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The gazing populace receive greedily, without examination, whatever soothes superstition and promotes wonder.

David Hume

But the greatest part of mankind float between vice and virtue.
DAVID HUME

Float Great Man Virtue
A wise man apportions his beliefs to the evidence.
DAVID HUME

Believe Evidence Man One Liner Wise
A miracle is a violation of the laws of nature.
DAVID HUME

Law Miracle Nature One Liner
No man ever threw away life while it was worth keeping.
DAVID HUME

Life Man Worth
In public affairs men are often better pleased that the truth, though known to everybody, should be wrapped up under a decent cover than if it were exposed in open daylight to the eyes of all the world.
DAVID HUME

Affair Day Decent Expose Eyes Man Public Truth World
Reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions, and can never pretend to any other office than to serve and obey them.
DAVID HUME

Obey Passion Reason Serve Slave
The identity that we ascribe to things is only a fictitious one, established by the mind, not a peculiar nature belonging to what we’re talking about.
DAVID HUME

Fiction Identity Mind Nature Talk Thing
The truth springs from arguments amongst friends.
DAVID HUME

Argument Friendship One Liner Season Truth
Reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions.
DAVID HUME

Passion Reason Slave
I may venture to affirm of the rest of mankind, that they are nothing but a bundle or collection of different perceptions, which succeed each other with an inconceivable rapidity, and are in a perpetual flux and movement.
DAVID HUME

Different Man Perspective Success
Beauty in things exists in the mind which contemplates them
DAVID HUME

Beauty Contemplate Exist Mind Thing
He is happy whose circumstances suit his temper, but he is more excellent who can suit his temper to his circumstance.
DAVID HUME

Excellent Happiness Himself Philosophy Situation Temper
We make allowance for a certain degree of selfishness in men; because we know it to be inseparable from human nature, and inherent in our frame and constitution. By this reflexion we correct those sentiments of blame, which so naturally arise upon any opposition.
DAVID HUME

Allow Blame Human Man Philosophy Selfish Separate
When suicide is out of fashion we conclude that none but madmen destroy themselves.
DAVID HUME

Death Destroy Mental
A purpose, an intention, a design, strikes everywhere even the careless, the most stupid thinker.
DAVID HUME

Care Design Purpose Stupidity Think
When men are most sure and arrogant they are commonly most mistaken, giving views to passion without that proper deliberation which alone can secure them from the grossest absurdities.
DAVID HUME

Alone Arrogant Man Mistake Passion Secure
There is nothing to be learnt from a Professor, which is not to be met with in Books.
DAVID HUME

Book Deep Learning Philosophy
All sentiment is right; because sentiment has a reference to nothing beyond itself, and is always real, wherever a man is conscious of it.
DAVID HUME

Always Conscious Man Real Reference Right
Generally speaking, the errors in religion are dangerous; those in philosophy only ridiculous.
DAVID HUME

Danger Deep Error Philosophy Religious Speak
Tis not unreasonable for me to prefer the destruction of the whole world to the scratching of my finger.
DAVID HUME

Destruction Fingers Reason World
The fact that different cultures have different practices no more refutes [moral] objectivism than the fact that water flows in different directions in different places refutes the law of gravity.
DAVID HUME

Culture Different Direction Fact Law Place Water
It is, therefore, a just political maxim, that every man must be supposed a knave.
DAVID HUME

Man Philosophy Politics
To philosophers and historians, the madness and imbecile wickedness of mankind ought to appear ordinary events.
DAVID HUME

Appear History Mad Ordinary Philosophy
Any pride or haughtiness, is displeasing to us, merely because it shocks our own pride, and leads us by sympathy into comparison, which causes the disagreeable passion of humility.
DAVID HUME

Compare Haunt Passion Philosophy Pride Sympathy
Epicurus’s old questions are still unanswered: Is he (God) willing to prevent evil, but not able? then he is impotent. Is he able, but not willing? then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? then whence evil?
DAVID HUME

Answer Deep Evil Old Question
Reading and sauntering and lounging and dosing, which I call thinking, is my supreme Happiness.
DAVID HUME

Happiness Read Think
What a peculiar privilege has this little agitation of the brain which we call ‘thought’
DAVID HUME

Brain Philosophy Privilege Thought

The gazing populace receive greedily, without examination, whatever soothes superstition and promotes wonder.

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The gazing populace receive greedily, without examination, whatever soothes superstition and promotes wonder.

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