The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference.
Elie WieselRead
Because I remember, I despair. Because I remember, I have the duty to reject despair.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the struggle between remembering painful experiences and the responsibility to overcome despair.
Elie Wiesel's quote reflects on the duality of memory and emotional response. Remembering past atrocities can lead to feelings of despair, yet it is equally important to take a stand against such despair, using it as a catalyst for action and hope. This sentiment emphasizes the moral obligation to confront and reject hopelessness in the face of injustice.
In practice
In a speech about resilience in the face of history, one could use this quote to emphasize the importance of hope.
The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference.
With every cell of my being and with every fiber of my memory I oppose the death penalty in all forms. I do not believe any civilized society should be at the service of death. I don't think it's human to become an agent of the angel of death.
Certain things, certain events, seem inexplicable only for a time: up to the moment when the veil is torn aside.
We're alone, but we are capable of communicating to one another both our loneliness and our desire to break through it. You say, 'I'm alone.' Someone answers, 'I'm alone too.' There's a shift in the scale of power. A bridge is thrown between the two abysses.
No one is as capable of gratitude as one who has escaped the kingdom of night.
My loyalty to my people, to our people, and to Israel comes first and prevents me from saying anything critical of Israel outside Israel… As a Jew I see my role as a melitz yosher, a defender of Israel: I defend even her mistakes… I must identify with whatever Israel does – even with her errors.
As you recognize that you already own the wholeness you seek, and no one outside you can give you more than you already are, dysfunctional situations will evaporate like bad dreams exposed to the morning sun.
O you, who spends his lifetime disobeying his Lord, no one amongst your enemies is wicked to you more than you are to yourself
In Asian languages, the word for mind and the word for heart are same. So if you’re not hearing mindfulness in some deep way as heartfulness, you’re not really understanding it. Compassion and kindness towards oneself are intrinsically woven into it. You could think of mindfulness as wise and affectionate attention.
Fear not the path of Truth for the lack of People walking on it.
No, I'm fine,' said Harry, wondering why he kept telling people this, and wondering whether he had ever been less fine.
Nothing that grieves us can be called little: by the eternal laws of proportion a child's loss of a doll and a king's loss of a crown are events of the same size.
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