# November 12

Quotes of the day from previous years:

## 2003

    The Enlightened take things Lightly. ~ Principia Discordia
   * selected by Kalki

## 2004

    Under all speech that is good for anything there lies a silence that is better. Silence is deep as Eternity; speech is shallow as Time. ~ Thomas Carlyle
   * selected by Kalki

## 2005

    Every age hath its own problem, and every soul its particular aspiration. The remedy the world needeth in its present-day afflictions can never be the same as that which a subsequent age may require. Be anxiously concerned with the needs of the age ye live in, and centre your deliberations on its exigencies and requirements. ~ Bahá'u'lláh (born 12 November 1817)
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2006

    No matter how much women prefer to lean, to be protected and supported, nor how much men desire to have them do so, they must make the voyage of life alone, and for safety in an emergency they must know something of the laws of navigation. ~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton (born 12 November 1815)
   * proposed by InvisibleSun

## 2007

    We sail across dominions barely seen, washed by the swells of time. We plow through fields of magnetism. Past and future come together on thunderheads and our dead hearts live with lightning in the wounds of the Gods. ~ Norman Mailer (recent death)
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2008

    In entering upon the great work before us, we anticipate no small amount of misconception, misrepresentation, and ridicule; but we shall use every instrumentality within our power to effect our object. ~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2009

    It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens. ~ Bahá'u'lláh (date of birth)
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2010

    If the learned and worldly-wise men of this age were to allow mankind to inhale the fragrance of fellowship and love, every understanding heart would apprehend the meaning of true liberty, and discover the secret of undisturbed peace and absolute composure. ~ Bahá'u'lláh
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2011

    A law of nature is not a formula drawn up by a legislator, but a mere summary of the observed facts — a "bundle of facts." Things do not act in a particular way because there is a law, but we state the "law" because they act in that way. ~ Joseph McCabe
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2012

* An idea or institution may arise for one reason and be maintained for quite a different reason.
* ~ Joseph McCabe ~

## 2013

* Justice and equity are twin Guardians that watch over men. From them are revealed such blessed and perspicuous words as are the cause of the well-being of the world and the protection of the nations.
* ~ Bahá'u'lláh ~
   * proposed by MosheZadka

## 2014

* God's purpose in sending His Prophets unto men is twofold. The first is to liberate the children of men from the darkness of ignorance, and guide them to the light of true understanding. The second is to ensure the peace and tranquillity of mankind, and provide all the means by which they can be established.
* ~ Bahá'u'lláh ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2015

* Man is the supreme Talisman. Lack of a proper education hath, however, deprived him of that which he doth inherently possess. Through a word proceeding out of the mouth of God he was called into being; by one word more he was guided to recognize the Source of his education; by yet another word his station and destiny were safeguarded. The Great Being saith: Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom.
* ~ Bahá'u'lláh ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2016

* Magnified, sanctified, be thy holy name Vilified, crucified, in the human frame A million candles burning for the help that never came You want it darker Hineni, hineni I'm ready, my Lord.
* ~ Leonard Cohen ~
   * proposed by Kalki in response to his recent death.

## 2017

* In the construction of a country, it is not the practical workers but the idealists and planners that are difficult to find.
* ~ Sun Yat-sen ~
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2018

* The time must come when the imperative necessity for the holding of a vast, an all-embracing assemblage of men will be universally realized. The rulers and kings of the earth must needs attend it, and, participating in its deliberations, must consider such ways and means as will lay the foundations of the world's Great Peace amongst men.
* ~ Bahá'u'lláh ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2019

* When the true lover and devoted friend reacheth to the presence of the Beloved, the sparkling beauty of the Loved One and the fire of the lover’s heart will kindle a blaze and burn away all veils and wrappings. Yea, all he hath, from heart to skin, will be set aflame, so that nothing will remain save the Friend. He who hath attained this station is sanctified from all that pertaineth to the world. Wherefore, if those who have come to the sea of His presence are found to possess none of the limited things of this perishable world, whether it be outer wealth or personal opinions, it mattereth not. For whatever the creatures have is limited by their own limits, and whatever the True One hath is sanctified therefrom; this utterance must be deeply pondered that its purport may be clear.
* ~ Bahá'u'lláh ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2020

* I am the Water of Life, Out of myself I grow. The more you drink of me, The fuller I will flow.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2021

* To understand is difficult; to act is easy.
* ~ Sun Yat-sen ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2022

* There are people that can't go to Fantastica. There are those who can but never return. And there are just a few who go to Fantastica and come back. And they make both worlds well again.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2023

* When you're finally up at the moon looking back on earth, all those differences and nationalistic traits are pretty well going to blend, and you're going to get a concept that maybe this really is one world and why the hell can't we learn to live together like decent people.
* ~ Frank Borman ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2024

* Once you have acquired the skills, you must test them on an opponent, but in no way should you consider victory or submission to be a cause for shame or pride. Rather, you ought to think, "By what means did I defeat him?" Or, "By what means could I have defeated him?" Then you exert and test yourself for a while.
* ~ Qi Jiguang ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2025

    Rank or add further suggestions…
The Quote of the Day (QOTD) is a prominent feature of the Wikiquote Main Page. Thank you for submitting, reviewing, and ranking suggestions!

   ## Ranking system

    4 : Excellent – should definitely be used. (This is the utmost ranking and should be used by any editor for only one quote at a time for each date.)
    3 : Very Good – strong desire to see it used.
    2 : Good – some desire to see it used.
    1 : Acceptable – but with no particular desire to see it used.
    0 : Not acceptable – not appropriate for use as a quote of the day.
    An averaging of the rankings provided to each suggestion produces it’s general ranking in considerations for selection of Quote of the Day. The selections made are usually chosen from the top ranked options existing on the page, but the provision of highly ranked late additions, especially in regard to special events (most commonly in regard to the deaths of famous people, or other major social or physical occurrences), always remain an option for final selections.
    Thank you for participating!

## Suggestions

I'm sleeping like a baby, too. Every two hours, I wake up, screaming. ~ Colin Powell, resigned that day.
    —This unsigned comment is by MosheZadka (talk • contribs) .
* 2 Kalki 08:53, 9 November 2007 (UTC)
* 1 Zarbon 06:11, 26 April 2008 (UTC)
In order to get beyond racism, we must first take account of race. There is no other way. And in order to treat some persons equally, we must treat them differently. ~ Harry Blackmun, born that day
    —This unsigned comment is by MosheZadka (talk • contribs) .
* 3 InvisibleSun 20:49, 11 November 2006 (UTC)
* 1 Zarbon 06:11, 26 April 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 00:47, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Hydrangeans (talk) 21:45, 8 November 2024 (UTC)
The theist and the scientist are rival interpreters of nature, the one retreats as the other advances. ~ Joseph McCabe
* 3 Zarbon 04:22, 3 October 2008 (UTC)
* 1 Kalki 00:47, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:32, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
Women's degradation is in man's idea of his sexual rights. Our religion, laws, customs, are all founded on the belief that woman was made for man. Come what will, my whole soul rejoices in the truth that I have uttered. ~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton
* 2 Zarbon 04:22, 3 October 2008 (UTC)
* 1 Kalki 00:47, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:32, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Hydrangeans (talk) 21:45, 8 November 2024 (UTC)
India and China offer intriguing mirror images. Modern India has long been open politically and, until recently, closed economically. Modern China has opened economically, but remains politically closed. The comparison reveals that, while politics and economics can never fully be separated, political openness is a better guarantor of long-term stability than economic openness. ~ Ian Bremmer
* 2 Zarbon 04:22, 3 October 2008 (UTC)
* 1 Kalki 00:47, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:32, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
We have a propensity for starting and joining all kinds of organisations, the result was that we were spending more time in conferences than implementing the decisions. ~ Benjamin Mkapa
* 2 Zarbon 04:22, 3 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 00:47, 11 November 2008 (UTC) with a lean toward 3.
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:32, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
* Human passions have mysterious ways, in children as well as grown-ups. Those affected by them can't explain them, and those who haven't known them have no understanding of them at all. Some people risk their lives to conquer a mountain peak. No one, not even they themselves, can really explain why. Others ruin themselves trying to win the heart of a certain person who wants nothing to do with them. Still others are destroyed by their devotion to the pleasures of the table. Some are so bent on winning a game of chance that they lose everything they own, and some sacrifice every thing for a dream that can never come true. Some think their only hope of happiness lies in being somewhere else, and spend their whole lives traveling from place to place. And some find no rest until they have become powerful. In short, there are as many different passions as there are people.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
OR, perhaps trimmed to just the first lines:
* Human passions have mysterious ways, in children as well as grown-ups. Those affected by them can't explain them, and those who haven't known them have no understanding of them at all.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* AURYN gives you great power … but you must not make use of it. For the Childlike Empress herself never makes use of her power. AURYN will protect you and guide you, but whatever comes your way you must never interfere, because from this moment on your own opinion ceases to count. For that same reason you must go unarmed. You must let what happens happen. Everything must be equal in your eyes, good and evil, beautiful and ugly, foolish and wise, just as it is in the eyes of the Childlike Empress. You may only search and inquire, never judge. Always remember that, Atreyu!
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* There are many doors to Fantastica. There are other such magical books. A lot of people read them without noticing. It all depends on who lays hands on the book.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* Luckdragons are creatures of air, warmth, and pure joy. Despite their great size, they are as light as a summer cloud, and consequently need no wings for flying. They swim in the air of heaven as fish swim in water. Seen from the earth, they look like slow lightning flashes. The most amazing thing about them is their song. Their voice sounds like the golden note of a large bell, and when they speak softly the bell seems to be ringing in the distance. Anyone who has heard this sound will remember it as long as he lives and tell his grandchildren about it.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* Oh, nothing can happen more than once, But all things must happen one day Over hill and dale, over wood and stream, My dying voice will blow away...
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* There is in Fantastica a certain place from which one can go anywhere and which can be reached from anywhere. We call it the Temple of a Thousand Doors. No one has ever seen it from outside. The inside is a maze of doors. Anyone wishing to know it must dare to enter it.
* ~ Michael Ende ~ in ~ The Neverending Story ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
* China is now suffering from poverty, not from unequal distribution of wealth. Where there are inequalities of wealth, the methods of Marx can, of course, be used; a class war can be advocated to destroy the inequalities. But in China, where industry is not yet developed, Marx's class war and dictatorship of the proletariat are impracticable.
* ~ Sun Yat-sen ~
* 2 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 00:58, 12 November 2020 (UTC)