By my existence I am nothing more than an empty place, an outline, that is reserved within being in general. Given with it, though, is the duty to fill in this empty place. That is my life.

Perhaps one has to have placed life in the center of one’s worldview and valued it as much as I have in order to know that one may not keep it, but must yield it up.

One needs to properly possess only a couple of great thoughts--they shed light on many stretches whose illumination one would never have believed in.

[Shanghai Biennale] has been my attitude for as long as I've been practicing art and other cultural-related activities.

In the pursuit of knowledge, follow it wherever it is to be found; like fern, it is the produce of all climates, and like coin, its circulation is not restricted to any particular class.

To have a successful team, you have to have great players of course - but you have to have good personalities and good people as well.

In many ways, when you're a Nobel peace laureate, you have an obligation to humankind, to society.

Plus, I grew up with Steve Cropper. There were so many good guitar players another one wasn't needed. What was needed was a bass.

You can wear your hair long or wear a beard because you want to show that you are interested in thought, in psychological endeavors rather than appearance.

There is no restraining men's tongues or pens when charged with a little vanity.

Salvation, O the joyful sound! 'Tis pleasure to our ears; A sov'reign balm for ev'ry wound, A cordial for our fears.

One man's magic is another man's gluey torture session.

As for writing about temptation, there's no drama without temptation, and no novel without drama.