Poems List

Every reminiscence is colored by today’s being what it is, and therefore by a deceptive point of view.

Although Einstein never wrote an autobiography, he did pen “Autobiographical Notes” in 1946, though this excerpt betrays what he thought of autobiographies.

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I want to be cremated so people won’t come to worship at my bones.

This is Einstein’s wish as quoted by Abraham Pais, an Einstein biographer and friend, in 1994.

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I have firmly resolved to bite the dust, when my time comes, with a minimum of medical assistance, and up to then I will sin to my wicked heart’s content.

At the young age of 34, Einstein already set the terms for his life and death. He said this to Elsa Löwenthal in 1913, who became Elsa Einstein when they married in 1919.

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A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the

labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.”

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Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.

In 1932, Einstein spoke to the journal of Young Israel in New York. This quote comes from that interview and also appeared in the New York Times.

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A man’s value to the community depends primarily on how far his feelings, thoughts, and actions are directed towards promoting the good of his fellows.
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We have to do the best we are capable of. This is our sacred human responsibility.

Einstein often spoke of deriving motivation from the innumerable ways in which all people’s present lives were enriched from the past labors of others. He felt responsible to contribute to the progress of the species because of those who had already progressed it.

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The man who regards his own life and that of his fellow-creatures as meaningless is not merely unfortunate but almost disqualified for life.

This quote is from the book The World As I See It , under the section The Meaning of Life.

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Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.

This 1954 quote comes from Einstein’s contribution to a collection of essays given to the rabbi Leo Baeck for his 80th birthday. Leo Baeck was a prominent leader in the Jewish community of Hitler’s Germany.

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Fear or stupidity has always been the basis of most human actions.

Nearing the end of his life at 75 in 1954, Einstein might have been labeled a grumpy old man. In truth, this sentiment did not come on at an old age, and it does not reflect an overall grumpiness, just what Einstein would determine an accurate assessment.

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