I am so in favor of the actual infinite that instead of admitting that Nature abhors it, as is commonly said, I hold that Nature makes frequent use of it everywhere, in order to show more effectively the perfections of its Author.

Of what use would it be to you, sir, to become King of China on condition that you forgot what you have been? Would it not be the same as if God, at the same time he destroyed you, created a King in China?

[Alternate translation:] The Divine Spirit found a sublime outlet in that wonder of analysis, that portent of the ideal world, that amphibian between being and not-being, which we call the imaginary root of negative unity.

I hold that it is only when we can prove everything we assert that we understand perfectly the thing under consideration.

Every present state of a simple substance is the natural consequence of its preceding state, in such a way that its present is big with its future.

Why is there anything at all rather than nothing whatsoever?

Nature does not make leaps.