Giambattista Vico

"The imagination is the highest faculty for understanding human nature."

"Wars arise when justice is forgotten and power is pursued for its own sake."

"The true measure of wealth is not gold but the capability to live well."

"Patience in adversity reveals character and builds true strength."

"The corruption of a state begins with the corruption of its virtues."

"In knowledge, as in nature, growth requires proper nourishment and time."

"The ancient peoples understood through poetry what moderns understand through abstraction."

"Fear and hope alternate in the hearts of those who lack wisdom."

"The bonds of family are the first bonds of human society and affection."

"True courage consists in doing what is right despite fear or opposition."

"The pursuit of knowledge is the pursuit of understanding one's own nature."

"Laws that do not accord with the nature and circumstances of people will fail."

"In the cycle of nations, decay follows excessive prosperity and arrogance."

"The mind is strengthened by struggle and purified by difficulty."

"Beauty in nature and art reflects the underlying order of creation."

"The greatest truths are often hidden within the simplest customs and stories."

"Death reminds us of life's brevity and thus of the importance of virtue."

"The bond between parent and child mirrors the bond between God and creation."

"Commerce binds nations together through mutual interest and interdependence."

"The motives that move human beings reveal the fundamental nature of humanity."

"In peace, the virtues of commerce and art flourish."

"The weak find strength in unity and organization against the powerful."

"Every nation carries within its laws the wisdom of its ancestors."

"Kindness extended to the strong is often repaid with protection of the weak."

"The study of monuments and ruins reveals the truths history has buried."

"Truth is confirmed by its consistency across different sources and times."

"The mind that is not challenged by mystery loses its sense of wonder."

"Leadership that is not grounded in justice is merely organized violence."

"The seasons of human life mirror the seasons of nations and civilizations."

"In the diversity of cultures lies the unity of human nature."