Desiderius Erasmus: Quotes about learning

Desiderius Erasmus was Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, and theologian. Explore interesting quotes on learning.
Desiderius Erasmus: 72   quotes 39   likes

“You must acquire the best knowledge first, and without delay; it is the height of madness to learn what you will later have to unlearn.”

Desiderius Erasmus

Letter to Christian Northoff (1497), as translated in Collected Works of Erasmus (1974), p. 114

Knowledge , Learning , Madness

“Whatever you see in the more material part of yourself, learn to refer to God and to the invisible part of yourself. In that way, whatever offers itself to the senses will become for you an occasion for the practice of piety.”

Desiderius Erasmus

The Erasmus Reader (1990), p. 141.
Handbook of the Christian Soldier (1503)

God , Way , Sense , Learning

“Do not be guilty of possessing a library of learned books while lacking learning yourself.”

Desiderius Erasmus

Letter to Christian Northoff (1497), as translated in Collected Works of Erasmus (1974), p. 115

Books , Learning

“Animals only follow their natural instincts; but man, unless he has experienced the influence of learning and philosophy, is at the mercy of impulses that are worse than those of a wild beast. There is no beast more savage and dangerous than a human being who is swept along by the passions of ambition, greed, anger, envy, extravagance, and sensuality.”

Desiderius Erasmus

De pueris statim ac liberaliter instituendis declamatio (1529), translated by Beert C. Verstraete as On Education for Children, in The Erasmus Reader (University of Toronto Press: 1990), p. 73

Nature , Learning , Passion , Animals

“We must learn how to imitate Cicero from Cicero himself. Let us imitate him as he imitated others.”

Desiderius Erasmus book Ciceronianus

in The Erasmus Reader (1990), p. 130.
Ciceronianus (1528)

Learning

“A constant element of enjoyment must be mingled with our studies, so that we think of learning as a game rather than a form of drudgery, for no activity can be continued for long if it does not to some extent afford pleasure to the participant.”

Desiderius Erasmus

Letter to Christian Northoff (1497), as translated in Collected Works of Erasmus (1974), p. 114

Pleasure , Game , Thinking , Study