The economic position is only flourishing on the surface. Germany is in fact dancing on a volcano. If the short-term credits are called in, a large section of our economy would collapse.

Dante can be understood only within the context of Italian thought, and Faust would be unthinkable if divorced from its German background; but both are part of our common cultural heritage.

History uses a unit of measure for time that is different from that of the lifespan of the individual, whereas man is only too ready to measure the evolution of history by his own yardstick.

In every man the memory of the struggles and the heroes of the past is alive. But these memories are not incompatible with the desire for peace in the future.

To contrast national solidarity and international cooperation as two opposites seems foolish to me.

As a result of the World War, this old Germany collapsed. It collapsed in its constitution, in its social order, in its economic structure. Its thinking and feeling changed.

To walk behind others on a road you are traveling together, to give precedence to others without envy - this is painful for an individual and painful for a nation.

Here we encounter two conflicting concepts with which we must come to grips in our time: the idea of national solidarity and the idea of international cooperation.

Just as a child respects his father even when he perceives his weaknesses and faults, so a German will not despise the old Germany which was once a symbol of greatness to him.

Just as the child is father to the man, so the impressions of one's youth remain the most vivid in manhood.

For the victor peace means the preservation of the position of power which he has secured. For the vanquished it means resigning himself to the position left to him.

What is the sign of the person residing in his own Self as Pure Soul? Vitaragta [a state of freedom from all worldly attachments]!

A single minded vision gives strength of purpose.

You think of outside your room, of the streets of the town, the lonely little squares over by the station, of those winter Saturdays all alike.

Modern cars I don't like so much.

I read the book and I think, "Well, this is the movie we're going to make," and then someone else reads it, and they take a completely different movie from it. And both are valid.

I'm more eclectic.Maybe I'm minimalist in the respect that I love black...black for the winter, white for the summer, you know? But I love artisanal things.

I'm at this time in life when I have to take the opportunities I have left.

I am afraid of falling into hopeless despair, over my wasted life, and I am still not sure how it happened.

When something tragic has happened, you can try to move on and put something tragic behind you, but it rarely works. It's in you when something like that happens. It's physically a part of your life.

No one sat me down with a piece of paper and said, This is what is expected of you. But... I'm lucky enough in the fact that I have found my role... I love being with people.