“Man is the cruelest animal.”

Only sick music makes money today.

In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.

I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.

Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.

I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.

Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.

We have art in order not to die of the truth.

Without music, life would be a mistake.

One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.

There are no beautiful surfaces without a terrible depth.

Invisible threads are the strongest ties.

One must give value to their existence by behaving as if ones very existence were a work of art.

The thought of suicide is a great consolation: by means of it one gets through many a dark night.

Silence is worse; all truths that are kept silent become poisonous.

The most perfidious way of harming a cause consists of defending it deliberately with faulty arguments.

After coming into contact with a religious man I always feel I must wash my hands.

I love dogs. I grew up with dogs in my family from the time that I was a little boy; we always had German Shepherds and Labradors. I get on very well with dogs, they trust me.

Struggle is the father of all things. It is not by the principles of humanity that man lives or is able to preserve himself above the animal world, but solely by means of the most brutal struggle.

Pet a cat when you encounter one on the street.

Vultures are the most righteous of birds: they do not attack even the smallest living creature.

Anyone who believes what a cat tells him deserves all he gets.

I am writing these poems From inside a lion.

The method of learning by trial and error – of learning from our mistakes – seems to be fundamentally the same whether it is practiced by lower or by higher animals, by chimpanzees, or by men of science.

Religion is the masterpiece of the art of animal training, for it trains people as to how they shall think.