Man
Man in Philosophy
"What a piece of work is man;
how noble in reason,
how infinite in faculties, in form and moving;
how express and admirable in action;
how like an angel in apprehension,
how like a god,
the beauty of the world; the paragon of animals."
- William Shakespeare
"He who knows the Spirit of words knows Him."
- Kena Upanishad
"A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language - Dealing with the origin of words and their sense development thus illustrating the history of civilization and culture."
- Klein`s Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary.
"We not only speak but think and even dream in words. Language is a mirror in which the whole spiritual development of mankind reflects itself. Therefore, in tracing words to their origin, we are tracing simultaneously civilization and culture to their real roots."
- Ernest Klein
"A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver."
- Proverbs 25:11, The Bible
" Language is the house of being."
- Heidegger
" Every word is magical."
" The real centre of knowledge is inner consciousness."
- William Blake
"If words are not rectified there will be confusion."
" Intercultural dialogue is the main force behind the spiritual development of mankind."
" Shall I tell you what knowledge is? It is to know what one knows and what one does not know."
- Confucius
"Only through respect of the word will man be educated towards maturity."
- Dag Hammarskjöld’s Diary, 1955,
" Words improperly used is equivalent to despising man."
- Dag Hammarskjöld
Swami Vivekananda
Man in other cultures
Greek: Anthropos: Looking above, searching.
Chad: Africa: Someone looking for something and taking all responsibilities upon himself.
Latin: Homo- Made of earth.
Japan: The spirit within
Hebrew. Nefaesch: Breath, soul, desire, to be sensible of.
Bantu: Africa: Muntu: The quick and the dead (ancestors), the gods.
China: Mien: Feeling, disposition, intellect, en-lightened, instructed.
Russian: Tschelowek: The one who has got eternity on his forehead.
Arabic,Persian,Turkish: Insan (ons-anisa,anis): Community, friendship.
Sanskrit: Manu, manushya - man, human being. Man- to think.
Manas: Heart, body, the thinking process, the spirit
Benin: In Fon: God`s creature
Tibet: Hgrowa-togo: to walk, to accompany, keeping company, to be liberated.
Senegal: Wolof : Those who are going to die
Mali: In Bambara: Moyo: God`s creature
Kenya: Suaheli: Mutu
Man in Bahá'í philosophy
"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."
"All men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization."
"That one, indeed, is a man who, today, dedicateth himself to the service of the entire human race."
"Man, the noblest and most perfect of all created things"
"Great is the station of man."
- Baha`u`llah
"God`s greatest gift to man is that of intellect, or understanding"
"Man alone, among created beings, has this wonderful power."
"Man is, in reality, a spiritual being. And only when he lives in the spirit is he truly happy."
"Noble have I created thee."
"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness."
"How excellent, how honorable is man if he arises to fulfill his responsibilities; how wretched and contemptible, if he shuts his eyes to the welfare of society and wastes his precious life in pursuing his selfish interests and personal advantages."
"For man is the greatest member of this world."
"The reality of man is his thought, not his material body."
"If man did not exist, the universe would be without result, for the object of existence is the appearance of the perfection of God."
"Man is said to be the greatest representative of God and he is the Book of Creation, because all the mysteries of beings exist in him"
"When the heart of man is aglow with the flame of love, he is ready to sacrifice all - even his life."
"The man of whom we speak is not every man; we mean the Perfect Man. For, the noblest part of the tree is the fruit, which is the reason for its existence."
"Man must walk in many paths and be subjected to various processes in his evolution upward."
"Physically he is not born in full stature, but passes through consecutive stages of fetus, infant, childhood, youth, maturity, and old age."
"Man is a child of God; most noble, lofty and beloved by God, his creator."
" We must now highly resolve to arouse the dignity, value and station of the entire human race."
Abdu`l Baha