Those who keep the masses of men in subjection by exercising force and cruelty deprive them at once of two vital foods, liberty and obedience; for it is no longer within the power of such masses to accord their inner consent to the authority to which they are subjected. Those who encourage a state of things in which the hope of gain is the principle motive take away from men their obedience, for consent which is its essence is not something which can be sold.

The feeding of those that are hungry is a form of contemplation.

If you want to know what a man is really like, take notice of how he acts when he loses money.

Every perfect life is a parable invented by God.

A hurtful act is the transference to others of the degradation which we bear in ourselves.

The entire universe is nothing but a great metaphor.

The vulnerability of precious things is beautiful because vulnerability is a mark of existence. The destruction of Troy. The fall of the petals from fruit trees in blossom. To know that what is most precious is not rooted in existence - that is beautiful.