Baruch Spinoza Quotes

We aren't, as human beings, very good at acting in our best interest.

Human passions, like the forces of nature, are eternal; it is not a matter of denying their existence, but of assessing them and understanding them. Like the forces of nature, they can be subjected to man's deliberate act of will and be made to work in harmony with reason.

Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when called upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason.

I'm going to fight the force of emotions by that of intellect

When a man is prey to his emotions, he is not his own master.

If you don't control your emotions, your emotions will control your acts, and that's not good.

Behaviors are a choice. Feelings are sometimes out of our control. Behavior has to do with choices.

Anyone who seeks to destroy the passions instead of controlling them is trying to play the angel.

I have an adult emotional life and an editing system inside me which prevents me from being preposterously stupid.

My intellect has always been more responsible than my emotions for how I respond to the world.

He submits to be seen through a microscope, who suffers himself to be caught in a fit of passion.

The secret of success is learning how to use pain and pleasure instead of having pain and pleasure use you. If you do that, you're in control of your life. If you don't, life controls you.

If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.

Subdue your passion or it will subdue you.

Temper is a weapon that we hold by the blade.

I struggle with control.

Never do anything when you are in a temper, for you will do everything wrong.

No sane man will dance.

Keep your temper. A decision made in anger is never sound.

The sign of an intelligent people is their ability to control their emotions by the application of reason.

Human nature is you get carried away, so we have to protect ourselves from ourselves.

You will continue to suffer if you have an emotional reaction to everything that is said to you. True power is sitting back and observing things with logic. True power is restraint. If words control you that means everyone else can control you. Breathe and allow things to pass.

I've got to control my emotions. When I fight out of emotions, it doesn't end up so well.

If there is one rule I have, it is you have to remain level-headed.

I still think carefully about what I'm going to say. I use me heart and head technique, in which the heart says, 'get stuck in, Dennis!', and the head says, 'just a minute... ' But I probably don't use this as often as some others.