“It is not because the touch of genius has roused genius to production, but because the admiration of genius has made talent ambitious, that the harvest is still so abundant.”

“Universality is the distinguishing mark of genius. There is no such thing as a special genius, a genius for mathematics, or for music, or even for chess, but only a universal genius. … The theory of special genius, according to which for instance, it is supposed that a musical genius should be a fool at other subjects, confuses genius with talent. … There are many kinds of talent, but only one kind of genius, and that is able to choose any kind of talent and master it.”

Otto Weininger book Sex and Character

“It takes people a long time to learn the difference between talent and genius, especially ambitious young men and women.”

Louisa May Alcott book Little Women

“YOU are a genius!… and I am a genius because I married you.”

Bill Cosby (1937) American actor, comedian, author, producer, musician, activist

“The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits. ”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

“Rahman is a genius and has made the world sit up and take notice of Indian talent with his success. He has put the Indian film industry on the world map.”

A. R. Rahman (1966) Indian singer and composer

“Genius disregards the boundaries of propriety. Genius is permitted to shout if shouting is productive.”

Lois Lowry (1937) American writer

“The talent works, the genius creates.”

Robert Schumann (1810–1856) German composer, aesthete and influential music critic

“There are people who possess not so much genius as a certain talent for perceiving the desires of the century, or even of the decade, before it has done so itself.”

Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799) German scientist, satirist

“Genius has no country. It blossoms everywhere. Genius is like the light, the air. It is the heritage of all.”

José Rizal (1861–1896) Filipino writer, ophthalmologist, polyglot and nationalist