Wise Thoughts for Every Day: On God, Love, the Human Spirit, and Living a Good Life

by Leo Tolstoy

The essence of every religion is its answer to the same questions, “Why do I live, and what is my attitude and relationship with the world around me?”

“Why do you ask My name?” God asked Moses. “My name is the same as My existence. I am what I am, and those who want to know my exact name do not know Me.”

There are four stages in life: (1) the “animal-like” life, which is the newborn stage; (2) “I follow others,” the childhood stage; (3) “live for fame and glory,” the youth stage; (4) “live for your spirit and for God,” which is the true life.

When discussing inequality, there are two groups equally to blame: those who think themselves superior, and those who accept that they are inferior.

My morning prayer: I believe that God lives in me and in every person, and therefore I want to love and glorify Him in me and every person I see. I do not want to do anything against God’s will, I do not want to abuse, scold, or judge others, I want to do to others what I wish to be done to me, and I want to love all others. My evening prayer: I believe God is in me and in other people. I do not want to do anything against Him, but I have done some things that were not good. Why did I do them, and how can I avoid doing bad things in the future?

The major evil of the government is found not in the destruction of life but in the destruction of love.

Everything is good. There is no evil. It only seems to you, living in time, that evil exists. There is no evil outside of time.

Rejoice! Be joyful! The purpose of life is joy. You should feel joyful for the sky, the sun, the stars, the grass, the trees, the animals, and the people you meet. Be more like children — always be joyful.

There is only one true universal religion — the belief in the one God who is in me and also outside of me, in everyone and every living thing.

The less we get used to, the less hardship we will endure.

Can anything be more stupid than the statement that a man living on the other side of the river has a right to kill me simply because the ruler of his country is in a quarrel with the ruler of my country?

Any misfortune or suffering is not as bad as the fear of facing it.