Fyodor Dostoevsky Quotes

On needing a reason to get up in the morning:

The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.

On self-deception before a big decision:

Above all, don't lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him.

On the gap between loving an idea of someone and loving them daily:

Love in action is a harsh and dreadful thing compared to love in dreams.

Deciding whether pride is keeping you from loving someone you still can:

What is hell? I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love.

Deciding whether to keep loving someone despite what they have done:

Love a man even in his sin, for that is the semblance of Divine Love and is the highest love on earth.

Deciding whether to let a grieving heart be near family instead of withdrawing into solitude:

The soul is healed by being with children.

Deciding whether the real obstacle to change is circumstance or yourself:

If you want to overcome the whole world, overcome yourself.

On following your own judgment versus someone else's advice:

To go wrong in one's own way is better than to go right in someone else's.

On why sensitivity makes grief heavier:

Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.

On the fear of starting something new:

Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.

Noticing how easily you have adapted to a compromise you once swore you'd never accept:

Man grows used to everything, the scoundrel!

On trusting an instant connection:

We sometimes encounter people, even perfect strangers, who begin to interest us at first sight, somehow suddenly, all at once, before a word has been spoken.

Deciding whether to make room for beauty in a life crowded with obligation:

Beauty will save the world.

Deciding which small ritual you refuse to give up no matter what collapses around you:

I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.