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If one only wished to be Sad, this could be horrible for the rest of civilisation; but we wish to be happier than other people, and this is always difficult, for we believe others to be happier than they are.

— Montesquieu

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More quotes by Montesquieu

People here argue about religion interminably, but it appears that they are competing at the same time to see who can be the least devout.

Lettres Persanes (1721)

Useless laws weaken the necessary laws.

The Spirit of the Laws (1748)

One must give one power a ballast, so to speak, to put it in a position to resist another.

The Spirit of the Laws (1748)

Constant experience shows us that every man who has power is inclined to abuse it; he goes until he finds limits.

Society is the union of men and not the men themselves.

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Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create the fact.

William James The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy (1897)

Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because, if there be one, he must more approve the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.

Thomas Jefferson Letter to Peter Carr (1787)

I had never doubted my own abilities, but I was quite prepared to believe that "the world" would decline to recognize them.

Colin Wilson Postscript to the Outsider (1967)

Love is the active, working principle in all true faith. It is its very soul, without which it is dead. "Faith works by love."

Jonathan Edwards Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Montesquieu (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.