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101 " It is the pull of opposite poles that stretches souls. And only stretched souls make music. "
― Eric Hoffer
102 " Those who would sacrifice a generation to realize an ideal are the enemies of mankind. "
― Eric Hoffer , The Passionate State of Mind: And Other Aphorisms
103 " If a doctrine is not unintelligible, it has to be vague; and if neither unintelligible nor vague, it has to be unverifiable. "
― Eric Hoffer , The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements
104 " The act of self-denial seems to confer on us the right to be harsh and merciless toward others. "
105 " There is a tendency to judge a race, a nation or any distinct group by its least worthy members. Though manifestly unfair, this tendency has some justification. For the character and destiny of a group are often determined by its inferior elements. "
106 " Our quarrel with the world is an echo of the endless quarrel proceeding within us. "
107 " The passion for equality is partly a passion for anonymity: to be one thread of the many which make up a tunic; one thread not distinguishable from the others. No one can then point us out, measure us against others and expose our inferiority. "
108 " Passionate hatreds can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. These people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a new content not only by dedicating themselves to a holy cause but also by nursing a fanatical grievance. "
109 " كلما استحال على الإنسان أن يدعي التفوق لنفسه، كلما سهل عليه يدّعي التفوق لأمته، أو لدينه أو لعرقه، أو لقضيته المقدسة. "
110 " عندما يثور الناس في مجتمع ديكتاتوري، فإنهم لا يثورون على ظلم النظام، بل على ضعفه "
111 " An effective mass movement cultivates the idea of sin. It depicts the autonomous self not only as barren and helpless but also as vile. To confess and repent is to slough off one’s individual distinctness and separateness, and salvation is found by losing oneself in the holy oneness of the congregation. "
112 " How frighteningly few are the persons whose death would spoil our appetite and make the world seem empty. "
113 " Our passionate preoccupation with the sun, the stars and a God somewhere in outer space is a homing impulse. We are drawn back to where we came from. "
114 " We probably have a greater love for those we support than for those who support us. Our vanity carries more weight than our self-interest. "
115 " لا شيء يعزّز ثقتنا بالنفس ويساعدنا على العيش معها كالقدرة المستمرة على الإبداع: أن نرى الأشياء تنمو وتكبر بين أيدينا يوماً بعد يوم.وليس من المستبعد أن يكون اختفاء الحرف اليدوية في الأوقات المعاصرة سبباً في تزايد الإحباط وفي انجذاب الفرد إلى الحركات الجماهيرية. "
116 " إن الذين لا يجدون صعوبة فى خداع انفسهم لا يجدون صعوبة فى خداع الاخرين لهم، ومن ثم فمن السهل اقناعهم وقيادتهم "
117 " When hopes and dreams are loose in the streets, it is well for the timid to lock doors, shutter windows and lie low until the wrath has passed. For there is often a monstrous incongruity between the hopes, however noble and tender, and the action which follows them. It is as if ivied maidens and garlanded youths were to herald the four horsemen of the apocalypse. "
118 " The burning conviction that we have a holy duty toward others is often a way of attaching our drowning selves to a passing raft. What looks like giving a hand is often a holding on for dear life. Take away our holy duties and you leave our lives puny and meaningless. There is no doubt that in exchanging a self-centered for a selfless life we gain enormously in self-esteem. The vanity of the selfless, even those who practice utmost humility, is boundless. "
119 " والملل هو الذي فسر لنا ظواهر أخرى: كثرة العوانس والسيدات اللواتي تجاوزن منتصف العمر في بدايات الحركات الجماهيرية. حتى عندما نكون بصدد حركة لا ترحب بعمل المرأة خارج المنزل ، كانازية مثلا ، نجد نساء يؤدين دورا كبيرا في نشأة الحركة. هناك شبه من نوع ما ، بين إنضمام المرأة إلى زوج وإنضمامها إلى حركة جماهيرية ففي كلتا الحالتين هنالك هدف جديد وهوية جديدة -اسم جديد-. إن الملل الذي تشعر به العوانس والنساء اللواتي لم يعد بوسعهن العثور على السعادة والرضا في زواج ناتج أساسا عن ضيقهن بحياة عقيمة فاشلة. وعندما يعتنق هؤلاء النسوة قضية مقدسة يسخرنلها وجودهن كله وطاقتهم كلها ، فإنهن يجدن حياة جديدة مليئة بالمعنى والهدف!!! ص100 "
120 " Rudeness is a weak persons imitation of strength. "