Art begins when a man, with a purpose of communicating to other people a feeling he once experienced, calls it up again within himself and expresses it by certain external signs.
Leo TolstoyRead
The sole meaning of life is to serve humanity.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life's purpose is centered on serving others.
This quote by Leo Tolstoy emphasizes the belief that the most significant purpose in life is to contribute positively to the well-being of humanity. It suggests that true fulfillment comes from selflessly helping others, highlighting the interconnectedness of human experience and the moral duty to support one another.
Themes
ServeHumanityLifePurposeService
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about community service, one might say, 'As Leo Tolstoy once stated, the sole meaning of life is to serve humanity, reminding us of our responsibility to help others.'
More from Leo Tolstoy
All quotes βPierre looked into the sky, into the depths of the retreating, twinkling stars. "And all this is mine, and all this is in me, and all this is me!" thought Pierre. "And all this they've caught and put in a shed and boarded it up!
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People try to do all sorts of clever and difficult things to improve life instead of doing the simplest, easiest thing-refusing to participate in activities that make life bad.
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It's too easy to criticize a man when he's out of favour, and to make him shoulder the blame for everybody else's mistakes.
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Music is the shorthand of emotion. Emotions, which let themselves be described in words with such difficulty, are directly conveyed to man in music, and in that is its power and significance.
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A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbor β such is my idea of happiness.
Leo TolstoyRead
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