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Selfishness Quotes

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Selfishness Quotes

“Gratitude: An imaginary emotion that rewards an imaginary behavior, altruism. Both imaginaries are false faces for selfishness, which is a real and honest emotion.”

Real Faces Emotion Honest Gratitude Behavior Rewards Selfishness Imaginary Altruism

Book:To Sail Beyond the Sunset

Source: To Sail Beyond the Sunset

“No man at bottom means injustice; it is always for some obscure distorted image of a right that he contends: an obscure image diffracted, exaggerated, in the wonderfulest way by natural dimness and selfishness; getting tenfold more diffracted by exasperation of contest, till at length it become all but irrecognis-able.”

Men Way Mean Able Natural Bottom Injustice Selfishness Length Obscure Contests Exaggerated Exasperation

Book:The Works of Thomas Carlyle

Source: The Works of Thomas Carlyle

“Despite those titles, power, and pelf, The wretch, concentred all in self, Living, shall forfeit fair renown, And, doubly dying, shall go down To the vile dust, from whence he sprung, Unwept, unhonor'd, and unsung.”

Self Dying Fairs Despite Dust Selfishness Titles Sprung Forfeit Native Land Renown Minstrels Groundhog Day Groundhogs

Author:Walter Scott

“Faith, courage, and intelligent and uninterrupted awareness - these qualities are to be present whether one is wide awake, half asleep, or in deep slumber. An individual who lives like this performs his daily actions with a mind free from selfishness. This is poise in action. And this poise leads to that serenity which is in the truest sense a healthy mind in a healthy body.”

Source: Sparks of Divinity: The Teachings of B. K. S. Iyengar

“Long before Einstein told us that matter is energy, Machiavelli and Hobbes and other modern political philosophers defined man as a lump of matter whose most politically relevant attribute is a form of energy called "self-interestedness". This was not a portrait of man "warts and all". It was all wart - except that the dominating attribute was not considered a blemish.”

Men Long Self Matter Form Political Energy Modern Philosopher Defined Selfishness Attributes Relevant Lumps Hobbes

Book:Statecraft as Soulcraft

Source: Statecraft as Soulcraft

“There is a prodigious selfishness in dreams: they live perfectly deaf and invulnerable amid the cries of the real world.”

World Real Dream Cry Selfishness Real World Deaf Prodigious

Book:The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress

Source: The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress

“We are not built for the mountains and the dawns and aesthetic affinities, those are for moments of inspiration, that is all. We are built for the valley, for the ordinary stuff we are in, and that is where we have to prove our mettle. Spiritual selfishness always wants repeated moments on the mount. We feel we could talk like angels and live like angels, if only we could stay on the mount. The times of exaltation are exceptional, they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware lest our spiritual selfishness wants to make them the only time.”

Ifs Want Feels Moments Inspiration Spiritual Stuff Our Lives Mountain Prove Ordinary Angel Built Selfishness Dawn Valleys Aesthetic Exceptional Only Time Affinity Exaltation Mettle

Author:Oswald Chambers

“The men who made the Industrial Revolution are usually pictured as hardfaced businessmen with no other motive than self-interest. That is certainly wrong. For one thing, many of them were inventors who had come into business that way.”

Men Way Made Self Interest One Thing He Man Revolution Selfishness Motive Businessman Self Interest Inventor Industrial Revolution

Book:The Ascent of Man

Source: The Ascent of Man

“I think for anyone who follows the 'artistic life,' a certain amount of selfishness and self-involvement is part of the package. You're probably already disregarding a certain material life you could have.”

Thinking Self Certain Materials Amount Artistic Selfishness Packages Involvement Artistic Life

Author:David Chase

“Every ignoramus imagines that all that exists, exists with a view to his individual sake; it is as if there were nothing that exists except him. And if something happens to him that is contrary to what he wishes, he makes the trenchant judgement that all that exists is an evil.”

Ifs Happens Evil Individual Wish Views Imagine Sake Contrary Things Happen Selfishness Judgement Imagine That

Book:A Maimonides Reader

Source: A Maimonides Reader

“Ironically, often the thing that keeps me from experiencing joy is my preoccupation with self. The very selfishness that keeps me from pouring myself out for the joy of others also keeps me from noticing and delighting in the myriad small gifts God offers each day. This is why Walker Percy describes boredom as "the self stuffed with the self."”

Self Joy Offers Selfishness Boredom Each Day Noticing Pouring Preoccupation Walkers Small Gifts

Book:The Life You've Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People

Source: The Life You've Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People

“You must pray for yourself constantly. How could it be otherwise? We worship God by believing in Him, trusting Him, and loving Him wholeheartedly - and we can attain to that only through prayer. The sole object of our being here is that we may grow like Him - and we can do that only through prayer. The more we pray for ourselves the more power will our prayers have for any other purpose whatever; so praying for ourselves is the reverse of selfishness - it is truly glorifying God.”

“The only struggle which religions can justify, the only struggle worthy of humans, is the moral struggle against humanity's own disordered passions, against every kind of selfishness, against attempts to oppress others, against every type of hatred and violence.”

Humans Kind Religion Humanity Passion Moral Struggle Violence Type Hatred Worthy Selfishness Justify Moral Struggle

Author:Pope John Paul II

“In this age of selfishness, selfless service is the only soap that truly purifies.”

Age Selfishness Selfless Soap Selfless Service

Author:Mata Amritanandamayi

“Most human beings know only the language of exploitation. Due to their selfishness, they are unable to consider others.”

Knows Humans Language Human Beings Relationship Dues Selfishness Exploitation

Author:Mata Amritanandamayi

“I have freedom. But freedom means total selfishness. It means nobody cares much what you do.”

Mean Care Selfishness Nobody Cares

Author:Lynn Barber

“To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost.”

Ifs Happiness Three Lost Stupid Intellectual Stupidity Selfish Selfishness Healthcare Lacking Requirements Stupid People Good Health People Stupidity Selfish Desire Lacking Something

Book:The Letters of Gustave Flaubert: 1830-1857

Source: The Letters of Gustave Flaubert: 1830-1857

“I have written a memoir here and there, and that takes its own form of selfishness and courage. However, generally speaking, I have no interest in writing about my own life or intruding in the privacy of those around me.”

Writing Form Interest My Own Written Memoir Selfishness Privacy Here And There My Own Life

Author:Peter Carey

“Both of our political parties, at least the honest portion of them, agree conscientiously in the same object: the public good; but they differ essentially in what they deem the means of promoting that good. One side believes it best done by one composition of the governing powers, the other by a different one. One fears most the ignorance of the people; the other the selfishness of rulers independent of them. Which is right, time and experience will prove.”

Source: Life of Thomas Jefferson: with selections from the most valuable portions of his voluminious and unrivalled private correspondence : with portrait

“I'm just the mere shadow of my former selfishness. I crave the silhouette of your kiss.”

Kissing Shadow Mere Former Selfishness Crave Silhouettes

Author:Elvis Costello