“I hope our wisdom will grow with our power, and teach us that the less we use our power, the greater it will be.”

— Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Thomas Leiper (12 June 1815)

About Thomas Jefferson

1743 – 1826

American statesman, principal author of the Declaration of Independence and third President of the United States.

“The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family.”

“I steer my bark with Hope in the head, leaving Fear astern.”

“The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest.”

“A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority.”

“Be attentive therefore, according to the instruction of the Gospel, to learn obedience from the lily and the bird.”

“I must study the plain physical facts of the case, ascertain what is possible, and learn what appears to be wise and right.”

“Life consists in the alternate process of learning and unlearning; but it is often wiser to unlearn than to learn.”

“Warriors of the light are not perfect. Their beauty lies in accepting this fact and still desiring to grow and to learn.”

“Philosophy, from the earliest times, has made greater claims, and achieved fewer results, than any other branch of learning.”