#mankind

[Men] prefer the foolish belief and the passions of the earth [to the enlightenment of their souls]. They believe the absurd and shrink from the truth." "No, they do not. They are afraid, that is all. And they must remain on earth until they come to the way of leaving it." "And how do they leave? How is the ascent made? Must one learn virtue?" Here she laughs. "You have read too much, and learned too little. Virtue is a road, not a destination. Man cannot be virtuous. Understanding is the goal. When that is achieved, the soul can take wing. ↗

— Iain Pears

#enlightenment #fear #mankind #philosophy #soul

History proves that all dictatorships, all authoritarian forms of government are transient. Only democratic systems are not transient. Whatever the shortcomings, mankind has not devised anything superior. ↗

— Vladimir Putin

#authoritarian #democratic #devised #dictatorships #forms

Mankind is considered (by the radical environmentalists) the lowest and the meanest of all species and is blamed for everything. ↗

— Dixie Lee Ray

#blamed #considered #environmentalists #everything #lowest

Being in an area of the planet where scientists believe mankind started is quite amazing. ↗

— Jan de Bont

#area #being #believe #mankind #planet

I conceive that the great part of the miseries of mankind are brought upon them by false estimates they have made of the value of things. ↗

— Benjamin Franklin

#conceive #estimates #false #great #i

The proper study of mankind is books. ↗

— Aldous Huxley

#mankind #proper #proper study #study

Boredom is... a vital problem for the moralist, since half the sins of mankind are caused by the fear of it. ↗

— Bertrand Russell

#caused #fear #half #mankind #moralist

The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation. ↗

— Bertrand Russell

#mankind #only #redeem #the only thing #thing

It is possible that mankind is on the threshold of a golden age; but, if so, it will be necessary first to slay the dragon that guards the door, and this dragon is religion. ↗

— Bertrand Russell

#door #dragon #first #golden #golden age

With the introduction of agriculture mankind entered upon a long period of meanness, misery, and madness, from which they are only now being freed by the beneficent operation of the machine. ↗

— Bertrand Russell

#being #beneficent #entered #freed #introduction