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Violence arises not out of superfluity of power but out of powerlessness.

Rollo May

There can be no stronger proof of the impoverishment of our contemporary culture than the popular – though profoundly mistaken – definition of myth as falsehood.
ROLLO MAY

Contemporary Culture Impoverishment Popular Profoundly Proof Strong Through
Hate is not the opposite of love; apathy is.
ROLLO MAY

Apathy Hate Love Opposite
When people feel their insignificance as individual persons, they also suffer an undermining of their sense of human responsibility.
ROLLO MAY

Human Individual Responsibility Significance Suffer
Courage is not the absence of despair; it is, rather, the capacity to move ahead in spite of despair.
ROLLO MAY

Absence Ahead Capacity Courage Despair Move Rather Spite
Deeds of violence in our society are performed largely by those trying to establish their self-esteem, to defend their self-image, and to demonstrate that they, too, are significant.
ROLLO MAY

Deed Establish Esteem Largely Perform Self Society Those Try Violence
Every human being must have a point at which he stands against the culture, where he says, this is me and the damned world can go to hell.
ROLLO MAY

Against Being Culture Every Human Me Must Point Say Stand
Freedom is man’s capacity to take a hand in his own development. It is our capacity to mold ourselves.
ROLLO MAY

Capacity Development Freedom Man Old Ourselves Own Takem Hand
Violence arises not out of superfluity of power but out of powerlessness.
ROLLO MAY

Arise Out Power Powerlessness Superfully Violence
Courage is not a virtue of value among other personal values like love or fidelity. It is the foundation that underlies and gives reality to all other virtues and personal values. Without courage our love pales into mere dependency. Without courage our fidelity becomes conformism.
ROLLO MAY

Among Courage Fidelity Love Personal Value Virtue
Life comes from physical survival; but the good life comes from what we care about.
ROLLO MAY

Care Come Good Life Physical Survival
There is nobody who totally lacks the courage to change.
ROLLO MAY

Change Courage Lack Nobis Totally
Recall how often in human history the saint and the rebel have be the same person. (p. 35)
ROLLO MAY

History Jhuman Often Person Rebel Recall Saint Same
When you are completely absorbed or caught up in something, you become oblivious to things around you, or to the passage of time. It is this absorption in what you are doing that frees your unconscious and releases your creative imagination.
ROLLO MAY

Absorb Around Become Caught Completely Obvious Something Thing You
To believe fully and at the same moment to have doubts is not at all a contradiction: it presupposes a greater respect for truth, an awareness that truth always goes beyond anything that can be said or done at any given moment.
ROLLO MAY

Believe ContrAction Doubt Fully Greater Moment Presuppose Respect Same
To love means to open ourselves to the negative as well as the positive – to grief, sorrow, and disappointment as well as to joy, fulfillment, and an intensity of consciousness we did not know was possible before
ROLLO MAY

Love Mena Negative Ourselves Positive Well
Creativity is neither the product of neurosis nor simple talent, but an intense courageous encounter with the Gods.
ROLLO MAY

Courageous Creativity Encounter God Intense Neither Neurosis Product Simple Talent
The ultimate error is the refusal to look evil in the face.
ROLLO MAY

Error Evil Face Look Refusal Ultimate
The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice, it is conformity.
ROLLO MAY

Conformity Courage Cowardice Opposite Society
Creativity is not merely the innocent spontaneity of our youth and childhood; it must also be married to the passion of the adult human being, which is a passion to live beyond one’s death.
ROLLO MAY

Adult Being Childhood Creatively Human Innocent Marry Merely Passion Youth
The hallmark of courage in our age of conformity is the capacity to stand on one’s own convictions – not obstinately or defiantly
ROLLO MAY

Age Capacity Conformity Conviction Courage Hallmark Obstinately One Our Own Stand
All people are struggling to be creative in some way, and the artist is the one who has succeeded in this task of life.
ROLLO MAY

All Artist Ecraetive Life One People Some Struggle Succeeded Task Way
Heroes are necessary in order to enable the citizens to find their own ideals, courage and wisdom in the society. The hero carries our hopes, our aspirations, our ideals, our beliefs. In the deepest sense the hero is created by us; he or she is born collectively as our own myth.
ROLLO MAY

Citizen Courage Enable Find Hero Ideal Necessary Order Own Society Wisdom
This personal freedom to think and feel and speak authentically and to be conscious of so doing is the quality that distinguishes us as human.
ROLLO MAY

Authentically Conscious Distinguish Doing Feel Freedom Think Human Personal Quality Speak
We define religion as the assumption that life has meaning. Religion, or lack of it, is shown not in some intellectual or verbal formulations but in one’s total orientation to life.
ROLLO MAY

Assumption Define Meaning Region
The purpose of psychotherapy is to set people free.
ROLLO MAY

Free People Purpose Pyschothraphy Set
People only change when it becomes too dangerous to stay the way they are.
ROLLO MAY

Become Change Dangerous People Seat Too Way
Forge in the smithy of your soul.
ROLLO MAY

Fire Smithy Soul

Violence arises not out of superfluity of power but out of powerlessness.

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Violence arises not out of superfluity of power but out of powerlessness.

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