I am convinced that everything has come down to us from the banks of the Ganges, astronomy, astrology, metempsychosis, etc. It does not behoove us, who were only savages and barbarians when these Indians and Chinese peoples were civilized and learned, to dispute their antiquity.

Man is not born wicked; he becomes so, as he becomes sick.

Present opportunities are not to be neglected; they rarely visit us twice.

It is the characteristic of the most stringent censorships that they give credibility to the opinions they attack.

Of all religions, Christianity is without a doubt the one that should inspire tolerance most

Despite the enormous quantity of books, how few people read! And if one reads profitably, one would realize how much stupid stuff the vulgar herd is content to swallow every day.

I swear that, not being able to be yours, I will belong to no one.