Digressions incontestably are the sunshine; they are the life, the soul of reading.
Laurence SterneRead
Solitude is the best nurse of wisdom.
Interpretation
Solitude allows individuals to reflect and gain deeper insights, leading to wisdom.
This quote by Laurence Sterne suggests that spending time alone, or in solitude, fosters an environment conducive to reflection and contemplation. When we are alone, we can think more deeply about our experiences and thoughts, which eventually leads to greater understanding and wisdom. It highlights the value of quiet introspection in our personal growth and intellectual development.
In practice
During a motivational speech about personal development, this quote can illustrate the importance of self-reflection.
Digressions incontestably are the sunshine; they are the life, the soul of reading.
To write a book is for all the world like humming a songβbe but in tune with yourself, madam, 'tis no matter how high or how low you take it.
The accusing spirit, which flew up to heaven's chancery with the oath, blushed as he gave it in; and the recording angel as he wrote it down dropped a tear upon the word and blotted it out forever.
I'll not hurt thee, says Uncle Toby, rising with the fly in his hand. Go, he says, opening the window to let it escape. Why should I hurt thee? This world is surely wide enough to hold both thee and me.
I once asked a hermit in Italy how he could venture to live alone, in a single cottage, on the top of a mountain, a mile from any habitation? He replied, that Providence was his next-door neighbor.
People who are always taking care of their health are like misers, who are hoarding a treasure which they have never spirit enough to enjoy.
Always remember, joy is not incidental to spiritual quest. It is vital.
The great paralysis of our heart is unbelief.
Lucius Cassius ille quem populus Romanus verissimum et sapientissimum iudicem putabat identidem in causis quaerere solebat 'cui bono' fuisset. The famous Lucius Cassius, whom the Roman people used to regard as a very honest and wise judge, was in the habit of asking, time and again, 'To whose benefit?
Pride is founded not on the sense of happiness, but on the sense of power.
We can easily become as much slaves to precaution as we can to fear. Although we can never rivet our fortune so tight as to make it impregnable, we may by our excessive prudence squeeze out of the life that we are guarding so anxiously all the adventurous quality that makes it worth living.
Reasoning draws a conclusion, but does not make the conclusion certain, unless the mind discovers it by the path of experience.
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