Have you read Nichloas Taleb’s latest and very short book The Bed of Procrustes: Philosophical and Practical Aphorisms? It begins with a short introduction that frames the aphorisms to follow. The Bed of Procrustes title is from Greek mythology: the story of a man who made his visitors fit his bed to perfection by either stretching them or cutting their limbs.
Taleb says his book “contrasts the classical values of courage, elegance, and erudition against the modern diseases of nerdiness, philistinism, and phoniness.” His thesis is “we humans, facing limits of knowledge, and things we do not observe, the unseen and the unknown, resolve the tension by squeezing life and the world into crisp commoditized ideas …”
Here is one of my favorite aphorisms from Taleb’s book:
Education makes the wise slightly wiser, but it makes the fool vastly more dangerous.
What is an aphorism?
An aphorism is a tersely phrased statement of a truth or opinion, often the pithy packaging of deep wisdom. An aphorism is the consequence of a process of analysis that compels the reader to wrestle with meaning and creative with it. This video contains some examples.
Philosophical Quotes
[youtube-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rK26DklVmxs&feature=related]
Meet an Aphorist
Aphorisms and quotes make me think deeply and I have a friend who is a brilliant aphorist, who says:
“A quote can be a catalyst to provide you with a new perspective, to see life or some aspect of it in a different way. “– Aphorism of the Day
Here are some of his favorite quotes on quotes:
“I quote others only in order to better express myself.”– Montaigne
“Life itself is a quotation.”– Borges
“A quotation at the right moment is like bread in a famine.”– The Talmud
“When a thing has been said and said well, have no scruple. Take it and copy it.”– Anatole France
“Proverbs contradict each other. That is the wisdom of a nation.”– Stanislaw Lec
“To quote someone is to quote oneself.”– Julio Cortazar
Here are some of my favorite quotes on quotes.
“Quotations will tell the full measure of meaning, if you have enough of them.” — James Murray
“A proverb is a short sentence based on long experience.” — Miguel de Cervantes
“A fine quotation is a diamond on the finger of a witty person, but a pebble in the hands of a fool.” — Unknown
“The aphorism is cultivated only by those who have known fear in the midst of words, that fear of collapsing with all the words.” — E.M. Cioran
“A good aphorism is too hard for the tooth of time, and is not worn away with the centuries, although it serves as food for every speech.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
See also: 31 Inspirational Quotes from Gandhi and 35 Inspiring Quotes from Albert Einstein
Discussion
I’m noticing a trend on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. It seems that the number of aphorisms and quotes people I communicate with post on social networks are on the increase. Sometimes I have the feeling we are plying each other with them to fill the empty spaces that normally occur in face-to-face conversations.
Have you noticed that too?
Do you have any favorite aphorisms?
Do you have any favorite quotes on quotes?
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“When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.” –A. A. Milne
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Like the video of philosophical quotes! I have noticed an increase in the number of quotes on social networking sites, too. However, I would sometimes rather see a quote posted than hearing about someone’s root canal…LOL! Frankly, I have friends on Facebook who will tell you all about it! Some of my favorite quotes: “Everything you can imagine is real.” Pablo Picasso, “Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly.” Langston Hughes, “Tomorrow may rain, so I’ll follow the sun.” The Beatles, and “When you come to a fork in the road, take it!” Yogi Berra
Hi Madilyn,
So I’m not imagining it; there’s an increase in inspiring quotes posting to social networks. Those are all terrific quotes. Thanks for submitting them here.
Loved the video! I like them since they make you think about life in another way. I always feel as though I am racing against time. “Life is short and then you die!”
Hi Susie,
I liked it and I’m so glad you liked it too.
timethief:
I love this one: “A quotation at the right moment is like bread in a famine.”– The Talmud
As you know, I love sharing quotes. I share them on my blog and on social media too. Not to fill a gap but to share inspiration with others. But it’s very possible some of us may be trying to fill the empty spaces!
Thanks for these nuggets of inspiration.
Hi Sandra,
I love that one too and have never heard it before. Thanks for sharing it. I had a face/palm moment when I read this comment because I suddenly recalled the Ghandi quotes and Einstein quotes I have enjoyed on your blog. Sharing inspirational quotes in social networks is never out of line. Thank you for inspiring me.
“Brevity is the soul of wit.” – Shakespeare
“I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.” – Mother Teresa
Hi sprigblossoms,
“An aphorism is an afterthought of experience.”
I love it!
Thanks so much for sharing it here.
Thanks for sharing this TT! My aphorism on aphorism is as follows: “An aphorism is an afterthought of experience.”
Like you, I have noticed an increase of quotations appearing in the web. Some of my favorite ones, of course, are from Nothingprofound :)
TT, thanks for the mention. Of course, I have hundreds (maybe thousands) of favorite quotes, but here’s a few I always seem to come back to:
“The best way to know God is to love many things.”-Van Gogh
“The wise man does nothing; the fool ties himself up.”-Zen saying
“What do you suppose will satisfy the soul except to walk free and own no superior?”-Walt Whitman
“We need but little learning to live happily.”-Montaigne
Hi Marty,
Your aphorisms make me think and I want others to read them too. Thanks for the additional quotes. I liked the Montaigne quote best.
“Education makes the wise slightly wiser, but it makes the fool vastly more dangerous.”
—love this one! it seems true to me.
Hi Yun Yi,
It will resonates with me and that’s for sure. It’s on my favorites list now.
Well, some of us have always had an eye for quotations…
Hi there,
Long time no connect. Indeed you do share them on your blog. Do you have any to share here?