#theories

History is a hermaphrodite with many distinguished lovers. We are neither mysteries nor strangers but the living breath of revelation made flesh by the unrestrained desires of a free and universal love. Universal me. Universal you.” --from Past Present and Future are One ↗

— Aberjhani

#history #philosophy #poetry #spirituality #theories

During the many centuries that magic, here on this planet, was presumed to have worked, there were at least as many theories as to how magic worked as there were cultures and religions. ↗

— Lynn Abbey

#cultures #during #here #how #least

So here is one of my theories on happiness: we cannot know if we have lived a truly happy life until the very end. This view of life and death was reinforced by my close witnessing of the buildup to the death of Philip Gould. Philip was without doubt my closest friend in politics. When he died, I felt like I had lost a limb. ↗

— Alastair Campbell

#close #closest #closest friend #death #died

You make observations, write theories to fit them, try experiments to disprove the theories and, if you can't, you've got something. ↗

— Kary Mullis

#experiments #fit #got #make #observations

Theories crumble, but good observations never fade. ↗

— Harlow Shapley

#fade #good #never #observations #theories

On a group of theories one can found a school; but on a group of values one can found a culture, a civilization, a new way of living together among men. ↗

— Ignazio Silone

#civilization #culture #found #group #living

The whole war between the atheist and the theist comes down to this: the atheist believes a 'what' created the universe; the theist believes a 'who' created the universe. ↗

— Criss Jami

#atheism #atheist #beginning #belief #cause

What if one were to want to hunt for these hidden presences? You can’t just rummage around like you’re at a yard sale. You have to listen. You have to pay attention. There are certain things you can’t look at directly. You need to trick them into revealing themselves. That’s what we’re doing with Walter, Jaz. We’re juxtaposing things, listening for echoes. It’s not some silly cybernetic dream of command and control, modeling the whole world so you can predict the outcome. It’s certainly not a theory of everything. I don’t have a theory of any kind. What I have is far more profound.’ ‘What’s that?’ ‘A sense of humor.’ Jaz looked at him, trying to find a clue in his gaunt face, in the clear gray eyes watching him with such - what? Amusement? Condescension? There was something about the man which brought on a sort of hermeneutic despair. He was a forest of signs. ‘We’re hunting for jokes.’ Bachman spoke slowly, as if to a child. ‘Parapraxes. Cosmic slips of the tongue. They’re the key to the locked door. They’ll help us discover it.’ ‘Discover what?’ ‘The face of God. What else would we be looking for? ↗

— Hari Kunzru

#mathematical-models #philosophy #theories #dreams

Theories are always very thin and insubstantial, experience only is tangible. ↗

— Hosea Ballou

#experience #insubstantial #only #tangible #theories

Theories pass. The frog remains. ↗

— Jean Rostand

#pass #remains #theories