It would not be difficult to be a better ruler than I was: for I admit that I ruled badly; and even if I was fortunate enough to satisfy my subjects, I was not fortunate enough to satisfy myself.

Every man is his own worst enemy

It is a far greater happiness to obey no one than to rule the whole world.

God has neither form nor shape under which we can know Him; when he speaks of Himself in metaphors and similes, He is adapting Himself to our foolishness, our limited capacity.

There is a star above us which unites souls of the first order, though worlds and ages separate them.

Dignity is like a perfume; those who use it are scarcely conscious of it.

Ignorance is not innocence.

We grow old more through indolence, than through age.

As you know, no one over thirty years of age is afraid of tittle-tattle. I myself find it much less difficult to strangle a man than to fear him.

I love men, not because they are men, but because they are not women

It is quite as ignominious to allow oneself to be deceived as to deceive.

When you are seeking love, from the distance, in silence, love is attracting you.

To pray is to say that there is more than I can see, and more than I can do. There is more going on than meets the eye.

Unfortunately, fact checking has become a lost art

I haven't always been thrilled with my work. But the fear of not proving the people wrong who think you can't emerge from a franchise and do well, that's a very strong driving force.

The process by which banks create money is so simple that the mind is repelled.

There's nothing you can know that isn't known.

If the world despises a hypocrite, what must they think of him in heaven?

Dinner is where the magic happens in the kitchen.

Laws grind the poor, and rich men rule the law.

If one hears bad music, it is one's duty to drown it by one's conversation.