Man is so constituted that he then only excels other things when he knows himself.
BoethiusRead
And no renown can render you well-known:_x000D_ For if you think that fame can lengthen life _x000D_ By mortal famousness immortalized,_x000D_ The day will come that takes your fame as well,_x000D_ And there a second death for you awaits.
Interpretation
Fame is fleeting and cannot extend one's life; true legacy lies in deeper pursuits.
This quote by Boethius reflects on the transient nature of fame and the misunderstanding that being well-known can lead to a longer life. It highlights that ultimate recognition does not bring immortality, but rather, we should focus on meaningful contributions that resonate beyond mere fame, as true essence may lie in our deeds and their impact rather than the ephemeral acknowledgement from the world.
In practice
A speaker at a motivational seminar discussing the impacts of societal pressures about fame.
Man is so constituted that he then only excels other things when he knows himself.
He who has calmly reconciled his life to fate, and set proud death beneath his feet, can look fortune in the face, unbending both to good and bad; his countenance unconquered.
Every man must be content with that glory which he may have at home.
For in all adversity of fortune the worst sort of misery is to have been happy.
I who once wrote songs with keen delight am now by sorrow driven to take up melancholy measures. Wounded Muses tell me what I must write, and elegiac verses bathe my face with real tears. Not even terror could drive from me these faithful companions of my long journey. Poetry, which was once the glory of my happy and flourishing youth, is still my comfort in this misery of my old age.
Contemplate the extent and stability of the heavens, and then at last cease to admire worthless things.
Madness is rare in individuals - but in groups, parties, nations, and ages it is the rule.
The price of liberty is something more than eternal vigilance. There must also be eternal advance. We can save the rights we have inherited from our fathers only by winning new ones to bequeath our children.
Free speech has been used by the Supreme Court to give immense power to the wealthiest members of our society.
If we make sacrifices in doing good or in doing ill, it does not alter the ultimate value of our actions; even if we stake our life in the cause, as martyrs do for the sake of our church : it is a sacrifice to our longing for power, or for the purpose of conserving our sense of power.
Strictly speaking, there are no such things as good and bad impulses. Think...of a piano. It has not got two kinds of notes on it, the 'right' notes and the 'wrong' ones. Every single note is right at one time and wrong at another. The Moral Law is not any one instinct or set of instincts: it is something which makes a kind of tune (the tune we call goodness or right conduct) by directing the instincts.
But this was what happened when you didn't want to visit and confront the past: the past starts visiting and confronting you.
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