Without a global revolution in the sphere of human consciousness a more humane society will not emerge.
Vaclav HavelRead
Human rights, human freedoms... and human dignity have their deepest roots somewhere outside the perceptible world... while the state is a human creation, human beings are the creation of God.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The essence of human rights and dignity comes from a higher power rather than societal constructs.
Vaclav Havel suggests that human rights and dignity are fundamentally derived from a divine source, which transcends human-made institutions like the state. He highlights that while the state is an artificial creation, the intrinsic rights of human beings are rooted in something greater, implying a moral and spiritual dimension to our existence that should guide how we treat one another.
Themes
Human RightsDignityFreedomStateDivineCreationMorality
In practice
Example use cases
Use this quote during a lecture on human rights to emphasize the spiritual foundation of these concepts.
More from Vaclav Havel
All quotes →Ownership is not a vice, not something to be ashamed of, but rather a commitment, and an instrument by which the general good can be served.
Vaclav HavelRead
In my opinion, theater shouldn't give advice to citizens.
Vaclav HavelRead
Sometimes I wonder if suicides aren't in fact sad guardians of the meaning of life.
Vaclav HavelRead
The exercise of power is determined by thousands of interactions between the world of the powerful and that of the powerless, all the more so because these worlds are never divided by a sharp line: everyone has a small part of himself in both.
Vaclav HavelRead
Man is not an omipotent master of the universe, allowed to do with impunity whatever he thinks, or whatever suits him at the moment. The world we live in is made of an immensely complex and mysterious tissue about which we know very little and which we must treat with utmost humility.
Vaclav HavelRead
Similar quotes
If resources become scarce, people tend to fight for them. This is increasing the number of people on the move and the number of people forced to move. They're not refugees, according to the legal definition, but they represent a major humanitarian and human rights challenge, as well as a major challenge for world politics.
Antonio GuterresRead
I address a strong appeal from my heart that the dignity and safety of the worker always be protected.
Pope FrancisRead
Extreme poverty threatens people's right to life itself and makes impossible the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms essential to a humane way of life.
Daisaku IkedaRead
I don't see how you can separate human rights and the rights of all people, no matter what their sexual orientation is.
Coretta Scott KingRead
Fundamental violations of human rights always lead to people feeling less and less human.
Aung San Suu KyiRead
Everyone—all of us, every last person on God’s earth—deserves decent shelter. It speaks to the most basic of human needs—our home—the soil from which all of us, every last person, either blossom or wither. We each have need of food, clothing, education, medical care, and companionship; but first, we must have a place to live and grow.
Millard FullerRead