A selfish man is a thief.

Cultivo una rosa blanca, En julio como en enero, Para el amigo sincero Que me da su mano franca. Y para el cruel que me arranca El corazon con que vivo, Cardo ni oruga cultivo Cultivo una rosa blanca. I have a white rose to tend In July as in January; I give it to the true friend Who offers his frank hand to me. And to the cruel one whose blows Break the heart by which I live, Thistle nor thorn do I give: For him, too, I have a white rose.

Man has to suffer. When he has no real afflictions, he invents some.

Poetry is the work of the bard and of the people who inspire him.

A knowledge of different literatures is the best way to free one's self from the tyranny of any of them.

An insatiable appetite for glory leads to sacrifice and death, but innate instinct leads to self-preservation and life.

Culture, which makes talent shine, is not completely ours either, nor can we place it solely at our disposal. Rather, it belongs mainly to our country, which gave it to us, and to humanity, from which we receive it as a birthright.