Like all writers, he measured the achievements of others by what they had accomplished, asking of them that they measure him by what he envisaged or planned.

I don't think there's any essential difference, at least for me, between writing poetry and writing prose.

When you reach my age, you realize you couldn't have done things very much better or much worse than you did them in the first place.

Time is the tiger that devours me, but I am that tiger.

Being with you and not being with you is the only way I have to measure time.

I think of myself as being an ethical man, but I don't try to teach ethics. I have no message. I know little about contemporary life. I don't read a newspaper. I dislike politics and politicians. I belong to no party whatever. My private life is a private life. I try to avoid photography and publicity.

Chang Tzu tells us of a persevering man who after three laborious years mastered the art of dragon-slaying. For the rest of his days, he had not a single opportunity to test his skills.