Faith is the highest passion in a human being. Many in every generation may not come that far, but none comes further.
Soren KierkegaardRead
It is very dangerous to go into eternity with possibilities which one has oneself prevented from becoming realities. A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of acting on one's possibilities and not allowing them to fade into mere dreams.
Søren Kierkegaard's quote warns against the danger of neglecting the opportunities that life presents us. He suggests that possibilities hold a divine significance, acting as nudges from a higher power to guide us toward potential realities. By not pursuing these possibilities, we risk entering eternity with regrets about the paths we did not take and the dreams we failed to realize. Thus, it encourages us to recognize and actively chase our potential without allowing fear or hesitation to hinder our progress.
Themes
PossibilityActionDreamsRegretOpportunitiesLifeEternity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a motivational speech about pursuing one's passions.
More from Soren Kierkegaard
All quotes →Men think that it is impossible for a human being to love his enemies, for enemies are hardly able to endure the sight of one another. Well, then, shut your eyes--and your enemy looks just like your neighbor.
Soren KierkegaardRead
How did I get into the world? Why was I not asked about it and why was I not informed of the rules and regulations but just thrust into the ranks as if I had been bought by a peddling shanghaier of human beings? How did I get involved in this big enterprise called actuality? Why should I be involved? Isn't it a matter of choice? And if I am compelled to be involved, where is the manager—I have something to say about this. Is there no manager? To whom shall I make my complaint?
Soren KierkegaardRead
A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it.
Soren KierkegaardRead
And when the hourglass has run out, the hourglass of temporality, when the noise of secular life has grown silent and its restless or ineffectual activism has come to an end, when everything around you is still, as it is in eternity, then eternity asks you and every individual in these millions and millions about only one thing: whether you have lived in despair or not.
Soren KierkegaardRead
I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity.
Soren KierkegaardRead
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