quotations about wisdom
The wise men were all fools, what to do?
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
"Last to Die", Magic
We disgrace wisdom when we would strive to support it with folly.
EDWARD COUNSEL
Maxims
A wise man is out of the reach of fortune.
THOMAS BROWNE
Religio Medici
The most exquisite Folly is made of Wisdom spun too fine.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
Poor Richard's Almanack, 1746
Wisdom is the lost property of the believer.
MUHAMMAD
Muhammad: The Last Prophet
Wisdom is at all times the least burdensome traveling pack.
WILLIAM CAMDEN
attributed, Day's Collacon
All wisdom ends in paradox.
JEFFREY EUGENIDES
The Virgin Suicides
What men call knowledge, is the reasoned acceptance of false appearances. Wisdom looks behind the veil and sees.
SRI AUROBINDO
Thoughts and Aphorisms
It is because the old have forgotten life that they preach wisdom.
PHILIP MOELLER
Helena's Husband
Nothing doth more hurt in a state, than that cunning men pass for wise.
FRANCIS BACON
"Of Cunning", The Essays or Counsels, Civil and Moral
Wisdom is wisdom, wherever found.
G. DAVID NORDLEY
"The Fountain", Asimov's Science Fiction, June 1, 2013
Beware of a leader who doesn't have scars or walk with a limp. One of the characteristics of a great leader is wisdom, and the best way to get wisdom is through experience. Normally that experience includes a few failures -- that's where battle scars and limps come from.
INGAR GREV
"Here's why companies don't want to hire people over the age of 40", The Business Journals, January 26, 2016
Better to be wise by the misfortunes of others than by your own.
AESOP
"Juno and the Peacock", Aesop's Fables
The hours of folly are measured by the clock, but of wisdom no clock can measure.
WILLIAM BLAKE
Proverbs of Hell
True wisdom is not found in yes-or-no answers, but in the open mind of not-knowing.
MELVIN MCLEOD
"Benefit, Not Benefits", Lion's Roar, April 3, 2017
What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?
JEAN-JACQUES ROUSSEAU
Emile
Wisdom consists in being able to distinguish among dangers and make a choice of the least harmful.
NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI
The Prince
A man remains ignorant because he loves ignorance, and chooses ignorant thoughts; a man becomes wise because he loves wisdom and chooses wise thoughts.
JAMES ALLEN
Above Life's Turmoil
A wise man heedeth all things, and in his own eyes is a fool.
MARTIN FARQUHAR TUPPER
Proverbial Philosophy
A wise man who cultivates wisdom may sometimes drown in it.
EIJI YOSHIKAWA
Taiko