Never let your zeal outrun your charity. The former is but human, the latter is divine.
Hosea BallouRead
Real happiness is cheap enough, yet how dearly we pay for its counterfeit.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True happiness is easy to attain, but people often sacrifice too much for false happiness.
In this quote, Hosea Ballou suggests that genuine happiness is not complicated or costly, yet humans tend to invest significantly in seeking illusions of happiness that do not fulfill them. This highlights the irony of how we often prioritize superficial pleasures, neglecting the simple joys that lead to real contentment.
Themes
HappinessFalseContentmentJoyValue
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about finding joy in simple things.
More from Hosea Ballou
All quotes βReligion which requires persecution to sustain, it is of the devil's propagation.
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