Henry David Thoreau Quotes

Time to go inward, man, I hope I have the nerve, to take inventory of the causes that I serve.

A traveller I am, and a navigator, and everyday I discover a new region within my soul.

To travel is to take a journey into yourself.

I study myself more than any other subject. That is my metaphysics, that is my physics.

In the past, I've visited remote places - North Korea, Ethiopia, Easter Island - partly as a way to visit remote states of mind: remote parts of myself that I wouldn't ordinarily explore.

The philosophy of the wisest man that ever existed, is mainly derived from the act of introspection.

The greatest explorer on this earth never takes voyages as long as those of the man who descends to the depth of his heart.

Especially on unexpected journeys, you have time; you can figure certain deeper things out, like who you are and what you want. That's why I enjoy journeys.

Few people even scratch the surface, much less exhaust the contemplation of their own experience.

I start asking a lot of questions about my own life, and it's not necessarily fun, but it's a good exercise.

The message of 'The Distance To Here' is no secret. It is a message of love and an invitation to myself and to those who want to come along to ask the big questions and not feel uncool doing it.

The exploration of oneself is usually also an exploration of the world at large, of other writers, a process of comparison with oneself with others, discoveries of kinships, gradual illumination of one's own potentialities.

I used to be too subjective, and I was always tempted to find my inner self in the exterior and dissipate my imagination on other people and on life.

Make it thy business to know thyself, which is the most difficult lesson in the world

'He who seeks may easily get lost himself. It is a crime to go apart and be alone.' Thus speaks the herd.

To know yourself you need not go to any book, to any priest, to any psychologist. The whole treasure is within yourself.

A wise man travels to discover himself.

Self-knowledge leads to wonder, and wonder to curiosity and investigation, so that nothing interests people more than people, even if only one's own person.

Explore thyself. Herein are demanded the eye and the nerve.

Many things that come into the world are not looked into. The individual says 'My crowd doesn't run that way.' I say, don't run with crowds.

There's no journey worth taking except the journey through one's self. That's the most important journey you take. I found that out as I went around the world many times: I was learning about me.

Writing on 'Love' is so steeped in self-analysis. The writer's room can feel like therapy.

I'd be lying to you if I said I had not done some soul searching.

Spend time in your head and figure yourself out. Start taking note of all the things you do that you don't like, and then you're more conscious of it, and you learn.

We can't see ourselves very clearly. This I learned as a songwriter. I'm forever trying to figure out what my own truth is.