Quotes from Blaise Pascal

We have so exalted a notion of the human soul that we cannot bear to be despised, or even not to be esteemed by it. Man, in fact, places all his happiness in this esteem.

Man's true nature being lost, everything becomes his nature; as, his true good being lost, everything becomes his good.

If man made himself the first object of study, he would see how incapable he is of going further. How can a part know the whole?

Men blaspheme what they do not know.

It is not shameful for a man to succumb to pain and it is shameful to succumb to pleasure.

The origins of disputes between philosophers is, that one class of them have undertaken to raise man by displaying his greatness, and the other to debase him by showing his miseries.

It is not permitted to the most equitable of men to be a judge in his own cause.

The state of man is inconstancy, ennui, anxiety.

Men seek rest in a struggle against difficulties; and when they have conquered these, rest becomes insufferable.

All is one, all is different. How many natures exist in man? How many vocations? And by what chance does each man ordinarily choose what he has heard praised?

The philosophers talk to you about the dignity of man, and they tempt you to pride, or they talk to you about the misery of man, and they tempt you to despair.

The sum of a man's problems come from his inability to be alone in a silent room.

L'homme n'est qu'un sujet plein d'erreur, naturelle et ineffa c° able sans la gra" ce. Man is nothing but a subject full of natural error that cannot be eradicated except through grace.

All men naturally hate each other. We have used concupiscence as best we can to make it serve the common good, but this is mere sham and a false image of charity, for essentially it is just hate.

Condition de l'homme: inconstance, ennui, inquie tude. Man's condition. Inconstancy, boredom, anxiety.

When a man who accepts the Christian doctrine lives unworthily of it, it is much clearer to say he is a bad Christian than to say he is not a Christian.

I condemn equally those who choose to praise man, those who choose to condemn him and those who choose to divert themselves, and I can only approve of those who seek with groans.

The great mass of people judge well of things, for they are in natural ignorance, which is man's true state.

If man should commence by studying himself, he would see how impossible it is to go further.

Equality of possessions is no doubt right, but, as men could not make might obey right, they have made right obey might.

Most of the evils of life arise from man's being unable to sit still in a room.

Too much pleasure disagrees with us. Too many concords are annoying in music; too many benefits irritate us; we wish to have the wherewithal to overpay our debts.

Man is but a reed, the most feeble thing in nature, but he is a thinking reed.

Nature has some perfections to show that she is the image of God, and some defects to show that she is only His image.