I will follow my logic, no matter where it goes, after it has consulted with my heart. If you ever come to a conclusion without calling the heart in, you will come to a bad conclusion.
Robert Green IngersollRead
We can conceive of eternity because we cannot conceive of a cessation of time. We can conceive of infinite space because we cannot conceive of so much matter that our imagination will not stand upon the farthest star and see infinite space beyond.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on human understanding of eternity and infinity, highlighting our limitations in grasping concepts of time and space.
In this quote, Robert Green Ingersoll explores the nature of human consciousness and our ability to understand vast concepts like eternity and infinity. He suggests that our comprehension of these ideas is inherently linked to our inability to fully grasp their negations β the end of time or the limits of space. Thus, our imagination allows us to perceive eternity and infinite space, even if we struggle to conceptualize their absence.
Themes
EternityInfinityTimeSpaceImagination
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used to inspire discussions about the universe in a philosophy class.
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All quotes βIf the guardians of society, the protectors of 'young persons,' could have had their way, we should have known nothing of Byron or Shelley. The voices that thrill the world would now be silent.
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The religion that has to be supported by law is without value, not only, but a fraud and a curse. The religious argument that has to be supported by a musket is hardly worth making.
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In all ages the people have honored those who dishonored them. They have worshiped their destroyers; they have canonized the most gigantic liars, and buried the great thieves in marble and gold. Under the loftiest monuments sleeps the dust of murder.
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I believe that there is something far nobler than loyalty to any particular man. Loyalty to the truth as we perceive it - loyalty to our duty as we know it - loyalty to the ideals of our brain and heart - is, to my mind, far greater and far nobler than loyalty to the life of any particular man or God. . . .
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