No one should approach the temple of science with the soul of a money changer.
Thomas BrowneRead
Men live by intervals of reason under the sovereignty of humor and passion.
Interpretation
Human life is a balance between rational thought and emotional experiences.
This quote by Thomas Browne suggests that while reason is essential for making sense of life, it is humor and passion that truly govern our existence. It highlights the duality of human nature, where logical thinking coexists with emotional depth, emphasizing that both elements are necessary for a fulfilling life.
In practice
A speaker may use this quote to illustrate the complexity of human emotions during a psychology seminar.
No one should approach the temple of science with the soul of a money changer.
Content may dwell in all stations. To be low but above contempt may be high enough to be happy.
Thus there are two books from whence I collect my Divinity; besides that written one of God, another of his servant Nature, that universal and public Manuscript, that lies expans'd unto the eyes of all; those that never saw him in the one, have discovered him in the other.
To be content with death may be better than to desire it.
Life itself is but the shadow of death, and souls departed but the shadows of the living.
The long habit of living indisposeth us for dying.
When I look back on what I did for the Left, I'm in a small way quite proud of some of it - I only wish I'd done more.
We are dominated by the relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires which control the public mind.
However insignificant the minority, and however trifling the proposed trespass against their rights, no such trespass is permissible.
Easy, simple and great laws, which await nothing but a sign from the lawgiver to spread prosperity and vigour throughout the nation, laws which would earn him immortal hymns of gratitude down the generations, are those which are least considered or least wanted.
The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and when the fish are caught the trap is forgotten. The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits. When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten. The purpose of the word is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to.
Thought can be so seductive and hypnotic that it absorbs your attention totally, so you become your thoughts.
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