from the very beginning that the world is full of unseemly situations, for the most part his demeanour will be poor and he will not be believed by others.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Do not rely on following the degree of understanding that you have discovered, but simply think, "This is not enough.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Imitating another style is simply a sham.”
― quote from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
“Because that's the thing about hope- you can never kill it yourself.”
― Ally Carter, quote from Take the Key and Lock Her Up
“Someone who is permanently surprised that depravity exists, who continues to feel disillusioned (even incredulous) when confronted with evidence of what humans are capable of inflicting in the way of gruesome, hands-on cruelties upon other humans, has not reached moral or psychological adulthood.”
― Susan Sontag, quote from Regarding the Pain of Others
“self-deception as the preliminary to public deception is almost automatic. —WALTER LIPPMANN,”
― Stephen Jay Gould, quote from The Mismeasure of Man
“Hybrid of all the tarnished fugitives of America. From a tiny improvised stage a mustached round man announces: “The Amateur Talent Show!” … First prize: Five Magic Dollars! It can buy much magic wine. … A woman who looks like Mrs Haversham of Great Expectations sits woodenly like an elaborate stuffed bird with open eyes. On the stage a gravel-voiced man tries to sing: “Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.” A tramp nods, agreeing. A skinny old woman sits at the bar, sticking out her tongue at the world. A drunk man shoves a woman through a door with a sign that says PRIVATE KEEP OUT. She doesnt come out.”
― John Rechy, quote from City of Night
“No one thought up being. He who thinks he has, step forward.”
― Jim Morrison, quote from Wilderness: The Lost Writings, Vol. 1
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In His Own WriteBookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.
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