Less glory is more liberty. When the drum is silent, reason sometimes speaks.
Albert PikeRead
What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Our individual achievements fade away, but the impact we make on others endures beyond our lifetime.
This quote by Albert Pike reflects the idea that personal accomplishments are transient and will only be remembered as long as we are alive. In contrast, the contributions we make to the lives of others and society at large have a lasting effect, creating a legacy that transcends our existence. It emphasizes the value of altruism and encourages individuals to focus on collective well-being rather than mere self-interest.
Themes
LegacyAltruismImmortalityImpactHumanity
In practice
Example use cases
During a charity event to inspire donations, you might say this quote to illustrate the importance of giving.
More from Albert Pike
All quotes βHe who endeavors to serve, to benefit, and improve the world, is like a swimmer, who struggles against a rapid current, in a river lashed into angry waves by the winds. Often they roar over his head, often they beat him back and baffle him. Most men yield to the stress of the current... Only here and there the stout, strong heart and vigorous arms struggle on toward ultimate success.
Albert PikeRead
Let us drink together, fellows, as we did in days of yore. And still enjoy the golden hours that Fortune has in store; The absent friends remembered be, in all thatβs sung or said, And Love immortal consecrate the memory of the dead.
Albert PikeRead
War is a series of catastrophes which result in victory.
Albert PikeRead
Two forms of government are favorable to the prevalence of falsehood and deceit. Under a Despotism, men are false, treacherous, and deceitful through fear, like slaves dreading the lash. Under a Democracy they are so as a means of attaining popularity and office, and because of the greed for wealth.
Albert PikeRead
Philosophy is a kind of journey, ever learning yet never arriving at the ideal perfection of truth.
Albert PikeRead
Similar quotes
Over time, the ghosts of things that happened start to turn distant; once they've cut you a couple of million times, their edges blunt on your scar tissue, they wear thin. The ones that slice like razors forever are the ghosts of things that never got the chance to happen.
Tana FrenchRead
I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do. I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.
Robert A. HeinleinRead
And while I stood there I saw more than I can tell and I understood more than I saw; for I was seeing in a sacred manner the shapes of all things in the spirit, and the shape of all shapes as they must live together like one being.
Black ElkRead
Rosencrantz: We might as well be dead. Do you think death could possibly be a boat? Guildenstern: No, no, no... Death is...not. Death isn't. You take my meaning. Death is the ultimate negative. Not-being. You can't not-be on a boat. Rosencrantz: I've frequently not been on boats. Guildenstern: No, no, no--what you've been is not on boats.
Tom StoppardRead
Time spent arguing with the faithful is, oddly enough, almost never wasted.
Christopher HitchensRead
I gambled on having the strength to live two lives, one for myself and one for the world.
Ruth BenedictRead