Prejudices are what fools use for reason.
VoltaireRead
It is not known precisely where angels dwell whether in the air, the void, or the planets. It has not been God's pleasure that we should be informed of their abode.
Interpretation
The quote reflects the mystery surrounding the existence and location of angels, suggesting that such knowledge is not meant for humans.
In this quote, Voltaire highlights the enigmatic nature of angels and their dwelling place, asserting that humanity is not privy to divine secrets regarding their existence. This forms part of a larger philosophical discourse on the limitations of human knowledge and the nature of the divine, suggesting that some mysteries are intended to remain beyond our understanding.
In practice
In a discussion about the nature of spirituality, one might invoke Voltaire's observation on angels.
Prejudices are what fools use for reason.
He was a great patriot, a humanitarian, a loyal friend; provided, of course, he really is dead.
It is dangerous to be right in matters where established men are wrong.
It is not sufficient to see and to know the beauty of a work. We must feel and be affected by it.
We are all full of weakness and errors; let us mutually pardon each other our follies - it is the first law of nature.
It is better to risk saving a guilty man than to condemn an innocent one.
It is the basic, metaphysical fact of man's nature -- the connection between his survival and his use of reason -- that capitalism recognizes and protects.
I believe every person has a guardian spirit or angel. They assist us in the transition between life and death and they also help us pick our parents before we are born.
I will have spent my life trying to understand the function of remembering, which is not the opposite of forgetting, but rather its lining. We do not remember. We rewrite memory much as history is rewritten. How can one remember thirst?
When a man wants to murder a tiger he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.
We are not to preach the doing of good things; good deeds are not to be preached, they are to be performed.
I cannot believe that the inscrutable universe turns on an axis of suffering; surely the strange beauty of the world must somewhere rest on pure joy!
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