On Anger

“Other vices can be concealed and cherished in secret; anger shows itself openly and appears in the countenance, and the greater it is, the more plainly it boils forth.”

“Mankind is born for mutual assistance, anger for mutual ruin: the former loves society, the latter estrangement.”

“There are certain things whose beginnings lie in our own power, but which, when developed, drag us along by their own force and leave us no retreat.”

“The most trustworthy virtue is that which long and carefully considers itself, controls itself, and slowly and deliberately brings itself to the front.”

“Every one when he calls himself innocent looks rather to external witnesses than to his own conscience.”

“Nothing becomes one who inflicts punishment less than anger, because the punishment has all the more power to work reformation if the sentence is pronounced with deliberate judgment.”

“What, too, can be more unworthy of the wise man, than that his passions should depend upon the wickedness of others?”

“To avoid being angry with individuals, you must pardon the whole mass, you must grant forgiveness to the entire human race.”

“We need a long-breathed struggle against permanent and prolific evils; not, indeed, to quell them, but merely to prevent their overpowering us.”

“Whatever is a terror to others, fears for itself.”

“The evils from which we suffer are curable, and since we were born with a natural bias towards good, nature herself will help us if we try to amend our lives.”

“What is more restful than a mind at peace, and what more toilsome than anger?”

“Let the wise man be moderate, and when things have to be done somewhat briskly, let him call force, not anger, to his aid.”

“Games also will be useful: for moderate pleasure relieves the mind and brings it to a proper balance.”

“We should always allow some time to elapse, for time discloses the truth.”

“Readiness to believe what we hear causes very great mischief; we ought often not even to listen, because in some cases it is better to be deceived than to suspect deceit.”

“Nothing, therefore, nourishes anger more than excessive and dissatisfied luxury: the mind ought to be hardened by rough treatment, so as not to feel any blow that is not severe.”

“Suppose that we are being punished; let us think not only of what we suffer, but of what we have done: let us sit in judgement on our past life.”

“How much further do the rules of duty extend than those of the law!”

“What can be more unjust than to believe in secret, and to be angry openly?”

“As all the limbs act in unison, because it is the interest of the whole body to keep each one of them safe, so men should spare one another, because they are born for society.”

“It is the part of a great mind to despise wrongs done to it; the most contemptuous form of revenge is not to deem one’s adversary worth taking vengeance upon.”

“Nothing is more unjust than that any one should inherit the quarrels of his father.”

“If any one is angry with you, meet his anger by returning benefits for it: a quarrel which is only taken up on one side falls to the ground: it takes two men to fight.”

“How far more glorious is it to throw back all wrongs and insults from oneself, like one wearing armour impenetrable to all weapons, for revenge is an admission that we have been hurt.”

“There is no greater proof of magnanimity than that nothing which befalls you should be able to move you to anger.”

“Let our undertakings, therefore, be neither petty nor yet presumptuous and reckless: let our hopes not range far from home: let us attempt nothing which if we succeed will make us astonished at our success.”

“Whenever a controversy seems likely to be longer or more keenly disputed than usual, let us check its first beginnings, before it gathers strength.”

“People do not all take offence in the same way; you ought then to know what your own weak point is, that you may guard it with especial care.”

“He who seeks to know what is said about him, who digs up spiteful tales even if they were told in secret, is himself the destroyer of his own peace of mind.”

“A large part of mankind manufacture their own grievances either by entertaining unfounded suspicions or by exaggerating trifles.”

“Let us put ourselves in the place of him with whom we are angry: at present an overweening conceit of our own importance makes us prone to anger, and we are quite willing to do to others what we cannot endure should be done to ourselves.”

“Fight hard with yourself and if you cannot conquer anger, do not let it conquer you: you have begun to get the better of it if it does not show itself, if it is not given vent.”

“Our inward thoughts gradually become influenced by our outward demeanour.”

“Do not form your judgment by one hour, or one day: consider the whole tendency of your mind: even though you have done no evil, yet you are capable of doing it.”

“How far better is it to heal an injury than to avenge it?”

“A man will never be well off to whom it is a torture to see any one better off than himself.”

“A wish for the same things, which ought to have been a bond of friendship, becomes a source of quarrels and hatred.”

“All our senses should be educated into strength: they are naturally able to endure much, provided that the spirit refrains from spoiling them.”

“The mind is strong enough to bear those evils for which it is prepared.”

“Let us set our own conscience fully at rest, but make no efforts to gain credit for ourselves.”

“Life is a matter which does not admit of waste, and we have no spare time to throw away.”

“This breath that we hold so dear will soon leave us: in the meantime, while we draw it, while we live among human beings, let us practise humanity: let us not be a terror or a danger to any one.”

“The sword of justice is ill-placed in the hands of an angry man.”