What we need is not the will to believe, but the wish to find out.
Interpretation
Seeking knowledge is more important than having blind faith.
In this quote, William Wordsworth emphasizes the importance of curiosity and the desire to discover truths rather than simply accepting beliefs without question. He suggests that a genuine wish to explore and understand the world leads to deeper knowledge and understanding.
In practice
This quote could be used in a class discussion about the scientific method.
For mightier far_x000D_ _x000D_ Than strength of nerve or sinew, or the sway_x000D_ _x000D_ Of magic potent over sun and star,_x000D_ _x000D_ Is love, though oft to agony distrest,_x000D_ _x000D_ And though his favourite be feeble woman's breast.
By all means sometimes be alone; salute thyself; see what thy soul doth wear; dare to look in thy chest; and tumble up and down what thou findest there.
There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,_x000D_ _x000D_ The earth, and every common sight,_x000D_ _x000D_ To me did seem_x000D_ _x000D_ Apparelled in celestial light,_x000D_ _x000D_ The glory and the freshness of a dream.
Books are yours, Within whose silent chambers treasure lies Preserved from age to age; more precious far Than that accumulated store of gold And orient gems, which, for a day of need, The Sultan hides deep in ancestral tombs. These hoards of truth you can unlock at will.
The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon! The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon; The winds that will be howling at all hours, And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers; For this, for everything, we are out of tune.
Shalt show us how divine a thing A woman may be made.
Those you cannot teach to fly, teach to fall faster.
Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.
People make a lot of effort not to remember, not to accept their immense magical potential.
Let us beware of common folk, of common sense, of sentiment, of inspiration, and of the obvious.
You can be helping many people, but if you are not helping yourself, you have missed the one person you were born to heal.
Don't let circumstances distress you. Rather, look for the will of God for your life to be revealed in and through those circumstances.
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