Quotes by Albert Schweitzer

"I can do no other than be reverent before everything that is called life. I can do no other than to have compassion for all that is called life. That is the beginning and the foundation of all ethics."

"Ethics is nothing else than reverence for life."

"I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve."

"Compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind."

"We are all so much together, but we are all dying of loneliness."

"By respect for life we become religious in a way that is elementary, profound and alive."

"A man is ethical only when life, as such, is sacred to him, that of plants and animals as that of his fellow men, and when he devotes himself helpfully to all life that is in need of help."

"The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others."

"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats."

"Life becomes harder for us when we live for others, but it also becomes richer and happier."

"The great secret of success is to go through life as a man who never gets used up."

"Let me give you a definition of ethics: It is good to maintain and further life it is bad to damage and destroy life."

"An optimist is a person who sees a green light everywhere, while a pessimist sees only the red stoplight... the truly wise person is colorblind."

"Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate."

"Everything deep is also simple and can be reproduced simply as long as its reference to the whole truth is maintained. But what matters is not what is witty but what is true."

"Sometimes our light goes out but is blown into flame by another human being. Each of us owes deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this light."

"One truth stands firm. All that happens in world history rests on something spiritual. If the spiritual is strong, it creates world history. If it is weak, it suffers world history."

"Man must cease attributing his problems to his environment, and learn again to exercise his will - his personal responsibility in the realm of faith and morals."

"The first step in the evolution of ethics is a sense of solidarity with other human beings."

"Do something wonderful, people may imitate it."

"Anyone who proposes to do good must not expect people to roll stones out of his way, but must accept his lot calmly, even if they roll a few stones upon it."

"Never say there is nothing beautiful in the world anymore. There is always something to make you wonder in the shape of a tree, the trembling of a leaf."

"Man has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall. He will end by destroying the earth."

"Just as the wave cannot exist for itself, but is ever a part of the heaving surface of the ocean, so must I never live my life for itself, but always in the experience which is going on around me."

"Seek always to do some good, somewhere. Every man has to seek in his own way to realize his true worth. You must give some time to your fellow man. For remember, you don't live in a world all your own. Your brothers are here too."

"Truth has no special time of its own. Its hour is now - always."

"The willow which bends to the tempest, often escapes better than the oak which resists it; and so in great calamities, it sometimes happens that light and frivolous spirits recover their elasticity and presence of mind sooner than those of a loftier character."

"Example is leadership."

"One who gains strength by overcoming obstacles possesses the only strength which can overcome adversity."

"The willow which bends to the tempest, often escapes better than the oak which resists it and so in great calamities, it sometimes happens that light and frivolous spirits recover their elasticity and presence of mind sooner than those of a loftier character."

"Man is a clever animal who behaves like an imbecile."

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us."

"By having a reverence for life, we enter into a spiritual relation with the world By practicing reverence for life we become good, deep, and alive."

"Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory."

"I wanted to be a doctor that I might be able to work without having to talk because for years I had been giving myself out in words."

"Until he extends his circle of compassion to include all living things, man will not himself find peace."

"Do not let Sunday be taken from you. If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes an orphan."

"In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit."

"A great secret of success is to go through life as a man who never gets used up."

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."