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A Prudent Man Will Think More Important What Fate Has Conceded To Him, Than What It Has Denied.

-Baltasar Gracian

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A Prudent Man Will

Baltasar Gracian

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A Prudent Man Will Think More Important What Fate Has Conceded To Him, Than What It Has Denied.

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If To Talk To Oneself When Alone Is Folly, It Must Be Doubly Unwise To Listen To Oneself In The Presence Of Others.

Tis Much To Gain Universal Admiration; More, Universal Love.

A Person Of Your Century: Great Persons Are Of Their Time. Not All Were Born Into A Period Worthy Of Them, And Many So Born Failed To Benefit By It. Some Merited A Better Century, For All That Is Good Does Not Always Triumph. Fashions Have Their Periods And Even The Greatest Virtues, Their Styles. But The Philosopher, Being Ageless, Has One Advantage: Should This Not Prove The Right Century, Many To Follow Will.

A Synonym Is A Word You Use When You Can't Spell The Other One.

Surfeits Of Happiness Are Fatal.

It Is Good To Vary In Order That You May Frustrate The Curious, Especially Those Who Envy You.

For A Thing To Remain Undone Nothing More Is Needed Than To Think Of It Done.

Keep Expectation Alive. Keep Stirring It Up. Let Much Promise More, And Great Deeds Herald Greater.

To Find One Real Friend In A Lifetime Is Good Fortune; To Keep Him Is A Blessing.

Many People Who Pretend To Be Very Busy Have The Least To Do.

The Best Remedy For Disturbances Is To Let Them Run Their Course, For So They Quiet Down.

When Desire Dies, Fear Is Born.

Lies Always Come First, Dragging Fools Along By Their Irreparable Vulgarity. Truth Always Lags Last, Limping Along On The Arm Of Time.

Maturity Is The Slowness In Which A Man Believes.

Work Is The Price Which Is Paid For Reputation.

Respect Yourself If You Would Have Others Respect You.

Begin With Another's To End With Your Own.

Do Not Make Mistakes About Character. That Is The Worst And Yet Easiest Error. Better Be Cheated In The Price Than In The Quality Of Goods. In Dealing With Men, More Than With Other Things, It Is Necessary To Look Within. To Know Men Is Different From Knowing Things. It Is Profound Philosophy To Sound The Depths Of Feeling And Distinguish Traits Of Character. Men Must Be Studied As Deeply As Books.

Better Mad With The Rest Of The World Than Wise Alone.

Do Not Be Held A Cheat, Even Though It Is Impossible To Live Today Without Being One. Let Your Greatest Cunning Lie In Covering Up What Looks Like Cunning.

The Sage Has One Advantage: He Is Immortal. If This Is Not His Century, Many Others Will Be.

Honorable Beginnings Should Serve To Awaken Curiosity, Not To Heighten People's Expectations. We Are Much Better Off When Reality Surpasses Our Expectations, And Something Turns Out Better Than We Thought It Would.

He That Communicates His Secret To Another Makes Himself That Other's Slave.

Wise Men Appreciate All Men, For They See The Good In Each And Know How Hard It Is To Make Anything Good.

Keep The Extent Of Your Abilities Unknown.the Wise Man Does Not Allow His Knowledge And Abilities To Be Sounded To The Bottom, If He Desires To Be Honored At All. He Allows You To Know Them But Not To Comprehend Them. No One Must Know The Extent Of His Abilities, Lest He Be Disappointed. No One Ever Has An Opportunity Of Fathoming Him Entirely. For Guesses And Doubts About The Extent Of His Talents Arouse More Veneration Than Accurate Knowledge Of Them, Be They Ever So Great.

There Must Be Something Good In A Thing That Pleases So Many; Even If It Cannot Be Explained, It Is Certainly Enjoyed.

A Wise Man Gets More Use From His Enemies Than A Fool From His Friends.

There Is No Beauty Unaided, No Excellence That Does Not Sink To The Barbarous, Unless Saved By Art.

There Are Certain Inessential Activities-moths Of Precious Time-and It Is Worse To Busy Yourself With The Trivial Than To Do Nothing.

Knowledge Without Courage Is Sterile.

Things Do Not Pass For What They Are, But For What They Seem. Most Things Are Judged By Their Jackets.

Have Friends. 'tis A Second Existence.

Everything Foreign Is Respected, Partly Because It Comes From Afar, Partly Because It Is Ready Made And Perfect.

Treat Your Enemies With Courtesy, And You'll See How Valuable It Really Is. It Costs Little But Pays A Nice Dividend: Those Who Honor Are Honored. Politeness And A Sense Of Honor Have This Advantage: We Bestow Them On Others Without Losing A Thing.

Let The First Impulse Pass, Wait For The Second.

The Heaven Of The Envied Is Hell For The Envious.

Cultivate Those Who Can Teach You.

Hurry Is The Weakness Of Fools.

A Man Is Judged By His Friends, For The Wise And The Foolish Have Never Agreed.

Cunning Grows In Deceit At Seeing Itself Discovered, And Tries To Deceive With Truth Itselft.

Know How To Choose Well. Most Of Life Depends Thereon. It Needs Good Taste And Correct Judgment, For Which Neither Intellect Nor Study Suffices.

Leave Your Luck While Still Winning.

When You Find Fortune Favorable, Stride Boldly Forward, For She Favors The Bold, And Being A Woman, The Young.

Those Who Insist On The Dignity Of Their Office Show They Have Not Deserved It.

Even Monarchs Have Need Of Authors, And Fear Their Pens More Than Ugly Women The Painter's Pencil.

Two Kinds Of People Are Good At Foreseeing Danger: Those Who Have Learned At Their Own Expense, And The Clever People Who Learn A Great Deal At The Expense Of Others.

Let Him That Hath No Power Of Patience Retire Within Himself, Though Even There He Will Have To Put Up With Himself.

Help Others Solve Their Problems; Standing Farther Away, You Can Often See Matters More Clearly Than They Do. . . The Greatest Service You Can Render Someone Else Is Helping Him Or Her Help Themselves.

Mediocrity Obtains More With Application Than Superiority Without It.

Hope Has A Good Memory, Gratitude A Bad One.

Man Is Born A Barbarian, And Only Raises Himself Above The Beast By Culture.

Knowing How To Keep A Friend Is More Important Than Gaining A New One.

Some Would Be Sages If They Did Not Believe They Were So Already.

To Keep Is More Important Than To Make Friends.

Character And Intelligence Are The Poles You Talent Spins On, Displaying Your Gifts.

The Wise Persono Would Rather See Others Needing Him Than Thanking Him.

The Best Skill At Cards Is Knowing When To Discard.

Share Weight And Woe, For Misfortune Falls With Double Force On Him That Stands Alone.

It Is A Great Misfortune To Be Of Use To Nobody; Scarcely Less To Be Of Use To Everybody.

Do Not Make Mistakes About Character. Better Be Cheated In The Price Than In The Quality Of Goods.

Do Pleasant Things Yourself, But Unpleasant Things Through Others.

Pleasant Things

Know How To Play The Card Of Contempt. It Is The Most Politic Kind Of Revenge. For There Are Many Of Whom We Should Have Known Nothing If Their Distinguished Opponents Had Taken No Notice Of Them. There Is No Revenge Like Oblivion, For It Is The Entombment Of The Unworthy In The Dust Of Their Own Nothingness.

Deceit Comes In Through The Ears, But Usually Leaves Through The Eyes.

A Prudent Man Will Think More Important What Fate Has Conceded To Him, Than What It Has Denied.

Be Known For Pleasing Others, Especially If You Govern Them. Ruling Other Has One Advantage: You Can Do More Good Than Anyone Else.

Pleasing Others

Many Pleasant Things Are Better When They Belong To Someone Else. When Things Belong To Others, We Enjoy Them Twice As Much, Without The Risk Of Losing Them, And With The Pleasure Of Novelty.

Aspire Rather To Be A Hero Than Merely Appear One.

Admiration Is The Basis Of Ignorance.

Keep To Yourself The Final Touches Of Your Art.

A Beautiful Woman Should Break Her Mirror Early.

True Friendship Multiplies The Good In Life And Divides Its Evils. Strive To Have Friends, For Life Without Friends Is Like Life On A Desert Island... To Find One Real Friend In A Lifetime Is Good Fortune; To Keep Him Is A Blessing.

To Be At Ease Is Better Than To Be At Business.

The Heaven Of The Envied Is Hell For The Envious. [...because They Focus On What They Don't Have Rather Than Being Grateful For What They Have, Which Is Always Better Than Some Others.]

It Is Better To Have Too Much Courtesy Than Too Little, Provided You Are Not Equally Courteous To All, For That Would Be Injustice.

The More Merit, The Less Affection.

Nature Scarcely Ever Gives Us The Very Best; For That We Must Have Recourse To Art.

When Everyone Covets Something, They Are Easily Annoyed By It.

Know What Is Evil, No Matter How Worshipped It May Be. Let The Man Of Sense Not Mistake It, Even When Clothed In Brocade, Or At Times Crowned In Gold, Because It Cannot Thereby Hide Its Hypocrisy, For Slavery Does Not Lose Its Infamy, However Noble The Master.

Hear, See, And Be Silent.

Display Startling Novelty-rise Afresh Like The Sun Every Day. Change Too The Scene On Which You Shine, So That You Rloss May Be Felt In The Old Scenes Of Your Triumph, While The Novelty Of Your Powers Wins Applause In The New.

Words Are Feminine; Deeds Are Masculine.

There Is No Wilderness Like A Life Without Friends; Friendship Multiplies Blessings And Minimizes Misfortunes; It Is A Unique Remedy Against Adversity, And It Soothes The Soul.

No' And 'yes' Are Words Quickly Said, But They Need A Great Amount Of Thought Before You Utter Them.

I Strive To Be Brief, And I Become Obscure.

Self Improvement

The Wise Does At Once What The Fool Does At Last.

You Should Aim To Be Independent Of Any One Vote, Of Any One Fashion, Of Any One Century.

Know The Great Men Of Your Age.

Few Are The Friends Of A Mans Self, Most Those Of His Circumstances.

Know How To Keep Anticipation Alive: Always Strive To Feed It, By Letting The Much Promise More, And The One Achievement Be The Announcement Only Of A Greater. Put Not All Your Reserves Into The First Throw; The Great Trick Is To Dole Out Strength, And To Dole Out Mind, In Such A Fashion As To Bring Forward Increasingly The Fulfillment Of What Was Expected Of You.

Never Have A Companion That Casts You In The Shade.

Excellence Resides In Quality, Not In Quantity. The Best Is Always Few And Rare; Much Lowers Value.

It Is Therefore An Excellent Device To Acquire Knowledge From Everybody.

There Are Rules To Luck, Not Everything Is Chance For The Wise; Luck Can Be Helped By Skill.

Always Act As If You Were Seen.

Friendship Multiplies The Good Of Life And Divides The Evil.

Success Rarely Brings Satisfaction.

Quit While You're Ahead. All The Best Gamblers Do.

Do Not Be Inaccessible. None Is So Perfect That He Does Not Need At Times The Advice Of Others. He Is An Incorrigible Ass Who Will Never Listen To Any One. Even The Most Surpassing Intellect Should Find A Place For Friendly Counsel. Sovereignty Itself Must Learn To Lean. There Are Some That Are Incorrigible Simply Because They Are Inaccessible: They Fall To Ruin Because None Dares To Extricate Them. The Highest Should Have The Door Open For Friendship; It May Prove The Gate Of Help. A Friend Must Be Free To Advise, And Even To Upbraid, Without Feeling Embarrassed.

Passion Colors All That It Touches In Its Own Hues.

They Make The Greatest Show Of What They Have Done, Who Have Done Least.

The Truest Wild Beasts Live In The Most Populous Places.

All Men Are Idolators, Some Of Fame, Others Of Self-interest, Most Of Pleasure.

You Should Avoid Making Yourself Too Clear Even In Your Explanations.

Wisdom Is Immortal. She Can Wait Forever, But You Cannot.

The Path To Greatness Is Along With Others.

Nothing Arouses Ambition So Much In The Heart As The Trumpet-clang Of Another's Fame.

One Should Cultivate Good Habits Of Memory, For It Is Capable Of Making Existence A Paradise Or An Inferno.

Put Yourself On View. This Brings Your Talents To Light.

Little Said Is Soon Amended. There Is Always Time To Add A Word, Never To Withdraw One.

Attempt Easy Tasks As If They Were Difficult, And Difficult As If They Were Easy; In The One Case That Confidence May Not Fall Asleep, In The Other That It May Not Be Dismayed.

There Is No Desert Like Being Friendless.

One Who Was Abhorred By All In Prosperity Is Adored By All In Adversity.

He Who Laughs At Everything Is As Big A Fool As He Who Weeps At Everything.

To Oblige People Often Costs Little And Helps Much.

Some Are Satisfied To Stand Politely Before The Portals Of Fortune And To Await Her Bidding; Better Those Who Push Forward, Who Employ Their Enterprise, Who On The Wings Of Their Worth And Valor Seek To Embrace Luck, And To Effectively Gain Her Favor.

Wisdom And Courage Make Mutual Contributions To Greatness.

Courtesy Is The Politic Witchery Of Great Personages.

La Galantería Y La Honra Tienen Esta Ventaja, Que Se Quedan: Aquélla En Quien La Usa, ésta En Quien La Haze.

Yes And No Are Soon Said, But Give Much To Think Over.

The Great Art Of Giving Consists In This The Gift Should Cost Very Little And Yet Be Greatly Coveted, So That It May Be The More Highly Appreciated.

Never Risk Your Reputation On A Single Shot, For If You Miss The Loss Is Irreparable.

No One Demands More Caution Than A Spy, And When Someone Has The Skeleton Key To Minds, Counter Him By Leaving The Key Of Caution Inside, On The Other Side Of The Keyhole.

None Is So Perfect That He Does Not Need At Times The Advice Of Others.

Fortune Pays You Sometimes For The Intensity Of Her Favors By The Shortness Of Their Duration. She Soon Tires Of Carrying Any One Long On Her Shoulders.

Do Not Show Your Wounded Finger For Everything Will Knock Up Against It.

The Crutch Of Time Accomplishes More Than The Club Of Hercules.

There Is No Revenge Like Oblivion, For It Is The Entombment Of The Unworthy In The Dust Of Their Own Nothingness.

The Worthless Usually Live Long.

The Truth Is Generally Seen, Rarely Heard.

Many Get The Repute Of Being Witty But Thereby Lose The Credit Of Being Sensible. Jest Has Its Little Hour, Seriousness Should Have All The Rest.

Sometimes It Proves The Highest Understanding Not To Understand.

A Single Lie Destroys A Whole Reputation For Integrity.

Fortunate People Often Have Very Favorable Beginnings And Very Tragic Endings. What Matters Isn't Being Applauded When You Arrive - For That Is Common - But Being Missed When You Leave.

It Is A Novel Kind Of Supremacy, The Best That Life Can Offer, To Have As Servants By Skill Those Who By Nature Are Our Masters.

All Victories Breed, And That Over Your Superior Is Foolish Or Fatal.

If You Are Wise, Live As You Can; If You Cannot, Live As You Would.

Tis By No Means The Least Of Life's Rules: To Let Things Alone.

Luck Can Be Assisted. It Is Not All Chance With The Wise.

The Hossanas Of The Multitude Can Never Bring Satisfaction To The Discerning. Yet There Exist Those Chamaleons Of Popularity Who Find Their Joy, Not In The Sweet Breath Of Apollo, But In The Smell Of The Crowd. And Not In Mind: Do Not Be Taken In By What Are Miracles To The Populace, For The Ignorant Do Not Rise Above Marveling. Thus The Stupidity Of A Crowd Is Lost In Admiration, Even As The Brain Of An Individual Uncovers The Trick.

Beauty And Folly Are Generally Companions.

Beautiful Women

Knowledge Without Wisdom Is Double Folly.

It Is A Great Deed To Leave Nothing For Tomorrow.

Exaggeration Is A Prodigality Of The Judgment Which Shows The Narrowness Of One's Knowledge Or One's Taste.

Exaggeration Is

It Is A Great Piece Of Skill To Know How To Guide Your Luck Even While Waiting For It.

The Things We Remember Best Are Those Better Forgotten.

Never Contend With A Man Who Has Nothing To Lose.

We Often Have To Put Up With Most From Those On Whom We Most Depend.

Exaggeration Is A Branch Of Lying.

Exaggeration Is

The Greatest Fool Is He Who Thinks He Is Not One And All Others Are.

Censure Is Like The Lightning Which Strikes The Highest Mountains.

Peacemakers Not Only Live, They Rule Life.

The Happy Are An Exception Who Enjoy Innocently Their Simple Happiness.

Simple Happiness

Politeness Is The Chief Sign Of Culture.

Politeness And A Sense Of Honor Have This Advantage: We Bestow Them On Others Without Losing A Thing.

Great Ability Develops And Reveals Itself Increasingly With Every New Assignment.

It Is Profound Philosophy To Sound The Depths Of Feeling And Distinguish Traits Of Character. Men Must Be Studied As Deeply As Books.

The Liar Suffers Twice: He Neither Believes Nor Is Believed.

If There Is Nothing Left To Desire, There Is Everything To Fear, An Unhappy State Of Happiness.

Mix A Little Mystery With Everything, For Mystery Arouses Veneration.

A Gilded No Is More Satisfactory Than A Dry Yes.

You May Be Obliged To Wage War, But Not To Use Poisoned Arrows.

He Who Finds Fortune On His Side Should Go Briskly Ahead, For She Is Wont To Favor The Bold.

It Requires As Much To Tell The Truth As To Conceal It.

Telling The Truth

Fortune Soon Tires Of Carrying Anyone Long On Her Shoulders.

A Bad Manner Spoils Everything, Even Reason And Justice; A Good One Supplies Everything, Gilds A No, Sweetens A Truth, And Adds A Touch Of Beauty To Old Age Itself.

Truth Is For The Minority.

What Is Not Seen Is As If It Was Not. Even The Right Does Not Receive Proper Consideration If It Does Not Seem Right.

A Man Of Honour Should Never Forget What He Is Because He Sees What Others Are.

He That Has Satisfied His Thirst Turns His Back On The Well.

Many Would Be Wise If They Did Not Think Themselves Wise.

The Sage Never Seems To Know His Own Merits, For Only By Not Noticing Them Can You Call Others' Attention To Them.

Never Lose Your Self-respect, Nor Be Too Familiar With Yourself When You Are Alone. Let Your Integrity Itself Be Your Own Standard Of Rectitude, And Be More Indebted To The Severity Of Your Own Judgment Of Yourself Than To All External Percepts. Desist From Unseemly Conduct, Rather Out Of Respect For Your Own Virtue Than For The Strictures Of External Authority.

A Brand New Mediocrity Is Thought More Of Than Accustomed Excellence.

Many Of The Things That Bring Delight Should Not Be Owned. They Are More Enjoyed If Another's, Than If Yours; The First Day They Give Pleasure To The Owner, But In All The Rest To The Others: What Belongs To Another Rejoices Doubly, Because It Is Without The Risk Of Going Stale And With The Satisfaction Of Freshness. . . The Possession Of Things Not Only Diminishes Their Enjoyment, But Augments Their Annoyance, Whether Shared Or Not Shared.

Maturity Of Mind Is Best Shown In Slow Belief.

Advice Is Sometimes Transmitted More Successfully Through A Joke Than Grave Teaching.

When A Man's Knowledge Is Deep, He Speaks Well Of An Enemy. Instead Of Seeking Revenge, He Extends Unexpected Generosity. He Turns Insult Into Humor, ... And Astonishes His Adversary Who Finds No Reason Not To Trust Him.

To Be At Ease Is Better Than To Be At Business. Nothing Really Belongs To Us But Time, Which You Have Even If You Have Nothing Else.

God Himself Chasteneth Not With A Rod But With Time.

What The Multitude Says, Is So, Or Soon Will Be So.

You Have To Appear Wiser And More Prudent Than Is Required By The People You Are Dealing With If You Want To Give A High Opinion Of Yourself.

Friends Provoked Become The Bitterest Of Enemies.

Nothing Is Good For Him For Whom Nothing Is Bad.

Fools Rush In Through The Door; For Folly Is Always Bold.

Harness The Imagination, For She Is The Whole Of Happiness.

Without Courage, Wisdom Bears No Fruit.

Take Care To Make Things Turn Out Well. Some People Scruple More Over Pointing Things In The Right Direction Than Over Successfully Reaching Their Goals. The Disgrace Of Failure Outweighs The Diligence They Showed. A Winner Is Never Asked For Explanations.

Always Leave Something To Wish For; Otherwise You Will Be Miserable From Your Very Happiness.

Rate The Intensive Above The Extensive. The Perfect Does Not Lie In Quantity, But In Quality.

True Knowledge Lies In Knowing How To Live.

To Overvalue Something Is A Form Of Lying.

Possession Hinders Enjoyment. It Merely Gives You The Right To Keep Things For Or From Others, And Thus You Gain More Enemies Than Friends.

Make Your Friends Your Teachers And Mingle The Pleasures Of Conversation With The Advantages Of Instruction.

You Can Cultivate Taste, As You Can The Intellect. Full Understanding Whets The Appetite And Desire, And, Later, Sharpens The Enjoyment Of Possession.

It Is More Offensive To Outshine In Dignity Than In Personal Attractions.

Know How To Use Evasion. That Is How Smart People Get Out Of Difficulties.

There Is No Need To Show Your Ability Before Everyone.

Human Condition

At Twenty A Man Is A Peacock, At Thirty A Lion, At Forty A Camel, At Fifty A Serpent, At Sixty A Dog, At Seventy An Ape, At Eighty A Nothing At All.

Watchfulness Is The Only Guard Against Cunning. Be Intent On His Intentions. Many Succeed In Making Others Do Their Own Affairs, And Unless You Possess The Key To Their Motives You May At Any Moment Be Forced To Take Their Chestnuts Out Of The Fire To The Damage Of Your Own Fingers.

Many Have Had Their Greatness Made For Them By Their Enemies.

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