1,099 Quotes by Hermann Hesse

He had too much to think about. In the course of his long, useless marches he had sunk deeper and deeper into the tangle of his botched life as into a clump of brambles, and still he had found no meaning or consolation.

Both the thoughts and the senses were pretty things, the ultimate meaning was hidden behind both of them... from both the secret voices of the innermost truth had to be attentively perceived.

Because when a man tries to realize himself through the gifts with which nature has endowed him, he does the best and only meaningful thing he can do. That’s why, in former days, I often said to you: don’t try to imitate the thinker or the ascetic man, but be yourself, try to be yourself.

Прошлое прошло: было ли оно удачным или лучше бы его и вовсе не было, признаем ли мы за ним какой-то "смысл" или не признаем, - все это в равной мере лишено значения.

А все, что еще предстоит пережить, увидеть глазами, трогать руками, пока наконец не наступит смерть, разве ЭТО будет из другого материала, разве ЭТО будет что-то другое? Нет, вся эта прекрасная и жестокая, восхитительная и безнадежная игра жизни, с ее жгучими наслаждениями и ее жгучей болью, - только игра и обман, только видимость, только майя.

Whither will my path yet lead me? This path is stupid, it goes in spirals, perhaps in circles, but whichever way it goes, I will follow it.

Não há porque te compares com os demais, e se a natureza te criou para morcego, não deves aspirar ser avestruz. às vezes te consideras por demais esquisito e te reprovas por seguires caminhos diversos dos da maioria. Deixa-te disso. Contempla o fogo, as nuvens e quando surgirem presságios e as vozes soarem em tua alma abandona-te a elas sem perguntares se isso convém.

Desde criança, sempre me agradava contemplar as formas estranhas da natureza, não como observador que investiga, mas abandonando-me apenas ao seu encanto peculiar, à sua profunda e complexa linguagem.

It is easier to bear the worries of wandering than to find peace in your hometown, where only the sage can live in a happy house surrounded by trite troubles and daily distractions.