“I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.”

— Christiaan Huygens

Letter to Pierre Perrault, 'Sur la préface de M. Perrault de son traité de l'Origine des fontaines' (1673), Oeuvres Complètes de Christiaan Huygens http://books.google.com/books?id=9IVA7sK_Bh8C (1897), Vol. 7, 298. Quoted in Jacques Roger, The Life Sciences in Eighteenth-Century French Thought, ed. Keith R. Benson and trans. Robert Ellrich (1997), 163

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably." by Christiaan Huygens?

Christiaan Huygens photo

Christiaan Huygens 16

Dutch mathematician and natural philosopher 1629–1695

Related quotes

“If there's anything I can do- I know there probably isn't, but…"

Just be here”

Kelley Armstrong The Awakening

Source: The Awakening

“I don't know anything, but I do know that everything is interesting if you go into it deeply enough.”

Richard Feynman book The Pleasure of Finding Things Out

From Omni interview, "The Smartest Man in the World" (1979) p. 203
The Pleasure of Finding Things Out (1999)

“Probably I dont believe in a lot of things that I used to believe in but that doesnt mean I dont believe in anything.”

Cormac McCarthy The Sunset Limited

Source: The Sunset Limited

“I think that, to be very honest with you, I — I do believe that we should have rightly believed, but we certainly believed that certain issues are just settled. Certain issues are just settled.”

Kamala Harris (1964) United States Senator from California

On why Democrats didn't codify Roe vs Wade, in an interview with CBS https://www.cbsnews.com/news/kamala-harris-roe-v-wade-settled-law/
2022, July 2022

“So-called immobile objects exist only in movement. Immobile, certain, and permanent things, ideas, works and beliefs change, transform, and disintegrate. Immobile objects are snapshots of a movement whose existence we refuse to accept, because we ourselves are only an instant in the great movement. Movement is the only static, final, permanent, and certain thing. Static means transformation. Let us be static together with movement. Move statically! Be static! Be movement! Believe in movement's static quality. Believe in change. Do not hold onto anything. Change! Do not pinpoint anything! Everything about us is movement. Everything around us is change. Believe in movement's static quality. Be static.”

Jean Tinguely (1925–1991) Swiss painter and sculptor

reprinted in 'Zero', ed. Otto Piene and Heinz Mack, Cambridge, Mass; MIT Press 1973, p. 119
Quotes, 1960's, untitled statements in 'Zero 3', (1961)

“We all believe that we are a certain kind of person, but we never know until we do something that proves otherwise, or until we die.”

Chuck Klosterman book Downtown Owl

Source: Downtown Owl

“... our confidence in foretelling and influencing events increases in inverse ratio to our ability to do so. The farther we go from ourselves and from the present, the less we sense the probabilities, and it is easy for us to be "dead certain" about things we cannot possibly know anything about.**The Rules of Chaos (1969), p 23,24”

Stephen Vizinczey (1933) Hungarian-Canadian writer

“I believe,” said the first lady, “that our souls are in our hands. For we do everything to the world with our hands. Sometimes I think we don’t use our hands half enough; it’s certain we don’t use our heads.”

Ray Bradbury book The Golden Apples of the Sun

Embroidery (1951)
The Golden Apples of the Sun (1953)

“"It [referring to calling a Minister "Idiot"] was probably not an appropriate term, but we support the war effort and believe we should be supporting our troops and our allies and be there with them doing everything necessary to win.”

Stephen Harper (1959) 22nd Prime Minister of Canada

Montreal Gazette, April 2003: On the Iraq war.
2003

“I know three things will never be believed - the true, the probable, and the logical”

John Steinbeck book The Winter of Our Discontent

Source: The Winter of Our Discontent

Related topics