Memorable Lines From "The Essays" by Francis Bacon

       

OF TRUTH

“Certainly, it is heaven upon earth, to

have a man's mind move in charity, rest in providence, and turn upon the poles

of truth.”

“To pass from theological, and philosophical truth, to the truth of civil

business; it will be acknowledged, even by those that practise it not, that

clear, and round dealing, is the honor of man's nature; and that mixture of

falsehoods, is like alloy in coin of gold and silver, which may make the metal

work the better, but it embaseth it.”

                      

OF DEATH

“Men fear death, as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in

children, is increased with tales, so is the other.”

                                                                         

           

OF UNITY IN RELIGION

“Religion being the chief band of human society, is a happy thing, when itself is

well contained within the true band of unity.”

OF REVENGE

“Revenge is a kind of wild justice; which the more man's nature runs to, the more

ought law to weed it out.”

OF ADVERSITY

 “The virtue of prosperity, is temperance; the virtue of adversity, is fortitude;

which in morals is the more heroical virtue.”

“Certainly virtue is like precious odors, most fragrant

when they are incensed, or crushed: for prosperity doth best discover vice, but

adversity doth best discover virtue.”

OF SIMULATION AND DISSIMULATION

 “There be three degrees of this hiding and veiling of a man's self. The first,

closeness, reservation, and secrecy; when a man leaveth himself without

observation, or without hold to be taken, what he is. The second, dissimulation,

in the negative; when a man lets fall signs and arguments, that he is not, that

he is. And the third, simulation, in the affirmative; when a man industriously

and expressly feigns and pretends to be, that he is not.”

OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN

 “The perpetuity by generation is common to

beasts; but memory, merit, and noble works, are proper to men.”

OF MARRIAGE AND SINGLE LIFE

“He that hath wife and children hath given hostages to fortune”

Of Envy

 “A man that is busy, and inquisitive, is commonly envious.”

 OF LOVE

 “Nuptial love maketh mankind;

friendly love perfecteth it; but wanton love corrupteth, and embaseth it.”

OF GREAT PLACE

“Men in great place are thrice servants: servants of the sovereign or state;

servants of fame; and servants of business.”

        

 OF BOLDNESS

 “There is in human nature generally, more of the fool

than of the wise; and therefore those faculties, by which the foolish part of

men's minds is taken, are most potent.”

OF GOODNESS & GOODNESS OF NATURE

 “If he be compassionate towards the afflictions of others, it

shows that his heart is like the noble tree, that is wounded itself, when it

gives the balm.”

OF NOBILITY

 “Nobility of birth commonly abateth industry; and he

that is not industrious, envieth him that is.”

OF SEDITIONS AND TROUBLES

“ there is in every

state (as we know) two portions of subjects; the noblesse and the commonalty.”

OF ATHEISM

“So man, when he resteth and

assureth himself, upon divine protection and favor, gathered a force and faith,

which human nature in itself could not obtain.”

OF SUPERSTITION

 “There is a superstition in avoiding superstition”

OF TRAVEL

“Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education, in the elder, a part of

experience.”

 “for so in travelling in one country, he shall suck

the experience of many.”

OF EMPIRE

 “The difficulties in princes' business are many and great; but the

greatest difficulty, is often in their own mind.”

OF COUNSEL

“The greatest trust, between man and man, is the trust of giving counsel.”

OF DELAYS

 “There is surely no greater wisdom, than well to time the beginnings,

and onsets, of things.”

OF CUNNING

” And certainly there is a great

difference, between a cunning man, and a wise man; not only in point of honesty,

but in point of ability.”

OF WISDOM FOR A MAN'S SELF

 “It is

the wisdom of rats, that will be sure to leave a house, somewhat before it fall.”

OF INNOVATIONS

“As the births of living creatures, at first are ill-shapen so are all

innovations, which are the births of time.”

OF DISPATCH

“Affected dispatch is one of the most dangerous things to business that can be.”

OF SEEMING WISE

“It hath been an opinion, that the French are wiser than they seem, and the

Spaniards seem wiser than they are.”

OF FRIENDSHIP

“Whatsoever is delighted in solitude,

is either a wild beast or a god.”

OF REGIMENT OF HEALTH

“There is a wisdom in this; beyond the rules of physic: a man's own observation,

what he finds good of, and what he finds hurt of, is the best physic to preserve

health.”

OF SUSPICION

“Suspicions amongst thoughts, are like bats amongst birds, they ever fly by

twilight.”

OF DISCOURSE

“The honorablest part of talk, is to give the occasion;

and again to moderate, and pass to somewhat else; for then a man leads the

dance.”

“Certainly, he that hath a satirical vein, as he maketh others afraid

of his wit, so he had need be afraid of others' memory.”

OF GARDENS

“God Almighty planted a garden. And indeed it is the purest of human pleasures.”

OF NEGOTIATING

“In all negotiations of difficulty, a man may not

look to sow and reap at once; but must prepare business, and so ripen it by

degrees.”

OF FOLLOWERS AND FRIENDS

“Costly followers are not to be liked; lest while a man maketh his train longer,

he make his wings shorter.”

OF STUDIES

“Studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability.”

“ To spend too much time in studies is sloth; to use them too much for

ornament, is affectation; to make judgment wholly by their rules, is the humor

of a scholar.”

” Crafty men contemn studies, simple men admire them, and wise

men use them”

“Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready

man; and writing an exact man.”

OF CEREMONIES AND RESPECT

 “He that is too much in

anything, so that he giveth another occasion of satiety, maketh himself cheap.”

OF PRAISE

“Praise is the reflection of virtue; but it is as the glass or body, which giveth

the reflection.”

OF VAIN-GLORY

 “Glorious men are the scorn of wise

men, the admiration of fools, the idols of parasites, and the slaves of their

own vaunts.”

OF HONOR AND REPUTATION

“The winning of honor, is but the revealing of a man's virtue and worth, without

disadvantage.”

OF JUDICATURE

“Judges ought to remember, that their office is jus dicere, and not jus dare; to

interpret law, and not to make law, or give law.”

OF ANGER

 “Anger must be limited and confined, both in race and in time.” 

Edited by Ardhendu De