
“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”
1960s, Freedom From The Known (1969)
Context: That is the first thing to learn — not to seek. When you seek you are really only window-shopping. The question of whether or not there is a God or truth or reality, or whatever you like to call it, can never be answered by books, by priests, philosophers or saviours. Nobody and nothing can answer the question but you yourself and that is why you must know yourself. Immaturity lies only in total ignorance of self. To understand yourself is the beginning of wisdom.
“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”
“Understanding the limitations of human beings is the beginning of wisdom.”
Police Shootings
1980s–1990s, Compassion Versus Guilt and Other Essays (1987)
1930s, Mortals and Others (1931-35)
Why I Am An Agnostic (1929)
Source: Why I Am An Agnostic and Other Essays
“Confusion is the beginning of wisdom.”
Source: Life, Sex, and Ideas: The Good Life Without God (2002), Chapter 60, “Values and Knowledge” (p. 236)