“What men call knowledge, is the reasoned acceptance of false appearances. Wisdom looks behind the veil and sees.”

“The Self when it appears behind the universe is called God. The same Self when it appears behind this little universe—the body—is the soul.”

Swami Vivekananda (1863–1902) Indian Hindu monk and phylosopher

“There are two allied powers in man; knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is so much of the truth seen in a distorted medium as the mind arrives at by groping, wisdom what the eye of divine vision sees in the spirit.”

Sri Aurobindo (1872–1950) Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru and poet

“For lack of empirical data I have neither knowledge nor understanding of such forms of being, which are commonly called spiritual. …Nevertheless, we have good reason to suppose that behind this veil there exists the uncomprehended absolute object which affects and influences us—and to suppose it even, or particularly, in the case of psychic phenomena about which no verifiable statements can be made.”

C.G. Jung book Memories, Dreams, Reflections

“Fortune, now see, now proudly
Pluck off thy veil, and view thy triumph; look,
Look what thou hast brought this land to!”

John Fletcher (1579–1625) English Jacobean playwright

“Here's to you, men I never met,
Yet hope to meet behind the veil,
Thronged on some starry parapet,
That looks down upon Innisfail,
And sees the confluence of dreams
That clashed together in our night,
One river, born from many streams,
Roll in one blaze of blinding light.”

George William Russell (1867–1935) Irish writer, editor, critic, poet, and artistic painter

“An artist needs knowledge and the power of observation only so that he can tell from what he is abstaining, and to be sure that his abstention will not appear artificial or false.”

Andrei Tarkovsky (1932–1986) Soviet and Russian film-maker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director

“Chance is necessity hidden behind a veil.”

Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830–1916) Austrian writer

“Knowledge without justice ought to be called cunning rather than wisdom.”

Plato (-427–-347 BC) Classical Greek philosopher

“Knowledge is a collection of facts. Wisdom is the use of knowledge. Without facts there is no knowledge. Without knowledge there is no wisdom. Facts prevent what nothing can cure. Facts are Man's best defense mechanism. Without them men fumble, falter and fail. Without them nations decline and fall. Wisdom wins wars before they start. Knowledge aborts national hostilities. Wisdom obviates racial antipathies. Knowledge effaces religious animosities. Emancipation from bigotry prefaces peace. Intolerance takes all and gives nothing. Peace rewards reciprocal respect and regard. To all Men of Good Will, "Pax Vobiscum!"”

Benjamin H. Freedman (1890–1984) American businessman