Discover new books on Goodreads
Meet your next favorite book
“The agony of breaking through personal limitations is the agony of spiritual growth. Art, literature, myth and cult, philosophy, and ascetic disciplines are instruments to help the individual past his limiting horizons into spheres of ever-expanding realization. As he crosses threshold after threshold, conquering dragon after dragon, the stature of the divinity that he summons to his highest wish increases, until it subsumes the cosmos. Finally, the mind breaks the bounding sphere of the cosmos to a realization transcending all experiences of form - all symbolizations, all divinities: a realization of the ineluctable void.”
― The Hero with a Thousand Faces
― The Hero with a Thousand Faces
“While we are looking for the antidote or the medicine to cure us, that is, the 'new', which can only be found by plunging deep into the Unknown, we have to go on exploring sex, books, and travel, although we know that they lead us to the abyss, which, as it happens, is the only place where the antidote can be found.”
―
―
“What strikes me is the fact that in our society, art has become something which is related only to objects and not to individuals, or to life. That art is something which is specialized or which is done by experts who are artists. But couldn't everyone's life become a work of art? Why should the lamp or the house be an art object, but not our life?”
―
―
“Cehalet bir "durum" değil "tutum"dur.”
―
―
“There are two kinds of sufferers in this world: those who suffer from a lack of life and those who suffer from an overabundance of life. I’ve always found myself in the second category. When you come to think of it, almost all human behavior and activity is not essentially any different from animal behavior. The most advanced technologies and craftsmanship bring us, at best, up to the super-chimpanzee level. Actually, the gap between, say, Plato or Nietzsche and the average human is greater than the gap between that chimpanzee and the average human. The realm of the real spirit, the true artist, the saint, the philosopher, is rarely achieved.
Why so few? Why is world history and evolution not stories of progress but rather this endless and futile addition of zeroes. No greater values have developed. Hell, the Greeks 3,000 years ago were just as advanced as we are. So what are these barriers that keep people from reaching anywhere near their real potential? The answer to that can be found in another question, and that’s this: Which is the most universal human characteristic – fear or laziness?”
―
Why so few? Why is world history and evolution not stories of progress but rather this endless and futile addition of zeroes. No greater values have developed. Hell, the Greeks 3,000 years ago were just as advanced as we are. So what are these barriers that keep people from reaching anywhere near their real potential? The answer to that can be found in another question, and that’s this: Which is the most universal human characteristic – fear or laziness?”
―
Goodreads Librarians Group
— 342155 members
— last activity 0 minutes ago
Goodreads Librarians are volunteers who help ensure the accuracy of information about books and authors in the Goodreads' catalog. The Goodreads Libra ...more
Berlin 1963: A Roleplay
— 13 members
— last activity Apr 25, 2017 02:18PM
The Berlin Wall? Yes, not good. Erected in 1961 and collapsed in 1989-1990, it lives in infamy. 139 people died officially died at the wall, most tryi ...more
Deutsch-Gruppe
— 278 members
— last activity Mar 10, 2026 12:01AM
Für alle die Deutsch können, es lernen wollen, an Deutschland interressiert sind oder einfach Spaß an dieser Gruppe haben :) For all, who can speak g ...more
Umut’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Umut’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
966 books
|
29 friends
3,635 books
|
538 friends
392 books
|
217 friends
1,378 books
|
130 friends
1,957 books
|
1,254 friends
4,811 books
|
635 friends
2,693 books
|
264 friends
1,962 books
|
995 friends
More friends…
Polls voted on by Umut
Lists liked by Umut