Of all tools, an observatory is the most sublime. . . . What is so good in a college as an observatory? The sublime attaches to the door and to the first stair you ascent, that this is the road to the stars.
Interpretation
Emerson emphasizes the importance of observation and contemplation in achieving greater knowledge and understanding of the universe.
In this quote, Ralph Waldo Emerson reflects on the profound significance of observatories as tools for enlightenment and exploration. He suggests that an observatory’s purpose transcends mere scientific observation; it embodies the aspiration to reach for the stars and understand the cosmos, making it a sacred space of inquiry. By valuing such institutions, Emerson also highlights the importance of curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge in education, encouraging individuals to seek deeper truths in life.
In practice
In a graduation speech to inspire students to pursue their dreams.
It is plain that there is no separate essence called courage, no cup or cell in the brain, no vessel in the heart containing drops or atoms that make or give this virtue; but it is the right or healthy state of every man, when he is free to do that which is constitutional to him to do.
Few people have any next, they live from hand to mouth without a plan, and are always at the end of their line.
Men cease to interest us when we find their limitations
Tis the good reader that makes the good book; a good head cannot read amiss: in every book he finds passages which seem confidences or asides hidden from all else and unmistakeably meant for his ear.
The world belongs to the energetic.
Hast thou named all the birds without a gun?
Life by the yard is hard; by the inch it's a cinch. Decisions Determine Destiny.
Whipping and abuse are like laudanum: you have to double the dose as the sensibilities decline.
Well done is better than well said.
The first mistake in public business is the going into it.
Solve all your problems through meditation. Exchange unprofitable religious speculations for actual God-contact. Clear your mind of dogmatic theological debris; let in the fresh, healing waters of direct perception. Attune yourself to the active inner Guidance; the Divine Voice has the answer to every dilemma of life. Through man's ingenuity for getting himself into trouble appears to be endless, the Infinite Succor is no less resourceful.
Without frustration you will not discover that you might be able to do something on your own. We grow through conflict.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.