Baruch Spinoza
1632 - 1677
5
Quotes
Biography
Baruch Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher of Sephardi/Portuguese origin. By laying the groundwork for the 18th-century Enlightenment and modern biblical criticism, including modern conceptions of the self and the universe, he came to be considered one of the great rationalists of 17th-century philosophy. His magnum opus, the Ethics, in which he opposed Descartes’ mind–body dualism, has earned him recognition as one of Western philosophy's most important philosophers.
Famous Quotes (5)
1
I have made a ceaseless effort not to ridicule, not to bewail, not to scorn human actions, but to understand them.
2
Peace is not the absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, justice.
3
All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare.
4
If you want the present to be different from the past, study the past.
5
He alone is free who lives with free consent under the entire guidance of reason.