Aphorisms

On the face of it, there is something rather strange about human psychology.
Human beings live in a state of mind called ‘sanity’ on a small planet in space.
They are not quite sure whether the space around them is infinite or not (either way it is unthinkable).
If they think about time, they find it is inconceivable that it had a beginning.
It is also inconceivable that it did not have a beginning.
Thoughts of this kind are not disturbing to ‘sanity’, which is obviously a remarkable phenomenon and deserves more recognition.

Young people wonder how the adult world can be so boring.
The secret is that it is not boring to adults because they have learnt to enjoy simple things like covert malice at one another’s expense.
This is why they talk so much about the value of human understanding and sympathy.
It has a certain rarity value in their world.

Progress towards sanity is achieved by abandoning first the desire for omnipotence
and then that for exceptional achievement.

Only the impossible is worth attempting.
In everything else one is sure to fail.

Astonishment is the only realistic emotion.

The fact that something is far-fetched is no reason why it should not be true;
it cannot be as far-fetched as the fact that something exists.

People accept their limitations
so as to prevent themselves from wanting anything they might get.

It is inconceivable that anything should be existing.
It is not inconceivable that a lot of people should also be existing who are not interested in the fact that they exist.
But it is certainly very odd.

It is superfluous to be humble on one’s own behalf;
so many people are willing to do it for one.

People have been marrying and bringing up children for centuries now.
Nothing has ever come of it.

The only important thing to realise about history
is that it all took place in the last five minutes.