31+ 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra' Quotes To Assist Your Friedrich Nietzsche Studies
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'Thus Spoke Zarathustra' was written by a German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche in the 19th century and is considered his masterpiece.
Friedrich Nietzsche, the author of 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra,' articulates the world's good versus evil in his book. The book discusses the famous phrase 'God is dead' and propagates nihilism, which rejects religious beliefs and moral principles and believes that life is meaningless.
Nietzsche uses Zarathustra as a proxy to mock the notion of good and evil and against Christianity and its morality. Zarathustra was the most truthful of thinkers in his teaching, and truthfulness was upheld as the highest virtue.
The novel was a product of its time as it needed to call for the inauthenticity and hypocrisy of religious culture. Read along to find some famous Nietzsche quotes, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
Philosophical Quotes
'Thus Spoke Zarathustra' talks about certain philosophical concepts being the central theme of the book. Below are some philosophical quotes from Friedrich Nietzsche's 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.'
1. ‘The higher we soar the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
2. ‘There is more wisdom in your body than in your deepest philosophy.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
3. ‘Silence is worse; all truths that are kept silent become poisonous.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
4. ‘But it is the same with man as with the tree. The more he seeks to rise into the height and light, the more vigorously his roots struggle earthward, downward, into the dark, the deep - into evil.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
5. ‘I tell you: one must still have chaos in one, to give birth to a dancing star. I tell you: you still have chaos in you.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
6. ‘Close beside my knowledge lies my black ignorance.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
7. ‘And once you are awake, you shall remain awake eternally.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
8. ‘One must be a sea, to receive a polluted stream without becoming impure.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
9. ‘He who obeys does not listen to himself!’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
10. ‘I would only believe in a god who could dance.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
11. ‘Of all that is written I love only what a man has written in his own blood.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
12. ‘Blessed are the sleepy ones: for they shall soon nod off.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
13. ‘But thus do I counsel you, my friends: distrust all in whom the impulse to punish is powerful!’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
Morality Quotes
Zarathustra talks about übermensch or superhuman and says that human values are created by humans rather than gods or nature. Read along to find some quotes on morality.
14. ‘You must be ready to burn yourself in your own flame; how could you rise anew if you have not first become ashes?’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
15. ‘The lonely one offers his hand too quickly to whomever he encounters.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
16. ‘One repays a teacher badly if one always remains nothing but a pupil.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
17. ‘He who climbs upon the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies, real or imaginary.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
18. ‘And if a friend does you wrong, then say: 'I forgive you what you have done to me; that you have done it to YOURSELF, however--how could I forgive that!'‘
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
19. ‘There they laugh: they do not understand me; I am not the mouth for these ears.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
20. ‘No shepherd and one herd! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
21. ‘But the worst enemy you can meet will always be yourself; you lie in wait for yourself in caverns and forests.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
22. ‘Of all that is written, I love only what a person hath written with his blood. Write with blood, and thou wilt find that blood is spirit. It is no easy task to understand unfamiliar blood; I hate the reading idlers.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
23. ‘Lonely one, you are going the way to yourself! And your way goes past yourself, and past your seven devils! You will be a heretic to yourself and witch and soothsayer and fool and doubter and unholy one and villain.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
Quotes About Power
'Thus Spoke Zarathustra' talks about will to power being the elementary concept of human identity within this world. Read along to find some quotes about power.
24. ‘I am a forest, and a night of dark trees: but he who is not afraid of my darkness, will find banks full of roses under my cypresses.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
25. ‘Become who you are!’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
26. ‘Man is something that shall be overcome. Man is a rope, tied between beast and overman — a rope over an abyss. What is great in man is that he is a bridge and not an end.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
27. ‘You look up when you wish to be exalted. And I look down because I am exalted.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
28. ‘I change too quickly: my today refutes my yesterday. When I ascend, I often jump over steps, and no step forgives me that.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
29. ‘You say 'I' and you are proud of this word. But greater than this- although you will not believe in it - is your body and its great intelligence, which does not say 'I' but performs 'I.’’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
30. ‘The real man wants two different things: danger and play. Therefore, he wants woman, as the most dangerous plaything.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
31. ‘I fear you close by; I love you far away.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
32. ‘I hate you most because you attract but are not strong enough to pull me to you.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
33. ‘Untroubled, scornful, outrageous - that is how wisdom wants us to be: she is a woman and never loves anyone but a warrior.’
- Friedrich Nietzsche, 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.’
second image credit: Radiokafka / Shutterstock.com
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Bachelor of Arts Hons specializing in Modern Languages (French and Spanish)
Monisha KochharBachelor of Arts Hons specializing in Modern Languages (French and Spanish)
A Modern Languages graduate from the University College London, Monisha with a passion for travel and exploring different cultures. She is fluent in French and Spanish and is currently learning Hindi. Monisha enjoys discovering new foods and is an avid sports fan, following soccer and Formula 1. In her spare time, she enjoys playing tennis and watching TV shows.
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