All men have the stars," he answered, "but they are not the same things for different people. For some, who are travellers, the stars are guides. For others they are no more than little lights in the sky. For others, who are scholars, they are problems. For my businessman they were wealth. But all the stars are silent. You--you alone--will have the stars as no one else has them--
Interpretation
The stars symbolize different things to different people based on their experiences and perspectives.
In this quote, Antoine De Saint-Exupery emphasizes the subjective nature of perception and meaning, illustrating how individuals interpret the same elements of life—represented by 'stars'—according to their unique journeys and aspirations. This suggests that while everyone may have access to the same external truths, their significance can vary vastly, shaped by one’s personal experiences, desires, and goals.
In practice
During a graduation speech, to inspire students about their unique paths in life.
Grown-ups love figures... When you tell them you've made a new friend they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies? " Instead they demand "How old is he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make? " Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.
Attitude is a paintbrush. It colors everything!
Water, thou hast no taste, no color, no odor; canst not be defined, art relished while ever mysterious. Not necessary to life, but rather life itself, thou fillest us with a gratification that exceeds the delight of the senses.
In those days, I didn't understand anything. I should have judged her according to her actions, not her words. She perfumed my planet and lit up my life. I should never have run away! I ought to have realized the tenderness underlying her silly pretensions. Flowers are so contadictory! But I was too young to know how to love her.
When a mystery is too overpowering, one dare not disobey.
When the body sinks into death, the essence of man is revealed. Man is a knot, a web, a mesh into which relationships are tied. Only those relationships matter. The body is an old crock that nobody will miss. I have never known a man to think of himself when dying. Never.
The presence of others who see what we see and hear what we hear assures us of the reality of the world and ourselves.
...if we know God our knowledge of... everything will be brought to perfection, and, in so far as is possible, the infinite, divine and ineffable dwelling place (cf. Jn. 14:2) will be ours to enjoy. For this is what our sainted teacher said in his famous philosophical aphorism: 'Then we shall know as we are known' (I Cor. 13:12), when we mingle our god-formed mind and divine reason to what is properly its own and the image returns to the archetype for which it now longs.
Hunger has no ideology. It does not respond to party or to rant. Hunger, in short, is not a red state/blue state problem.
What we call luck is the inner man externalized. We make things happen to us.
We have a tendency to condemn people who are different from us, to define their sins as paramount and our own sinfulness as being insignificant.
The true perfection of man lies not in what man has, but in what man is.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.