Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.

What is a totem? It is as a rule an animal (whether edible and harmless or dangerous and feared) and more rarely a plant or a natural phenomenon (such as rain or water), which stands in a peculiar relation to the whole clan. In the first place, the totem is the common ancestor of the clan; at the same time it is their guardian spirit and helper, which sends them oracles and, if dangerous to others, recognizes and spares its own children.

An unrestricted satisfaction of every need presents itself as the most enticing method of conducting one's life, but it means putting enjoyment before caution, and soon brings its own punishment.

We are so made that we can derive intense enjoyment only from a contrast.

Humor is a means of obtaining pleasure in spite of the distressing effects that interface with it.

I became aware of my destiny: to belong to the critical minority as opposed to the unquestioning majority.

A collection to which nothing can be added and from which nothing can be removed is, in fact, dead!