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Those afraid of the universe as it really is, those who pretend to nonexistent knowledge and envision a Cosmos centered on human beings will prefer the fleeting comforts of superstition. They avoid rather than confront the world. But those with the courage to explore the weave and structure of the Cosmos, even where it differs profoundly from their wishes and prejudices, will penetrate its deepest mysteries.

— Carl Sagan Cosmos (1980)

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Religion

More quotes by Carl Sagan

Human history can be viewed as a slowly dawning awareness that we are members of a larger group.

Cosmos (1980)

If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.

Cosmos (1980)

As the ancient myth makers knew, we are children equally of the earth and the sky.

Cosmos (1980)

For small creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love.

Contact (1985)

For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

The Demon-Haunted World : Science as a Candle in the Dark (1995)

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All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.

Albert Einstein Moral Decay (1937)

Science and religion are two human enterprises sharing many features.

Freeman Dyson Infinite in All Directions (1988)

The moment the idea is admitted into society, that property is not as sacred as the law of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence.

John Adams A Defence of the Constitutions of Government (1787)

The Puritan hated bear-baiting, not because it gave pain to the bear, but because it gave pleasure to the spectators.

Thomas Babington Macaulay History of England (1849)

Attribution

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