“We are often unable to tell people what they need to know because they want to know something else.”

— George MacDonald, Lilith, 1895, Ch. 9

About George MacDonald

1824 – 1905

Scottish author and minister, known for fantasy novels and for the novel 'The Marquis of Lossie'.

“To receive honestly is the best thanks for a good thing.”

“A true friend is forever a friend.”

“To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved.”

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”

“He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life.”

“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”