quotations about destiny
It is old age, rather than death, that is to be contrasted with life. Old age is life's parody, whereas death transforms life into a destiny: in a way it preserves it by giving it the absolute dimension. Death does away with time.
SIMONE DE BOUVOIR
The Coming of Age
Destiny guides us towards a specific goal, but without our wilful participation we will not achieve our destiny.
LEE BLADON
The Science of Spirituality
Long tarries destiny,
But comes to those who pray.
AESCHYLUS
The Libation Pourers
Destiny will show when it's time.
ERIC HARVEY
Freedom of Speech Writing Out Loud
Destiny can never be cast away by you because it is you.
SORIN CERIN
Wisdom Collection
The real test of a man is not how well he plays the role he has invented for himself, but how well he plays the role that destiny assigned to him.
JAN PATOCKA
attributed, In Pursuit of Destiny
Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for; it is a thing to be achieved.
WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN
speech, Feb. 22, 1899
Destiny is in reality a pompous word that means very little. If we have great talents, it will probably be our destiny to show them. If we have no talents, it will certainly be our destiny to show none.
ANONYMOUS
The Spectator, Aug. 2, 1884
Don't you know that what happens to you once always happens again? You always react in the same way to the same thing. It's no accident when you make a mess. Then you do it again. It's called destiny.
CESARE PAVESE
The Devil in the Hills
Ah me, thou Destiny,
Giver of evil gifts.
AESCHYLUS
The Seven Against Thebes
Alas, poor men, their destiny. When all goes well a shadow will overthrow it. If it be unkind one stroke of a wet sponge wipes all the picture out.
AESCHYLUS
The Oresteia
It is man's destiny to ponder on the riddle of existence.
C. F. KETTERING
Prophet of Progress
From someone who doesn't want to share your destiny, you should neither accept a cigarette.
CESARE PAVESE
The Burning Brand
Man must understand his universe in order to understand his destiny.
NEIL ARMSTRONG
attributed, Rocket Men
Not without a shudder may the human hand grasp the mysterious urn of destiny.
FRIEDRICH SCHILLER
The Death of Wallenstein
Motive is a thread, work is a skein, destiny is a maze.
THOMAS ROBERT SLICER
Meditations
It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link in the chain of destiny can be handled at a time.
WINSTON CHURCHILL
speech in the House of Commons, Feb. 27, 1945
Destiny is selfhood. To live your destiny is to be raised above accidental circumstances to the level of your essential being. This is not merely because destiny precludes accidents and thus provides a propitious life-environment. The relationship between destiny and self is more intimate than that. Destiny defines the self: you ARE your destiny. To speak of destiny as though it is merely something that happens to you is to assume that a person is in essence always the same, changeless at the core amid the ceaseless changes of life and history. But the truth is that what happens to you--including in this category the ideas and impulses that arise within you in response to outward events--defines your identity. The only way you could be fully identified would be by a story--of the kind God alone could tell--of the unfolding of your life in all its depths and complexities. Thus living your destiny is carrying on your life as the one you really are.
GLENN E. TINDER
The Fabric of Hope
The soul of man createth its own destiny.
NATHANIEL PARKER WILLIS
"Extract"
There can be no exit from manifest destiny.
MICK FARREN
Darklost