They say you can't study Kabbalah until you are at least 40 years old. You know why? You have to have experienced at least one generation making the same mistakes as the previous one.
David MametRead
You know, I once read an interesting book which said that, uh, most people lost in the wilds, they, they die of shame. Yeah, see, they die of shame. 'What did I do wrong? How could I have gotten myself into this?' And so they sit there and they... die. Because they didn't do the one thing that would save their lives. Thinking.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that in difficult situations, people's inability to think critically can lead to their downfall.
In this quote, David Mamet reflects on how individuals lost in desperate situations often succumb not just to their predicament but to feelings of shame and regret. Their failure to think critically and proactively address their circumstances leads to inaction, ultimately causing their demise. This underscores the importance of maintaining clarity of thought and action rather than succumbing to negative emotions.
In practice
This quote could be used in a survival training workshop to emphasize the importance of mental resilience.
They say you can't study Kabbalah until you are at least 40 years old. You know why? You have to have experienced at least one generation making the same mistakes as the previous one.
My alma mater is the Chicago Public Library. I got what little educational foundation I got in the third-floor reading room, under the tutelage of a Coca-Cola sign.
You know, young actors say all the time, 'Should I use my own life experience?' And my response is, 'What choice do you have?'
It's hard for a Jew of my generation, an American Jew, who is philo-Zionistic, not to romanticize Israel.
You can't write about history without writing about politics at some point. History is about movements of people. 'What is criminality and what is government' is a theme that runs through every history.
Every reiteration of the idea that nothing matters debases the human spirit.
I have always tried to make room for anything that wanted to come to me from within.
Life is a never-ending school, and the really important lessons all tend to teach man his proper relation to the environment where he must live.
Liberate the minds of men and ultimately you will liberate the bodies of men.
All that we are is the result of what we have thought. If people speak or act with evil thoughts, pain follows them. If people speak or act with pure thoughts, happiness follows them, like a shadow that never leaves them.
It is in vain that we get upon stilts, for once on them, it is still with our legs that we must walk. And on the highest throne in the world we are still sitting on our own ass.
Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater. Possession pampers the mind; privation trains and strengthens it.
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