A human being is a part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space.  He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.  This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.  Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.  Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner security.

The most important human endeavor is the striving for morality in our actions. Our inner balance and even our very existence depends on it. Only morality in our actions can give beauty and dignity to life

The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives.

A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he is justly accountable to them for the injury.

Far better an approximate answer to the right question, which is often vague, than an exact answer to the wrong question, which can always be made precise.

When a man wants to murder a tiger, he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.

It's a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has no more to offer by way of advice than 'Try to be a little kinder.'

A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right.