Baltasar Gracian
Baltasar Gracian
Baltasar Gracián y Morales, SJ, formerly Anglicized as Baltazar Gracian, was a Spanish Jesuit and baroque prose writer and philosopher. He was born in Belmonte, near Calatayud. His writings were lauded by Schopenhauer and Nietzsche...
NationalitySpanish
ProfessionPhilosopher
Date of Birth8 January 1601
CountrySpain
winning shining advice
Display startling novelty-rise afresh like the sun every day. Change too the scene on which you shine, so that you rloss may be felt in the old scenes of your triumph, while the novelty of your powers wins applause in the new.
wisdom war anger
Never contend with a man who has nothing to lose.
wise luck chance
Luck can be assisted. It is not all chance with the wise.
fashion independent vote
You should aim to be independent of any one vote, of any one fashion, of any one century.
human-nature multitudes
What the multitude says, is so, or soon will be so.
imitation equal predecessors
To equal a predecessor, one must have twice they worth.
trying deceit deceiving
Cunning grows in deceit at seeing itself discovered, and tries to deceive with truth itselft.
littles mystery veneration
Mix a little mystery with everything, for mystery arouses veneration.
doe appearance consideration
What is not seen is as if it was not. Even the Right does not receive proper consideration if it does not seem right.
ambition way pushing
The true way is the middle one, halfway between deserving a place and pushing oneself into it.
ends should
Oh life, you should never had begun, but since you did, you should never end
giving risk delight
Many of the things that bring delight should not be owned. They are more enjoyed if another's, than if yours; the first day they give pleasure to the owner, but in all the rest to the others: what belongs to another rejoices doubly, because it is without the risk of going stale and with the satisfaction of freshness. . . the possession of things not only diminishes their enjoyment, but augments their annoyance, whether shared or not shared.
violence aptitude natural
Most do violence to their natural aptitude, and thus attain superiority in nothing.
perfect afar made
Everything foreign is respected, partly because it comes from afar, partly because it is ready made and perfect.