Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.
THOMAS MERTON
THOMAS MERTON
Thomas Merton on art
Thomas Merton76 quotes“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.”
More from Thomas Merton
When I pray for peace, I pray not only that the enemies of my own country may cease to want war, but above all that my country will cease to do the things that make war inevitable.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton The artist should preach nothing-not even his own autonomy. His art should speak its own truth, and in so doing it will be in harmony with every other kind of truth- moral, metaphysical, mystical.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Be good, keep your feet dry, your eyes open, your heart at peace and your soul in the joy of Christ.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Perhaps I am stronger than I think.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Others can give you a name or a number, but they can never tell you who you really are. That is something you yourself can only discover from within.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton When your tongue is silent, you can rest in the silence of the forest. When your imagination is silent, the forest speaks to you. It tells you of its unreality and of the Reality of God. But when your mind is silent, then the forest suddenly becomes magnificently real and blazes transparently with the Reality of God.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we cannot cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves?
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Every one of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false Self. We are not very good at recognizing illusions, least of all the ones we cherish about ourselves.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton May God prevent us from becoming “right-thinking men”-that is to say men who agree perfectly with their own police.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton When you see God in everyone, then they see God in you.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton If you yourself are at peace, then there is at least some peace in the world.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton The greatest need of our time is to clean out the enormous mass of mental and emotional rubbish that clutters our minds.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Love is not a matter of getting what you want. Quite the contrary. The insistence on always having what you want, on always being satisfied, on always being fulfilled, makes love impossible.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton Ours is a time of anxiety because we have willed it to be so. Our anxiety is not imposed on us by force from outside. We impose it on our world and upon one another from within ourselves.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton A life is either all spiritual or not spiritual at all. No man can serve two masters. Your life is shaped by the end you live for. You are made in the image of what you desire.
Thomas MertonThomas Merton
Original quotes
From our community writers
Since you are gone, I collect the stars each night building my own night sky, so I have something to hold onto forever.
Laura ChouetteLaura Chouette Can anybody hear me? Are my words going to waste I need to believe there was a purpose to all the pain?
Allie MillerAllie Miller The universe hears what you say, but it knows what you mean.
Brianna PastorBrianna Pastor Enough of this. The next one I love will return my passion.
Iestyn TudorIestyn Tudor It’s unconditional; their chemistry is unconditional – forever.
Ophelia ScarlettOphelia Scarlett I love you so much that it hurts and that’s the problem I love you so much that it hurts.
Olivia CliffordOlivia Clifford Let’s always bloom, savor and delight others with our beauty.
Mariya FedulovaMariya Fedulova Shadows follow me the way a vulture stalks death. One small step ahead.
Danielle MontgomeryDanielle Montgomery
Meet the writers
More on art
The art to breathe and smile despite the pressure of anxiety, takes courage and power, keep appreciating yourself.
Dr. Zainab AnsariDr. Zainab Ansari It is an act of courage every time you create. Stay brave.
Holly DuxburyHolly Duxbury I wept that everything he made was pretty I forgot that I, too, was an art-the girl with a soft heart.
Charlie GilbertCharlie Gilbert Your smile is an art no one should ever get hold of.
Leon MarshLeon Marsh Her face was art and her body was poetry in a short black dress.
Hamilton K. AmadiHamilton K. Amadi If creativity calls, you answer. Otherwise, the words are lost to you forever.
Amanda KarchAmanda Karch Muses are born from a soul that is aching but I would sacrifice the most beautiful art if I could stop one heart from breaking.
Bailey RaeBailey Rae Loneliness is an art shaped by self-love.
Ophelia ScarlettOphelia Scarlett