Man's Search for Meaning

"The consciousness of one's inner freedom—which cannot be lost—becomes the basis for inner security and peace."

"When internal motivation is lacking, even external achievements feel hollow."

"Man's concern should not be the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning in his life at any given moment."

"Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality."

"The greatest freedom is the freedom to choose one's attitude toward any circumstance."

"Only to the extent that someone fulfills a meaning does he also realize himself."

"I recommend that the Statue of Liberty be supplemented by a 'Statue of Responsibility' on the west coast."

"A human being is not one in pursuit of happiness but one in search of a reason for being happy."

"The prisoner who had lost faith in the future was doomed."

"One cannot be deeply responsive to the world without being saddened very often."

"The way your questions are phrased assumes that life is asking the questions and we are answering them."

"If there is meaning in life at all, then there must be meaning in suffering."

"Responsibility is the essence of human existence."

"Life itself never becomes meaningless. No matter how miserable one's life may be, while there is life, there is hope for meaning."

"The will to meaning can best be fulfilled by the way in which a man accepts his unavoidable suffering."

"We cannot always control our external circumstances, but we can always control how we respond."

"No one can rob us of our last human freedom—to choose our attitude toward any circumstance."

"In some ways suffering ceases to be suffering the moment it finds meaning."

"The will to meaning is the most basic motivation in human beings."

"An active life serves the purpose of giving man a chance to find meaning in his work."

"The meaning we give to our suffering can actually transform the suffering."

"To love another human being is to see the face of God."

"When a man finds that it is his destiny to suffer, he will have to accept suffering as his task."

"Happiness ensues, as a side effect, once you have found meaning and purpose in life."

"It is the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness."

"Man's search for meaning is the primary motivation in his life."

"The prisoners who lost faith in the future—in their deliverance—were indeed those who were lost."

"Suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning."

"The last of all human freedoms is the ability to choose one's attitude."

"Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibleness."