"I have always considered it as treason against the great republic of human nature, to make any man's virtues the means of deceiving him."

Nature

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Insight & Reflection

This reflection on nature by Samuel Johnson resonates across generations. It highlights a fundamental truth about human nature: our continuous search for meaning in nature is what ultimately defines our character and our path forward.

About Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson, often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer and polymath who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The work for which he is best known is his 42,733-entry Dictionary of the English Language (1755). For this and other contributions in and to the English language, the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography has called him "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history".

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More by Samuel Johnson

"Every second given to regret is a precious second stolen from creation. Such is the immutable nature of understanding."

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"It is a humble truth that peace of heart is the greatest luxury life can bestow upon the mortal traveler — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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"In the tapestry of human existence, every trial adds depth to the design. Let this simple maxim guide your daily deeds."

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"He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts."

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More about Nature

"A life without philosophical reflection is a vessel adrift on an uncharted sea. Such is the immutable nature of understanding — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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"The highest expression of strength is tenderness toward the vulnerable. Such is the immutable nature of understanding."

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"It is a humble truth that let thoughts come and go like clouds across an undisturbed autumn sky — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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"Ethics is not a doctrine written in marble, but a daily standard lived in conscience. Such is the immutable nature of understanding — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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