Our chief defect is that we are more given to talking about things than to doing them.
Jawaharlal NehruRead
Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life presents us with predetermined circumstances, but our choices define how we respond to them.
Jawaharlal Nehru's quote compares life to a game of cards, where the hand dealt represents the fixed elements of our existence, such as circumstances and genetics (determinism), while how we choose to play those cards symbolizes our exercise of free will. It highlights the interplay between fate and personal agency, suggesting that while some aspects of our lives are out of our control, we always have the ability to influence outcomes through our choices and actions.
Themes
LifeChoicesDeterminismFree WillFate
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about overcoming challenges.
More from Jawaharlal Nehru
All quotes βIndia has known the innocence and insouciance of childhood, the passion and abandon of youth, and the ripe wisdom of maturity that comes from long experience of pain and pleasure; and over and over a gain she has renewed her childhood and youth and age
Jawaharlal NehruRead
Crises and deadlocks when they occur have at least this advantage, that they force us to think.
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What we really are matters more than what other people think of us.
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Loyal and efficient work in a great cause, even though it may not be immediately recognized, ultimately bears fruit.
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Failure comes only when we forget our ideals and objectives and principles.
Jawaharlal NehruRead
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