Quotes from Bertrand Russell

very many philosophers, perhaps a majority, have held that there is nothing real except minds and their ideas. Such philosophers are called 'idealists'.

A great many of the impulses which now lead nations to go to war are in themselves essential to any vigorous or progressive life. Without imagination and love of adventure a society soon becomes stagnant and begins to decay. Conflict, provided it is not destructive and brutal, is necessary in order to stimulate men's activities, and to secure the victory of what is living over what is dead or merely traditional.

is the argument from design. It sometimes takes a rather curious form; for instance, it is argued that rabbits have white tails in order to be easy to shoot. I do not know how rabbits would view that application. It is an easy argument to parody.

The youth who is capable of becoming a philosopher will be distinguished among his fellows as just and gentle, fond of learning, possessed of a good memory and a naturally harmonious mind.

It seems that sin is geographical.

I suspect that even the Universe, as considered by metaphysics, involves such a connexion with particulars. In logic, on the contrary, where we are concerned not merely with what does exist, but with whatever might or could exist or be, no reference to actual particulars is involved.

The modern world unlearned us how to enjoy leisure time, making us think we need to be productive in order to be worthy.

There is a possibility in human minds of something mysterious as the night-wind, deep as the sea, calm as the stars, and strong as Death, a mystic contemplation, the "intellectual love of God".

Usa-se a perseguição em teologia e não na aritmética, porque na aritmética há conhecimento, ao passo que na teologia só há opiniões. Portanto, sempre que der consigo a ficar zangado por causa de uma diferença de opinião, fique alerta: provavelmente descobrirá, pensando outra vez no assunto, que as suas crenças ultrapassam aquilo que a informação disponível permite afirmar.

My whole religion is this: do every duty, and expect no reward for it, either here or hereafter.

El impulso hacia las empresas personales debe dirigirse hacia cosas tales como la creación artística, los descubrimientos científicos o la creación de instituciones útiles; en una palabra, en actividades que son creativas más bien que posesivas.

Democracy, as a form of government, has the advantage of making everybody a participant in war... This is one of the strongest reasons for expecting democracy to survive.

the fact that the actual inequalities of power exceed what is made necessary by technical causes, can only be explained in terms of individual psychology and physiology.

If the matter is one that can be settled by observation, make the observation yourself.

Ve yine bence, kaleme al?nd??? ÅŸekliyle, tek bir virgülünü dahi deÄŸiÅŸtirme gereÄŸi olmaks?z?n, Ä°nsan Haklar? Evrensel Bildirisi, ilkelerin doÄŸruluÄŸu ve hedeflerin berrakl??? bak?m?ndan, yeryüzündeki bütün siyasi parti programlar?n?n lay?k?yla yerine geçebilir.

The oppression of a minority by a majority is no better, except numerically, than the oppression of a majority by a minority.

Thinking that you know when in fact you don't is a fatal mistake, to which we are all prone.

Um homem sábio desfrutará os bens que há em abundância, e de lixo intelectual encontrará abundante dieta, no nosso tempo como em qualquer outro.

Morala curent? este un amestec bizar de utilitarism È™i superstiÈ›ie, unde îns?, cum e È™i firesc, precump?neÈ™te componenta superstiÈ›ioas?, de vreme ce superstiÈ›ia se afl? la obârÈ™ia regulilor morale.

Persecution is used in theology, not in arithmetic, because in arithmetic there is knowledge, but in theology there is only opinion. So whenever you find yourself getting angry about a difference of opinion, be on your guard; you will probably find, on examination, that your belief is going beyond what the evidence warrants

You would think ill of a soldier who refused to fight unless victory was certain. The person who needs religion to bolster up his own purposes is a timorous person, and I cannot think as well of him as of the man who takes his chances, while admitting that defeat is not impossible.

The energy used in thinking seems to have a chemical origin; for instance, a deficiency of iodine will turn a clever man into an idiot.

One of the symptoms of approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important, and that to take a holiday would bring all kinds of disaster. If I were a medical man, I should prescribe a holiday to any patient who considered his work important.

Görülmesi en kolay ÅŸey ne çok büyük, ne çok küçük, ne çok uzak ne çok yak?n, ne çok karma??k, ne ne de çok basit oland?r.