Voltaire
Enlightenment philosopher
Sayings by Voltaire
If we believe in God, we must believe in the Devil, too.
Originality is nothing but judicious imitation.
The very essence of our reason is to choose between good and evil.
Paradise was made for the man who works.
Ignorance is the lot of man.
Doctors are men who prescribe medicines of which they know little, to cure diseases of which they know less, in human beings of whom they know nothing.
The greatest glory of a freeborn people is to transmit that freedom to their children.
Superstition is to religion what astrology is to astronomy, the mad daughter of a wise mother.
The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us.
He who is not a little mad, has no wisdom.
No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking.
The world is a comedy to those who think, a tragedy to those who feel.
We are all full of weakness and errors; let us mutually pardon each other our follies - it is the first law of nature.
The most important of all rights is the right to think for yourself.
The very idea of a God is a chimera, a chimera which makes us tremble.
If you want to know who controls you, look at who you are not allowed to criticize.
The best government is that which governs least.
All sects are different, because they come from men; morality is everywhere the same, because it comes from God.
It is difficult to free fools from the chains they revere.
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.