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To believe that if we could have but this or that we would be happy is to suppress the realization that the cause of our unhappiness is in our inadequate and blemished selves. Excessive desire is thus a means of suppressing our sense of worthlessness.

— Eric Hoffer The Passionate State Of Mind, and Other Aphorisms (1955)

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More quotes by Eric Hoffer

Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a God, but never without belief in a devil.

The True Believer (1951)

Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for the lost faith in ourselves.

The True Believer (1951)

The Jews are a peculiar people: things permitted to other nations are forbidden to the Jews.

Israel's Peculiar Position (1968)

To know a person's religion we need not listen to his profession of faith but must find his brand of intolerance.

The Passionate State Of Mind, and Other Aphorisms (1955)

There is hardly a single instance of cultural vigor marked by moderation in expression.

Eric Hoffer and the Art of the Notebook (2005)

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