My father once told me that respect for truth comes close to being the basis for all morality. 'Something cannot emerge from nothing,' he said. This is profound thinking if you understand how unstable 'the truth' can be.
Frank HerbertRead
The future remains uncertain and so it should, for it is the canvas upon which we paint our desires. Thus always the human condition faces a beautifully empty canvas. We possess only this moment in which to dedicate ourselves continuously to the sacred presence which we share and create.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The future is unknown but offers opportunities for our aspirations, and it is important to focus on the present moment.
This quote by Frank Herbert emphasizes the inherent uncertainty of the future and suggests that this uncertainty is not a limitation, but rather an opportunity for creativity and expression. It encourages individuals to actively engage with the present moment, as it is in this space that we can define our desires and contribute to the shared experience of life, ultimately shaping both our lives and the world around us.
Themes
FutureUncertaintyCreativityPresentDesires
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about embracing uncertainty and focusing on the present.
More from Frank Herbert
All quotes →If you need something to worship, then worship life - all life, every last crawling bit of it! We're all in this beauty together!
Frank HerbertRead
Religion must remain an outlet for people who say to themselves, "I am not the kind of person I want to be." It must never sink into an assemblage of the self-satisfied.
Frank HerbertRead
To know a thing well, know it's limits; Only when pushed beyond it's tolerance will it's true nature be seen. -The Amtal Rule
Frank HerbertRead
Technology tends toward avoidance of risks by investors. Uncertainty is ruled out if possible. People generally prefer the predictable. Few recognize how destructive this can be, how it imposes severe limits on variability and thus makes whole populations fatally vulnerable to the shocking ways our universe can throw the dice.
Frank HerbertRead
It is impossible to live in the past, difficult to live in the present and a waste to live in the future.
Frank HerbertRead
Similar quotes
For a while in my teens, I was sure I had it. It was about getting to heaven. If heaven existed and lasted forever, then a mere lifetime spent scrupulously following orders was a small investment for an infinite payoff. One day, though, I realized I was no longer a believer, and realizing that, I couldn't go back.
Alan AldaRead
The immense popularity of American movies abroad demonstrates that Europe is the unfinished negative of which America is the proof
Mary MccarthyRead
If only everyone could know and live with their inner craziness. Would the world be a worse place for it? No, people would be fairer and happier.
Paulo CoelhoRead
We are the first species capable of self-annihilation.
Elon MuskRead
The whole history of civilization is strewn with creeds and institutions which were invaluable at first, and deadly afterwards
Walter BagehotRead
My disciples are vegetarian not as a cult, not as a creed. They are vegetarians because their meditations make them more human, more of the heart, and they can see the whole stupidity of people killing living beings for their food. It is their sensitivity, their aesthetic awareness that makes them vegetarians.
RajneeshRead