Friedrich Nietzsche was a German Philosopher born on 15 October 1844, whose works contributed profoundly to modern intellectual history. He was also a philologist, composer, poet and cultural critic. The main elements of his philosophy include- his favour of perspectivism over truth, a genealogical critique of Christian morality and religion in general, Wille zur Macht or Will to Power and Nihilism as a possible outcome to pursuing religions.
Due to his failing health and deteriorating mental faculties, he died on 25 August 1900.
The 1960s saw the renewed popularity of Nietzche’s Philosophy and had a great impact on 20th and early-21st century philosophers.
Following are some of the famous Friedrich Nietzsche quotes that even today have found a place in the intellectual parts of our world and helps us look at life from a different perspective.
Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.
Nietzche warns all those who think of themselves as righteous and try to propagate similar behaviour in society. The problem arises when they start believing that everyone else who does not comply with their sense of righteousness is sinful. In trying to police them for their moral conduct, they might resort to evil ways themselves.
Secondly, when we are constantly surrounded by negativity, it tends to get rub off on us too. When you entertain a thought for too long, no matter it is good or immoral, you will eventually get consumed by it.
Today as always, men fall into two groups: slaves and free men. Whoever does not have two-thirds of his day for himself, is a slave, whatever he may be: a statesman, a businessman, an official, or a scholar.
Luckily most of the world’s population reside in a free land today. But just because we are free to create our government, choose our leaders and take most of our life’s decisions independently, doesn’t mean we are completely free to do whatever we want. He says the world can be divided into two groups of men- one who is free to do whatever they want at least for two-thirds of their day. The second group of men are either limited by their choices, deadline, commitments or fear in living their life according to their wants.
The lonely one offers his hand too quickly to whomever he encounters.
Loneliness can breed to desperation. It might make us vulnerable and too trusting.
That which does not kill us makes us stronger.
Difficult situations can make us stronger if we take it in stride. Tougher the situation, stronger it makes you mentally and emotionally if you can get through it. You come out of them as a more confident person ready to take on any challenge.
The higher we soar, the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly.
If others do not believe in your capabilities and think your dreams are too big or too unrealistic for you, don’t worry about it. Just like we can only see things that are at the same level as us, others can only fathom the abilities that they have known in them. Your potential is too big, your goals too high for them to comprehend. Keep on working even against all the criticism and negativity.
Here the ways of men divide. If you wish to strive for peace of soul and happiness, then believe; if you wish to be a disciple of truth, then inquire.
There are two ways that a man can live. Firstly, if he wishes to live in peace and happiness, he needs to have a belief. He can believe in God, in good karma, in nature or his own abilities. Or secondly, if he wishes to know the truth and live by it, he needs to keep curiosity alive in him and inquire about everything that happens.
In heaven, all the interesting people are missing.
Living by the religious rules and never questioning it or experiencing anything outside of what is permissible by a religion leads to a very drab life. You need to experience other things (reasonable and safe ones) to know if they are right for you or not. This is what makes a person interesting and informed.
The snake which cannot cast its skin has to die. As well the minds which are prevented from changing their opinions; they cease to be mind.
The most important rule for survival that nature follows is adaptation. Plants and animals are always adapting to the changing environment, to survive against unfavourable conditions. For example, snake’s skin does not grow with his body, and thus, when he is increasing in length, he needs to shed it and grow a new one. Similarly, humans too need to adapt their opinions and beliefs according to changing times.
No one can construct for you the bridge upon which precisely you must cross the stream of life, no one but you yourself alone.
Every person is unique and born with special talents and interests. We can take help from other’s experiences and philosophies to live a good life. But they won’t necessarily work for you because you are different and special. Others can’t completely measure your potential and desires and what will make you happy in future. Hence, you can equip yourself with all the aid you can get from others, but at the end of the day make your own way to your ideal life that takes in account everything you are and all you can be.
There are no beautiful surfaces without a terrible depth.
You can’t find good things without having to take up a tough journey.
What does your conscience say? — ‘You should become the person you are’.
Our conscience, the inner voice that tells us what is right and what is wrong, if you listen closely will generally give you all the answers you are looking for. Above all, it will tell you to be honest to yourself and don’t live a life according to others.
Blessed are the forgetful, for they get the better even of their blunders.
He says that our past experiences greatly influence us. Such bad experiences- our mistakes and wrong decisions can restrain us on many fronts. It can lead to limiting beliefs that can hamper our improvement, growth and happiness. If only we can let go and forget these memories of the past, we can move on and be happier.
He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.
If we have a clear purpose in life, it will be strong enough to make us leave our beds in the morning and drives us throughout the day to work for it relentlessly with passion. It will be our strong support and sometimes the only support that gets us through thick and thin.
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The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.
It can be very daunting to live your life by your rules and not by that of society. You will be required to be very strong to not let others design your life. It will a hard struggle, and many times can leave you lonely too. But in the end, it will all be worth it. Being completely at peace and happy with your life on your own terms is too valuable not to fight for.
The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently.
We are not doing any good to youngsters by encouraging them to seek after only those who have similar thinking. All of us need to learn to be respectful towards everyone equally, even if they have different opinions than ours. In fact, being with people who have a different mindset can make us more knowledgeable and tolerant.
Every deep thinker is more afraid of being understood than of being misunderstood.
This quote can convey multiple meanings. A person who has arrived at opinions and philosophies after deep thinking may not want others to understand it for these opinions can give them an insight into who this person is at his core, which can be unnerving for few. Or he may not want them to understand his thoughts for he doesn’t believe that they are good enough and thus will lead to criticism.
Another meaning can be, that sometimes by deriving an inference, that singular explanation can limit the scope of the thought. And it will become just another piece of knowledge and lose its potency to hit people emotionally.
One ought to hold on to one’s heart; for if one lets it go, one soon loses control of the head too.
We believe that the brain is the controlling organ of our body. The working of our mind is what gets us through each day. We seldom stop to realise the contribution of our feelings and emotions, our heart. Our mind will stop functioning smoothly if we are depressed or going through any negative feelings. It is important to control our emotions to preserve our sanity and think productively.
There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.
Since time immemorial, romance has been clumped with madness. When we are in love, our actions are steered by emotions rather than rationality, which is not entirely a bad thing since this is what makes love so beautiful. It demands you to go all in, sacrificing anything you have to, not leaving any stone unturned. It makes you a better person, a more passionate and caring version of you. It can surely seem like madness, but a reasonable one since the object of all your love, the sheer joy of attaining it is worthy of all this struggle.
Love applies both to people and goals.
A thinker sees his own actions as experiments and questions--as attempts to find out something. Success and failure are for him answers above all.
If you are a thinker, an intellectual and are in search of truth and knowledge, than your whole life becomes a series of experiments. Whatever you do is a question, you are seeking an answer to. And whatever the answer may see it as a pure learning experience. You cannot be emotionally affected when things don’t turn out as you wanted because a true intellectual is always open to possibilities and learns new things when his experiment gives different results than what he expected.
We have art in order not to die of the truth.
Truth, the universal scientific principles and worldly laws that control entire reality are extremely significant for survival. But just truths can also make life dull and unimaginative. Art is what adds aesthetic creativity, vibrance to our daily lives. Truths can be harsh and unbearable; sometimes, this is when we need the intervention of art. It creates the possibility of a beautiful future or can give a prettier spin to the present situation. After all, hasn’t stories, poems and songs added colour in the darkest times of our lives?
Conclusion
In this article, we have discussed some of the top Friedrich Nietzsche quotes on Life, Love, Education, God, Art to Beauty, etc. with their meanings.
Co-author: Shreya Arya
A digital marketing enthusiast with experience in HR and hospital management, Shreya has wide interests ranging from philosophy, psychology to latest trends in automation. She is also a freelance content writer and loves lending beautiful words to ideas and feelings.
