African Spir: Trending quotes (page 5)

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“What is the use for a man to have at his disposal a large field of action, if within himself he remains confine to the narrow limits of his individuality.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 49.

“To sacrifice the moral to the physical, as is done in these days, is to sacrifice reality for a shadow.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 61.

Reality

“The belief that the conditioned derives from the unconditioned, wrong from right, represent the most fatal error and the one most fraught with consequences that is ("et la plus lourde de conséquences qui soit", Fr.) This believe gave rise (or engender) incalculable harms; it has obliterated (or obstructed or cancelled) the religious consciousness and warped the moral judgement; morevoer, it has created an abyss between science and religion, and brought generations of men to atheism.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 40.

Men , Religion , Error , Science

“The more gifted by nature is a man, the more is deplorable the abuse that he does by using them to shameful ends. A swindler (or crook) of higher condition is more blameworthy than a vulgar scoundrel; an intelligent eveil-doer, having benefited from a higher education, represent a more saddening phenomenon ("phénomène", Fr.) than an unfortune illiterate fellow having commited an offence.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 48.

Education , Intelligence , Nature

“When under the influence of certain (or some) reasons (or causes) (alcohol, war, etc - added Spir here) the low instincts are unbridled (or unrestrained), the brute appears (or come forward, "apparait", Fr.) and rule over (or dominate), stifling every ("toute", Fr.) noble, generous impulse; it is then the ruin (or downfall or decline) of any humanity in man.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 48.

War , Alcohol , Appearance

“The feeling ("sens", Fr.) of solidarity that is born amidst a community rest on the feeling of antagonism arouse (aroused? arose?… sorry, - "suscité", Fr.) by those who are opposed to it. Most of the time we only adhere to a party or a group, in order to better (or more, - "pour mieux se", Fr.) differentiate ourselves of another.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 42.

Feeling , Communication , Time

“If we recognize, following the materialist theories, that only the physical nature exist, and that man contain ("renferme", Fr.) no higher essence, divine, which, by one side of his being, raise (promote or improve…) him above his animal nature, it would be a question ("il ne saurait être question", Fr.) neither of obligation, nor of moral responsability; then the supreme good would consist for him, indeed, to satisfy his appetites and his natural inclinations (fondness or partiality, -"penchant", Fr.), to look for the pleasure and flee from (scud, shun, avoid, -"fuir", Fr.) pain. In this case, there could be neither religion nor moral, since religion is precisely what raise man above vulgar (or common, - "vulgaire", Fr.) reality, and that moral is the very negation of selfishness.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 41.

Pain , Pleasure , Religion , Question

“The most sacred duty, the supreme and urgent work, is to deliver humanity from the malediction of Cain - fratricidal war.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 51.

War

“The moral improvement demands an evolution leading to a higher consciousness”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 60 - Hélène's Claparède-Spir underlined.

“If the confusion of spirits, obsession of consciousness ("obnubilation of…", Fr.), abandonment of religious and moral principles was to become widespread, the consequences could be become such that we would finally see crop up ("on verrait…surgir", Fr.) in the very heart of the civilisation, a new and apalling barbarism capable to engulf (or engulfing, - "engloutir," Fr.) all the acquisitions of the past.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 37.

Past , Heart

“Besides the progress of industry and technique, we see a growing discontent among the masses; we see, besides the expansion ("expansion,", Fr.) of instruction, distrust and hatred expanding among nations ("s'étendre la méfiance et la haine entre," Fr.), that vie with one another ("qui rivalisent à l'envi," Fr.), by the increase of their armies and the improvement of their engines of murder”

African Spir

"engins meurtriers", Fr
Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 37 - third thought of the book, the translator.

“Infringing upon (or encroaching) the right of a single person, we overthrow (or turn upside down) the whole order on which rest legal agreements; for if we break (or transgress or violate) the undertakings enter unto ("les engagements contractés", Fr.), nothing assure that we will not break them, possibly ("éventuellement", Fr.) in another.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 45.

Personality

“Whoever has recognized the vainglory of individuality will not attach any store ("n'attachera aucun prix à", Fr.) to fame. The only one thing which is really valuable, it is to do good.”

African Spir

From the Esquisse biographique, by Hélène Claparède-Spir, p. 17.
Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937)

“(Generally or) Men in general are too inclined to let themselves be overawed by what is quantitatively great. It is thus that even thoughtful minds let themselves be impressed ("éblouis", Fr.) by the strenght of Napoléon 1st, to much so that (to the point that) seeing (to see) in his person something august (or majestic), when indeed (in fact) he only have had ("il n'ait eu que", Fr.) selfish aims (or plans). Half the earth ("globe terrrstre", Fr.) is put to fire and sword to obtain to a man the pleasant sensation of his own absolute power.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 43.

Men , Personality , Selfishness

“A man, engaged in his simple reflections in everyday life, will comprehend neither the possibility, nor the benefits of self-sacrifice, but, when given ("qu'on lui donne", Fr.) a great cause to defend, and he will find only natural to sacrifice oneself for it.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 53.

Life , Nature

“Nothing depict better the poverty of human nature than to see men, placed at the head of a State, and who should, so to speak, embody (or personnify) the law, be concerned (or worried, or preccupied) only with their own prestige and their own particular interests.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 51.

Men , Law , Nature

“The antagonism between nationalities will lose all its acuteness on the day when neither the iniquitous tendency to oppression and domination, nor the perpetual danger of the threatening preparations for war will exist.”

African Spir

"L'antagonisme entre les nationalités perdra toute son acuité le jour où n'existera plus la tendance inique à l'oppression et à la domination, ni le perpétuel danger des menaçants préparatifs de guerre. », Fr. "
Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 54.

War

“Morality, to be effective, has to be well-reasoned. To want to repress evil only by coercion, and to obtain morality by a kind of education using constraint, without motivating it from within, is to make an artificial thing, devoid of lasting value.”

African Spir

Source: Words of a Sage : Selected thoughts of African Spir (1937), p. 59.

Motivation , Education , Making love , Evil