On February 15, 1564, Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei. was born in Pisa, Duchy of Florence.
Galilei was a great physicist and astronomer, best known for his incomparable contribution to science. He is also considered to be the father of modern science, modern physics, and the scientific method.
Galilei was an exponent of Copernican heliocentrism, and his scientific principles pitted him against the Catholic Church and other contemporary astronomers.
Famous Galileo Quotes
Read some of Galileo Galilei's most famous quotes below.
"I wish, my dear Kepler, that we could have a good laugh together at the extraordinary stupidity of the mob."
"I would beg the wise and learned fathers [of the church] to consider with all diligence the difference which exists between matters of mere opinion and matters of demonstration."
"I, Galileo, son of the late Vicenzo Galilei, swear that I never said that the prime numbers are useless."
"Who would set a limit to the mind of man? Who would dare assert that we know all there is to be known?"
"It vexes me when they would constrain science by the authority of the Scriptures, and yet do not consider themselves bound to answer reason and experiment."
"The Bible shows the way to go to heaven, not the way the heavens go."
“It is only in order to shield your ignorance that you put the Lord at every turn to the refuge of a miracle.” - 'The Crime Of Galileo', Giorgio De Santillana, 1976.
“The deeper I go in considering the vanities of popular reasoning, the lighter and more foolish I find them. What greater stupidity can be imagined than that of calling jewels, silver, and gold “precious,” and earth and soil “base”?” - 'Dialogue Concerning The Two Chief World Systems' (Second Revised Edition; University of California Press), 1967.
“They seemed to forget that the increase of known truths stimulates the investigation, establishment, and growth of the arts; not their diminution or destruction.” - 'Delphi Collected Works of Galileo Galilei (Illustrated)', 2017.
“Philosophy is written in that great book which ever lies before our eyes — I mean the universe — but we cannot understand it if we do not first learn the language and grasp the symbols, in which it is written” - 'The Assayer', 1623.
"We cannot teach people anything; we can only help them discover it within themselves."
"To be humane, we must ever be ready to pronounce that wise, ingenious and modest statement 'I do not know'."
"Wine is sunlight, held together by water."
“To apply oneself to great inventions, starting from the smallest beginnings, is no task for ordinary minds; to divine that wonderful arts lie hid behind trivial and childish things is a conception for superhuman talents.” - 'Dialogue Concerning The Two Chief World Systems', 1632.
"In regard to the philosophers, if they be true philosophers, i.e., lovers of truth, they should not be irritated that the earth moves."
“About five years ago I was engaged in preparing a catalogue of the ancient books which belong to Christ’s Hospital.” - 'Delphi Collected Works of Galileo Galilei (Illustrated)'.
"There are those who reason well, but they are greatly outnumbered by those who reason badly."
“Infinities and indivisibles transcend our finite understanding, the former on account of their magnitude, the latter because of their smallness; Imagine what they are when combined.” - 'De Magnete', William Gilbert, 1600.
"The prohibition of science would be contrary to the Bible, which in hundreds of places teaches us how the greatness and the glory of God shine forth marvelously in all His works and is to be read above all in the open book of the heavens."
"If reasoning were like hauling rocks, then several reasoners might be better than one."
“Names and attributes must be accommodated to the essence of things, and not the essence to the names, since things come first and names afterward.” - 'Discoveries And Opinions Of Galileo', 1957.
"I entertain no doubts as to the truth of the transfinites, which I have recognized with God's help."
"For anyone who had ever experienced just once the perfect understanding of one single thing, and had truly tasted how knowledge is accomplished, would recognize that of the infinity of other truths he understands nothing."
"[Copernicus] did not ignore the Bible, but he knew very well that if his doctrine were proved, then it could not contradict the Scriptures when they were rightly understood."
“I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.” - 'Letter To The Grand Duchess Christina', 1636.
“Where the senses fail us, reason must step in.” - 'Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences' (p. 60), 2010.
“Nature...does not act by means of many things when it can do so by means of a few.” - 'Dialogue Concerning The Two Chief World Systems', 1632.
"Thunderbolt and lightning, very very frightening me!"
Galileo Quotes About Life
(Galileo Galilei had five siblings and is the son of musician and scholar, Vincenzo Galileo.)
This section features the best Galileo quotes about life, to inspire you.
"I give infinite thanks to God, who has been pleased to make me the first observer of marvelous things."
"I believe that the intention of Holy Writ was to persuade men of the truths necessary to salvation."
"All inconveniences will be removed as you propound them."
"The greatness and the glory of God shine forth marvelously in all His works, and is to be read above all in the open book of the heavens."
"In time you may discover everything that can be discovered, and still your progress will only be progress away from humanity."
"Measure what is measurable, and make measurable what is not so."
"I've loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night."
"The greatest wisdom is to get to know oneself."
"I think that tastes, odors, colors, and so on . . .
reside in consciousness. Hence if the living
creature were removed, all these qualities
would be wiped away and annihilated."
"They know that it is human nature to take up causes whereby a man may oppress his neighbor, no matter how unjustly."
"Nature is relentless and unchangeable, and it is indifferent as to whether its hidden reasons and actions are understandable to man or not."
"What ever the course of our lives, we should receive them as the highest gift from the hand of God, in which equally reposed the power to do nothing whatever for us."
"It is surely harmful to souls to make it a heresy to believe what is proved."
"They who depend upon manifest observations will philosophize better than those who persist in opinions repugnant to the senses."
“And, believe me, if I were again beginning my studies, I should follow the advice of Plato and start with mathematical sciences.” - 'The Essential Galileo', 2008.
“We must say that there are as many squares as there are numbers.” - 'Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences' (2010).
"Passion is the genesis of genius."
"You may force me to say what you wish; you may revile me for saying what I do. But it moves."
"God is known by nature in his works, and by doctrine in his revealed word."
"Enthusiastic people experience life from the inside out."
"With regard to matters requiring thought: the less people know and understand about them, the more positively they attempt to argue concerning them."
"To me, a great ineptitude exists on the part of those who would have it that God made the universe more in proportion to the small capacity of their reason than to His immense, His infinite, power."
"I have never met a man so ignorant that I couldn't learn something from him."
"Holy Scripture could never lie or err...its decrees are of absolute and inviolable truth."
Galileo Quotes About Space
Listed below are some of the most popular Galileo quotes about space.
“It is a beautiful and delightful sight to behold the body of the Moon.” - 'The Sidereal Messenger Of Galileo Galilei And A Part Of The Preface to Kepler's Dioptrics Containing The Original Account Of Galileo's Astronomical Discoveries', 2016.
“The surface of the Moon is not smooth, uniform, and precisely spherical as a great number of philosophers believe it to be, but is uneven, rough” - 'Men Of Physics: Galileo Galilei, His Life And His Works', Raymond John Seeger, 1966.
“The Milky Way is nothing else but a mass of innumerable stars planted together in clusters.” - 'The Sidereal Messenger Of Galileo Galilei And A Part Of The Preface to Kepler's Dioptrics Containing The Original Account Of Galileo's Astronomical Discoveries', 1610.
"In my studies of astronomy and philosophy I hold this opinion about the universe, that the Sun remains fixed in the center of the circle of heavenly bodies, without changing its place; and the Earth, turning upon itself, moves round the Sun."
“The number of fixed stars which observers have been able to see without artificial powers of sight up to this day can be counted. It is therefore decidedly a great feat to add to their number, and to set distinctly before the eyes other stars in myriads ...” - 'The Essential Galileo', 2008.
Galileo Quotes About Science
This section contains Galileo's best quotes about science that will give an insight into his mind.
“See now the power of truth; the same experiment which at first glance seemed to show one thing, when more carefully examined, assures us of the contrary.” - 'Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences' (Courier Corporation), 1914.
"Mathematics is the language with which God has written the universe."
"By denying scientific principles, one may maintain any paradox."
"The fear of infinity is a form of myopia that destroys the possibility of seeing the actual infinite, even though it in its highest form has created and sustains us."
"We see only the simple motion of descent, since that other circular one common to the Earth, the tower, and ourselves remains imperceptible."
“If you could see the earth illuminated when you were in a place as dark as night, it would look to you more splendid than the moon.” - 'Thus Spoke Galileo', Andrea Frova and Mariapiera Marenzana, 2006.
“Two truths cannot contradict one another.” - 'Galileo On The World Systems: A New Abridged Translation And Guide' (University of California Press), 1997.
“Facts which at first seem improbable will, even on scant explanation, drop the cloak which has hidden them and stand forth in naked and simple beauty.” - 'Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences' (Cosimo, Inc.), 2010.
"Science proceeds more by what it has learned to ignore than what it takes into account."
“All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.” - 'Angels In The Workplace: Stories And inspirations For Creating A New World Of Work', Melissa Giovagnoli, 1999.
"Spots are on the surface of the solar body where they are produced and also dissolved, some in shorter and others in longer periods. They are carried around the Sun; an important occurrence in itself."
"Mathematics is the key and door to the sciences."
“In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual.” - 'Biographies Of Distinguished Scientific Men', François Arago, 1859.
“Nothing occurs contrary to nature except the impossible, and that never occurs.” - 'Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences', 2010.
