Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all.
HypatiaRead
In fact men will fight for a superstition quite as quickly as for a living truth - often more so, since a superstition is so intangible you cannot get at it to refute it, but truth is a point of view, and so is changeable.
Interpretation
What this quote means
People often defend their beliefs passionately, even if those beliefs are based on superstition rather than changing truths.
Hypatia's quote suggests that individuals can be more fervent defenders of superstitions, which are intangible and difficult to challenge, compared to objective truths, which can be subjective and are open to interpretation. This highlights the complexity of belief systems, where emotions and personal perspectives often take precedence over empirical evidence.
Themes
BeliefTruthSuperstitionPerspectiveChange
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about science vs. superstition, to highlight the dangers of unchallengeable beliefs.
More from Hypatia
All quotes →All formal dogmatic religions are fallacious and must never be accepted by self-respecting persons as final.
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Life is an unfoldment, and the further we travel the more truth we can comprehend. To understand the things that are at our door is the best preparation for understanding those that lie beyond.
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