Laa shay'a waqi'un moutlaq bale kouloun moumkine...We work in the Dark, to serve the Light.

And when neither their property nor honour is touched, the majority of men live content, and he has only to contend with the ambition of a few, whom he can curb with ease in many ways.

A prince never lacks legitimate reasons to break his promise.

The prince must be a lion, but he must also know how to play the fox.

The prince who relies upon their words, without having otherwise provided for his security, is ruined; for friendships that are won by awards, and not by greatness and nobility of soul, although deserved, yet are not real, and cannot be depended upon in time of adversity.

God is not willing to do everything, and thus take away our free will and that share of glory which belongs to us.

Men nearly always follow the tracks made by others and proceed in their affairs by imitation, even though they cannot entirely keep to the tracks of others or emulate the prowess of their models. So a prudent man should always follow in the footsteps of great men and imitate those who have been outstanding.