The greatest slave is not he who is ruled by a despot, great though that evil be, but he who is in the thrall of his own moral ignorance, selfishness, and vice.
About this quote
- Attributed to
- Samuel Smiles
- Source
- Self-Help; with Illustrations of Character and Conduct (1859), Ch. I : Self-Help — National and Individual
- Culture / tradition
- Scottish
- Attribution status
- ✓ Verified source
- Verification
- Primary reference
Photo: Unknown · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · Portrait: George Reid (1841–1913) (Public domain)
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The secret of sound education is to get each pupil to learn for himself, instead of instructing him by driving knowledge into him on a stereotyped system.
To change your mind and to follow him who sets you right is to be nonetheless the free agent that you were before.
In proportion as man gets back the spirit of manliness, which is self-sacrifice, affection, loyalty loan idea beyond himself, a God above himself, so far will he rise above circumstances, and wield them at his will.
We shall make mistakes; and if we let these mistakes frighten us from our work we shall show ourselves weaklings.
The man of virtue makes the difficulty to be overcome his first business, and success only a subsequent consideration.