#elf

There are three basic problems: how a mind can know the world of nature, how it is possible for one mind to know another, and how it is possible to know the contents of our own minds without resort to observation or evidence. It is a mistake, I shall urge, to suppose that these questions can be collapsed into two, or taken into isolation. ↗

— Donald Davidson

#phenomenology #the-other #the-self #the-world #nature

Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages... In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty. The power which resides in him is new in nature, and none but he knows what that is which he can do, nor does he know until he has tried ↗

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

#nature

Legendary innovators like Franklin, Snow, and Darwin all possess some common intellectual qualities—a certain quickness of mind, unbounded curiosity—but they also share one other defining attribute. They have a lot of hobbies. ↗

— Steven Johnson

#hobbies #innovation #self-improvement #nature

Pride,’ observed Mary, who piqued herself upon the solidity of her reflections, ‘is a very common failing, I believe. By all that I have ever read, I am convinced that it is very common indeed; that human nature is particularly prone to it, and that there are very few of us who do not cherish a feeling of self-complacency on the score of some quality or other, real or imaginary. ↗

— Jane Austen

#pride #reflections #self-complacency #truth #nature

I was more addicted to self destruction then to the drugs themselves ... something very romantic about it ↗

— Gerard Way

#self-destructive-behavior #romantic

He who cannot obey himself will be commanded. That is the nature of living creatures. ↗

— Friedrich Nietzsche

#self-control #nature

The is a secret for greater self-control, the science points to one thing: the power of paying attention. ↗

— Kelly McGonigal

#mindfulness #science #self-control #willpower #science

Just as certain seeds require a forest fire to crack open their shells, crisis burns away our limited self-concepts, allowing our deeper nature to come forth. We must remember that our suffering carries the seed of our salvation; our problems are actually our answered prayers, and our darkness really is the light in potential. ↗

— Derek Rydall

#emergence #law-of-emergence #selfhelp #spirituality #nature

You have a mighty purpose, a function to fulfill — a reason for being. And it’s more than just “make a living.” You are here to make a unique and valuable contribution, to assist (if even in a small way) the evolution of humanity. Look at nature. Everything serves a purpose. Everything is connected to a larger system that allows the whole to operate in harmony. ↗

— Derek Rydall

#emergence #law-of-emergence #selfhelp #spirituality #nature

Just as the acorn contains the mighty oak tree, the Self has everything it needs to fulfill its destiny. When the inner conditions are right, it naturally emerges. ↗

— Derek Rydall

#emergence #law-of-emergence #selfhelp #spirituality #nature