“Had we never lov'd sae kindly,
Had we never lov'd sae blindly,
Never met -- or never parted --
we had ne'er been broken-hearted”
Source: Collected Poems of Robert Burns
“Wi' lightsome heart I pu'd a rose
Frae aff its thorny tree;
And my false luver straw my rose
But left the thorn wi' me.”
“Is there for honest Poverty
That hings his head, an' a' that;
The coward slave-we pass him by,
We dare be poor for a' that!
For a' that, an' a' that.
Our toils obscure an' a' that,
The rank is but the guinea's stamp,
The Man's the gowd for a' that.
What though on hamely fare we dine,
Wear hoddin grey, an' a that;
Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine;
A Man's a Man for a' that:
For a' that, and a' that,
Their tinsel show, an' a' that;
The honest man, tho' e'er sae poor,
Is king o' men for a' that.
Ye see yon birkie, ca'd a lord,
Wha struts, an' stares, an' a' that;
Tho' hundreds worship at his word,
He's but a coof for a' that:
For a' that, an' a' that,
His ribband, star, an' a' that:
The man o' independent mind
He looks an' laughs at a' that.
A prince can mak a belted knight,
A marquis, duke, an' a' that;
But an honest man's abon his might,
Gude faith, he maunna fa' that!
For a' that, an' a' that,
Their dignities an' a' that;
The pith o' sense, an' pride o' worth,
Are higher rank than a' that.
Then let us pray that come it may,
(As come it will for a' that,)
That Sense and Worth, o'er a' the earth,
Shall bear the gree, an' a' that.
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's coming yet for a' that,
That Man to Man, the world o'er,
Shall brothers be for a' that.”
“What makes the hero truly great
is never, never to despair.”
“The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men,
Gang aft agley.
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!
(To A Mouse)”
Source: Collected Poems of Robert Burns
“But deep this truth impress'd my mind:
Thro' all His works abroad,
The heart benevolent and kind
The most resembles God.”
Source: Collected Poems of Robert Burns
“A fig for those by law protected!
Liberty's a glorious feast!
Courts for cowards were erected,
Churches built to please the priest!”
“The fear o’ hell’s a hangman’s whip to haud the wretch in order; But where ye feel your honor grip, let that aye be your border.”
“Flow gently, sweet Afton,
amang thy green braes,
Flow gently, I'll sing thee
a song in thy praise;
My Mary's asleep
by thy murmuring stream,
Flow gently, sweet Afton,
disturb not her dream.
Thou stock dove whose echo
resounds thro' the glen,
Ye wild whistly blackbirds
in yon thorny den,
Thou green crested lapwing
thy screaming forbear,
I charge you, disturb not
my slumbering fair.
How lofty, sweet Afton,
thy neighboring hills,
Far mark'd with the courses
of clear winding rills;
There daily I wander
as noon rises high,
My flocks and my Mary's
sweet cot in my eye.
How pleasant thy banks
and green valleys below,
Where, wild in the woodlands,
the primroses blow;
There oft, as mild evening
weeps over the lea,
The sweet-scented birk shades
my Mary and me.
Thy crystal stream, Afton,
how lovely it glides,
And winds by the cot where
my Mary resides;
How wanton thy waters
her snowy feet lave,
As, gathering sweet flowerets,
she stems thy clear wave.
Flow gently, sweet Afton,
amang thy green braes,
Flow gently, sweet river,
the theme of my lays;
My Mary's asleep
by thy murmuring stream,
Flow gently, sweet Afton,
disturb not her dreams.”
“My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here;
My heart's in the Highlands a-chasing the deer;
A-chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands wherever I go.”
“There’s ither poets, much your betters,
Far seen in Greek, deep men o’ letters,
Hae thought they had ensur’d their debtors,
A’ future ages;
Now moths deform in shapeless tatters,
Their unknown pages.”
Source: Selected poems
“But yet, O Lord! confess I must,
At times I'm fash'd wi' fleshly lust:
An' sometimes too in warldly trust,
Vile self gets in;
But Thou remembers we are dust,
Defil'd wi' sin.”
“Now's the day and now's the hour.”
“And O! be sure to fear the Lord alway, And mind your duty, duly, morn and night; Lest in temptation's path ye gang astray, Implore His counsel and assisting might: They never sought in vain that sought the Lord aright.”
“When matters are desperate we must put on a desperate face.”
“Burns, has spent years exploring the many avenues for adventure and fun in San Diego. The fact that you can experience the desert, snow, mountains and ocean in the course of a day has always been amazing to me. If you are really motivated, you can snow ski, surf, take a mountain hike, and race dune buggies all in one weekend, .. I grew up here and want to showcase San Diego to the world. I love San Diego.”
“Gars auld claes look amaist as weel's the new.”
Source: Life and Works
“I'll be merry and free, I'll be sad for nae-body; If nae-body cares for me, I'll care for nae-body.”
Source: The Complete Works of Robert Burns: With an Account of His Life, and a Criticism on His Writings. To which are Prefixed, Some Observations on the Character and Condition of the Scottish Peasantry
“Ilk cowslip cup shall kep a tear.”
Source: The Poetical Works of Robert Burns. Edited by the Rev. Robert Aris Willmott. New Edition. With Numerous Additions. [The Preface Signed: P. A. N.]
“And wild-scatter'd cowslips bedeck the green dale.”
Source: The Works: With an Account of His Life and a Criticism on His Writings to which are Prefixed Some Observations on the Character and Condition of the Scottish Peasantry : in Four Volumes
“It is cruelty to be humane to rebels, and humanity is cruelty.”
“Even thou who mournst the daisy's fate, That fate is thine--no distant date; Stern Ruin's ploughshare drives, elate, Full on thy bloom, Till crushed beneath the furrow's weight Shall be thy doom!”
Source: The poetical works and letters of Robert Burns
“Oh, stay, sweet warbling woodlark, stay, Nor quit for me the trembling spray, A hapless lover courts thy lay, Thy soothing, fond complaining.”
Source: The Canongate Burns
“A prince can mak a belted knight, A marquis, duke, and a' that; But an honest man's aboon his might: Guid faith, he maunna fa' that.”
Source: The Works of Robert Burns: With Dr. Currie's Memoir of the Poet, and an Essay on His Genius and Character
“The rank is but the guinea's stamp, The man's the gowd for a' that.”
“Mankind is an unco squad And muckle he may grieve thee.”
“That hour o' night's black arch the keystane.”
“Farewell, my friends! farewell, my foes! My peace with these, my love with those. The bursting tears my heart declare; Farewell, the bonnie banks of Ayr.”
Source: The Works of Robert Burns: With an Account of His Life, and a Criticism on His Writings
“Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy green braes, Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise.”
“Yon rosebuds in the morning-dew, how pure amang the leaves sae green!”
Source: The works of Robert Burns: containing his life, by John Lockhart, esq. ; the poetry and correspondence of Dr. Currie's edition ; biographical sketches of the poet by himself, Gilbert Burns, Professor Stewart, and others
“Morality, thou deadly bane,Thy tens o' thousands thou has slain!”
Source: The Complete Works of Robert Burns: Containing His Poems, Songs and Correspondence
“What's a' your jargon o' your schools, Your Latin names for horns and stools; If honest nature made you fools.”
Source: The Works of Robert Burns: With an Account of His Life, and a Criticism on His Writings
“What's done we partly may compute, But know not what's resisted.”
Source: The Poetical Works of Robert Burns. Edited by the Rev. Robert Aris Willmott. New Edition. With Numerous Additions. [The Preface Signed: P. A. N.]
“John Barleycorn was a hero bold, Of noble enterprise, For if you do but taste his blood, 'Twill make your courage rise, Twill make a man forget his wo; 'Twill heighten all his joy.”
Source: The works of Robert Burns: containing his life, by John Lockhart, esq. ; the poetry and correspondence of Dr. Currie's edition ; biographical sketches of the poet by himself, Gilbert Burns, Professor Stewart, and others
“She is a winsome wee thing, She is a handsome wee thing, She is a bonny wee thing, This sweet wee wife o' mine.”
Source: The life and works of Robert Burns, ed. by R. Chambers. Libr. ed
“And let us mind, faint heart ne'er wan A lady fair. Wha does the utmost that he can Will whyles do mair.”
“Just now I've taen the fit o' rhyme / My barmie noddle's working prime.”
“Anticipation forward points the view.”
Source: The poems & songs of Robert Burns, to which is subjoined a panegyrical ode by H. Paul
“Beauty's of a fading nature. Has a season and is gone!”
Source: The Caledonian Musical Museum: Being a Collection of the Best Songs, Ancient and Modern
“There's some are fou o' love divine; There's some are fou o' brandy.”
“It's hardly in a body's pow'r,To keep, at times, frae being sour.”
Source: The Works of Robert Burns: With an Account of His Life, and Criticism on His Writing ; to which are Prefixed Some Observations on the Character and Condition of the Scottish Peasantry by James Currie, M. D. ; with Many Additional Poems and Songs and an Enlarged and Corrected Glossary
“When Nature her great masterpiece designed,And framed her last, best work, the human mind,Her eye intent on all the wondrous plan,She formed of various stuff the various Man.”
“The voice of Nature loudly cries,And many a message from the skies,That something in us never dies.”
Source: Delphi Complete Works of Robert Burns (Illustrated)
“Never generally means "at no point in time." The term comes from the words 'no' and 'ever', meaning that something is not ever going to happen. Sourced”
“If naebody care for me,I'll care for naebody.”
Source: The Poetical Works of Robert Burns. Edited by the Rev. Robert Aris Willmott. New Edition. With Numerous Additions. [The Preface Signed: P. A. N.]
“Oatcakes are a delicate relish when eaten warm with ale.”
“Why has a religious turn of mind always a tendency to narrow and harden the heart?”
“The best laid plans take 40 years to complete.”
“The lightly-jumping, glowrin' trouts, That thro' my waters play.”
Source: Poems, Songs, and Letters: Being the Complete Works of Robert Burns
“The trout in yonder wimpling burn - That glides, a silver dart, - And, safe beneath the shady thorn, - Defies the anglers art.”
Source: The Poems and Songs of Robert Burns
