Wisdom Quotes

The best minds across centuries have wrestled with what it means to be wise. These quotes capture their hard-won insights.

64329 quotes

P
"A man who trusts everyone is a fool and a man who trusts no one is a fool."
Paul Atreides
S
"The young believe they can change the world; only the old know that change changes the changer."
Spice-induced narrator/Paul's visions
S
"Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent"
Salvor Hardin
H
"It is a mistake to accept the first answer that comes to you"
Hari Seldon
S
"The greatest talent of all is the ability to know when to stop"
Salvor Hardin
S
"The most dangerous enemy is the one who believes he is righteous"
Salvor Hardin
S
"The preservation of knowledge is the greatest duty of any civilization"
Salvor Hardin
T
"I drink and I know things."
Tyrion Lannister
E
"In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, I'm ready to forgive him."
Ender Wiggin
O
"The trick is not becoming trapped by either hate or love."
Orson Scott Card (Narrator)
E
"The only winning move is not to play."
Ender Wiggin
M
"You don't win a game by cheating, but by understanding it completely."
Mazer Rackham
E
"The buggers were intelligent enough to understand surrender."
Ender Wiggin
E
"The greatest strategy is to make your enemy your friend."
Ender Wiggin
B
"A person is smart. People are dumb."
Baron Vladimir Harkonnen
D
"The price of betrayal is always higher than the price of honesty"
Davos Seaworth
T
"The greatest victories are sometimes won without drawing steel"
Tyrion Lannister
S
"A man must know when to stand and when to kneel"
Stannis Baratheon
S
"Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent"
Salvor Hardin
N
"A man without honor is not a man at all"
Ned Stark
S
"Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent"
Salvor Hardin
K
"Redemption is possible only through acceptance of our failures."
Kris Kelvin
E
"I think it's impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they want to be loved."
Ender Wiggin
E
"Understanding does not require agreement."
Ender Wiggin
O
"He understood her better than anyone else."
Orson Scott Card (Narrator)
G
"The sleeper has awakened."
Gaius Helen Mohiam
P
"Knowing where the trap is—that's the first step in springing it."
Paul Atreides
G
"Any road followed precisely to its end leads precisely nowhere."
Gaius Helen Mohiam
S
"The mystery of life isn't a problem to solve but a reality to experience."
Spice-induced narrator/Paul's visions
G
"A person is smart. People are dumb."
Gaius Helen Mohiam