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100 Inspirational Quotes By Leo Tolstoy, The Author Of War And Peace

Famous As: One of the Greatest Authors of All Time
Born On: September 9, 1828
Died On: November 20, 1910
Born In: Yasnaya Polyana, Russia
Died At Age: 82

No list of world’s greatest novelists can be complete without the mention of Russian author, Leo Tolstoy. Generations have come and gone, each only augmenting the sheer brilliance of Tolstoy as a master of realistic fiction. His novels, ‘War and Peace’, ‘Anna Karenina’ and ‘The Death of Ivan Ilyich’ even today are ranked amongst the best in the world and are counted amongst the finest novels ever written. His works share a vision of human experience rooted in an appreciation of everyday life and prosaic virtues. Tolstoy’s ability to observe the smallest changes of consciousness and to record the slightest movements of the body is something not many novelists can claim to have even today in the 21st century. Literary accomplishments apart, Tolstoy attracted attention due to his new faith, which mixed pacifism with Christian anarchism and advocated living a morally and physically ascetic lifestyle. Among those influenced by Tolstoy’s social beliefs was Mahatma Gandhi, who started the non-violent movement in India and brought the country its independence from British Raj. Tolstoy’s spiritual belief, religious sentiments and literary brilliance can also be seen in his quotes that cover a vast variety of subjects and give a new perspective to life.

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Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.

Leo Tolstoy
All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Leo Tolstoy
If you look for perfection, you'll never be content.

If you look for perfection, you'll never be content.

Leo Tolstoy
It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness.

It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness.

Leo Tolstoy
I think... if it is true that 
there are as many minds as there 
are heads, then there are as many 
kinds of love as there are hearts.

I think... if it is true that there are as many minds as there are heads, then there are as many kinds of love as there are hearts.

Leo Tolstoy
Respect was invented to cover the empty place where love should be.

Respect was invented to cover the empty place where love should be.

Leo Tolstoy
He stepped down, trying not to look long at her, as if she were the sun, yet he saw her, like the sun, even without looking.

He stepped down, trying not to look long at her, as if she were the sun, yet he saw her, like the sun, even without looking.

Leo Tolstoy
Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them.

Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them.

Leo Tolstoy
We can know only that we know nothing. And that is the highest degree of human wisdom.

We can know only that we know nothing. And that is the highest degree of human wisdom.

Leo Tolstoy
If you want to be happy, be.

If you want to be happy, be.

Leo Tolstoy
Spring is the time of plans and projects.

Spring is the time of plans and projects.

Leo Tolstoy
Is it really possible to tell someone else what one feels?

Is it really possible to tell someone else what one feels?

Leo Tolstoy
In the name of God, stop a moment, cease your work, look around you.

In the name of God, stop a moment, cease your work, look around you.

Leo Tolstoy
Nothing is so necessary for a young man as the company of intelligent women.

Nothing is so necessary for a young man as the company of intelligent women.

Leo Tolstoy
When you love someone, you love the person as they are, and not as you'd like them to be.

When you love someone, you love the person as they are, and not as you'd like them to be.

Leo Tolstoy
Rummaging in our souls, we often dig up something that ought to have lain there unnoticed.

Rummaging in our souls, we often dig up something that ought to have lain there unnoticed.

Leo Tolstoy
Be bad, but at least don't be a liar, a deceiver!

Be bad, but at least don't be a liar, a deceiver!

Leo Tolstoy
The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.

The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.

Leo Tolstoy
Love. The reason I dislike that word is that it means too much for me, far more than you can understand.

Love. The reason I dislike that word is that it means too much for me, far more than you can understand." - Anna Karenina {Anna Karenina}

Leo Tolstoy
Anything is better than lies and deceit!

Anything is better than lies and deceit!

Leo Tolstoy
Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.

Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.

Leo Tolstoy
All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow.

All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow.

Leo Tolstoy
I always loved you, and if one loves anyone, one loves the whole person, just as they are and not as one would like them to be. -Dolly

I always loved you, and if one loves anyone, one loves the whole person, just as they are and not as one would like them to be. -Dolly

Leo Tolstoy
I've always loved you, and when you love someone, you love the whole person, just as he or she is, and not as you would like them to be.

I've always loved you, and when you love someone, you love the whole person, just as he or she is, and not as you would like them to be.

Leo Tolstoy
A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral.

A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral.

Leo Tolstoy
If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.

If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.

Leo Tolstoy
Boredom: the desire for desires.

Boredom: the desire for desires.

Leo Tolstoy
The strongest of all warriors are these two — Time and Patience.

The strongest of all warriors are these two — Time and Patience.

Leo Tolstoy
Sometimes she did not know what she feared, what she desired: whether she feared or desired what had been or what would be, and precisely what she desired, she did not know.

Sometimes she did not know what she feared, what she desired: whether she feared or desired what had been or what would be, and precisely what she desired, she did not know.

Leo Tolstoy
Happiness does not depend on outward things, but on the way we see them.

Happiness does not depend on outward things, but on the way we see them.

Leo Tolstoy
All great literature is one of two stories; a man goes on a journey or a stranger comes to town.

All great literature is one of two stories; a man goes on a journey or a stranger comes to town.

Leo Tolstoy
There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.

There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.

Leo Tolstoy
It's much better to do good in a way that no one knows anything about it.

It's much better to do good in a way that no one knows anything about it.

Leo Tolstoy
The best stories don't come from

The best stories don't come from "good vs. bad" but "good vs. good.

Leo Tolstoy
They've got no idea what happiness is, they don't know that without this love there is no happiness or unhappiness for us--there is no life.

They've got no idea what happiness is, they don't know that without this love there is no happiness or unhappiness for us--there is no life.

Leo Tolstoy
If you love me as you say you do,' she whispered, 'make it so that I am at peace.

If you love me as you say you do,' she whispered, 'make it so that I am at peace.

Leo Tolstoy
True life is lived when tiny changes occur.

True life is lived when tiny changes occur.

Leo Tolstoy
It's hard to love a woman and do anything.

It's hard to love a woman and do anything.

Leo Tolstoy
Pierre was right when he said that one must believe in the possibility of happiness in order to be happy, and I now believe in it. Let the dead bury the dead, but while I'm alive, I must live and be happy.

Pierre was right when he said that one must believe in the possibility of happiness in order to be happy, and I now believe in it. Let the dead bury the dead, but while I'm alive, I must live and be happy.

Leo Tolstoy
You can love a person dear to you with a human love, but an enemy can only be loved with divine love.

You can love a person dear to you with a human love, but an enemy can only be loved with divine love.

Leo Tolstoy
But the law of loving others could not be discovered by reason, because it is unreasonable.

But the law of loving others could not be discovered by reason, because it is unreasonable.

Leo Tolstoy
It's not given to people to judge what's right or wrong. People have eternally been mistaken and will be mistaken, and in nothing more than in what they consider right and wrong.

It's not given to people to judge what's right or wrong. People have eternally been mistaken and will be mistaken, and in nothing more than in what they consider right and wrong.

Leo Tolstoy
I often think that men don't understand what is noble and what is ignorant, though they always talk about it.

I often think that men don't understand what is noble and what is ignorant, though they always talk about it.

Leo Tolstoy
The whole world is divided for me into two parts: one is she, and there is all happiness, hope, light; the other is where she is not, and there is dejection and darkness...

The whole world is divided for me into two parts: one is she, and there is all happiness, hope, light; the other is where she is not, and there is dejection and darkness...

Leo Tolstoy
What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are but how you deal with incompatibility.

What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are but how you deal with incompatibility.

Leo Tolstoy
Love those you hate you.

Love those you hate you.

Leo Tolstoy
He felt now that he was not simply close to her, but that he did not know where he ended and she began.

He felt now that he was not simply close to her, but that he did not know where he ended and she began.

Leo Tolstoy
If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, then all possibility of life is destroyed.

If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, then all possibility of life is destroyed.

Leo Tolstoy
Seize the moments of happiness, love and be loved! That is the only reality in the world, all else is folly. It is the one thing we are interested in here.

Seize the moments of happiness, love and be loved! That is the only reality in the world, all else is folly. It is the one thing we are interested in here.

Leo Tolstoy
He was afraid of defiling the love which filled his soul.

He was afraid of defiling the love which filled his soul.

Leo Tolstoy
Something magical has happened to me: like a dream when one feels frightened and creepy, and suddenly wakes up to the knowledge that no such terrors exist. I have wakened up.

Something magical has happened to me: like a dream when one feels frightened and creepy, and suddenly wakes up to the knowledge that no such terrors exist. I have wakened up.

Leo Tolstoy
To get rid of an enemy one must love him.

To get rid of an enemy one must love him.

Leo Tolstoy
A man is like a fraction whose numerator is what he is and whose denominator is what he thinks of himself. The larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction.

A man is like a fraction whose numerator is what he is and whose denominator is what he thinks of himself. The larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction.

Leo Tolstoy
Not one word, not one gesture of yours shall I, could I, ever forget...

Not one word, not one gesture of yours shall I, could I, ever forget...

Leo Tolstoy
Whatever our fate is or may be, we have made it and do not complain of it.

Whatever our fate is or may be, we have made it and do not complain of it." - Vronksy {Anna Karenina}

Leo Tolstoy
Every lie is a poison; there are no harmless lies. Only the truth is safe. Only the truth gives me consolation - it is the one unbreakable diamond.

Every lie is a poison; there are no harmless lies. Only the truth is safe. Only the truth gives me consolation - it is the one unbreakable diamond.

Leo Tolstoy
We are asleep until we fall in Love!

We are asleep until we fall in Love!

Leo Tolstoy
I simply want to live; to cause no evil to anyone but myself.

I simply want to live; to cause no evil to anyone but myself.

Leo Tolstoy
I wanted movement and not a calm course of existence. I wanted excitement and danger and the chance to sacrifice myself for my love.

I wanted movement and not a calm course of existence. I wanted excitement and danger and the chance to sacrifice myself for my love.

Leo Tolstoy
I'm like a starving man who has been given food. Maybe he's cold, and his clothes are torn, and he's ashamed, but he's not unhappy.

I'm like a starving man who has been given food. Maybe he's cold, and his clothes are torn, and he's ashamed, but he's not unhappy.

Leo Tolstoy
Man cannot possess anything as long as he fears death. But to him who does not fear it, everything belongs. If there was no suffering, man would not know his limits, would not know himself.

Man cannot possess anything as long as he fears death. But to him who does not fear it, everything belongs. If there was no suffering, man would not know his limits, would not know himself.

Leo Tolstoy
She had no need to ask why he had come. She knew as certainly as if he had told her that he was here to be where she was.

She had no need to ask why he had come. She knew as certainly as if he had told her that he was here to be where she was.

Leo Tolstoy
Everything I know, I know because of love.

Everything I know, I know because of love.

Leo Tolstoy
All the diversity, all the charm, and all the beauty of life are made up of light and shade.

All the diversity, all the charm, and all the beauty of life are made up of light and shade.

Leo Tolstoy
Which is worse? the wolf who cries before eating the lamb or the wolf who does not.

Which is worse? the wolf who cries before eating the lamb or the wolf who does not.

Leo Tolstoy
Because of the self-confidence with which he had spoken, no one could tell whether what he said was very clever or very stupid.

Because of the self-confidence with which he had spoken, no one could tell whether what he said was very clever or very stupid.

Leo Tolstoy
Instead of going to Paris to attend lectures, go to the public library, and you won't come out for twenty years, if you really wish to learn.

Instead of going to Paris to attend lectures, go to the public library, and you won't come out for twenty years, if you really wish to learn.

Leo Tolstoy
Everything intelligent is so boring.

Everything intelligent is so boring.

Leo Tolstoy
Music is the shorthand of emotion

Music is the shorthand of emotion

Leo Tolstoy
How can one be well...when one suffers morally?

How can one be well...when one suffers morally?

Leo Tolstoy
To tell the truth is very difficult, and young people are rarely capable of it.

To tell the truth is very difficult, and young people are rarely capable of it.

Leo Tolstoy
Every heart has its own skeletons.

Every heart has its own skeletons.

Leo Tolstoy
Human science fragments everything in order to understand it, kills everything in order to examine it.

Human science fragments everything in order to understand it, kills everything in order to examine it.

Leo Tolstoy
It's all God's will: you can die in your sleep, and God can spare you in battle.

It's all God's will: you can die in your sleep, and God can spare you in battle.

Leo Tolstoy
I sit on a man's back choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that i am sorry for him and wish to lighten his load by all means possible....except by getting off his back.

I sit on a man's back choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that i am sorry for him and wish to lighten his load by all means possible....except by getting off his back.

Leo Tolstoy
He went down trying not to look long at her, as though she were the sun, but he saw her, as one sees the sun, without looking.

He went down trying not to look long at her, as though she were the sun, but he saw her, as one sees the sun, without looking.

Leo Tolstoy
There are no conditions to which a person cannot grow accustomed, especially if he sees that everyone around him lives in the same way.

There are no conditions to which a person cannot grow accustomed, especially if he sees that everyone around him lives in the same way.

Leo Tolstoy
Everything depends on upbringing.

Everything depends on upbringing.

Leo Tolstoy
And you know, there's less charm in life when you think about death--but it's more peaceful.

And you know, there's less charm in life when you think about death--but it's more peaceful.

Leo Tolstoy
Happiness is an allegory, unhappiness a story.

Happiness is an allegory, unhappiness a story.

Leo Tolstoy
God is the same everywhere.

God is the same everywhere.

Leo Tolstoy
He stepped down, avoiding any long look at her as one avoids long looks at the sun, but seeing her as one sees the sun, without looking.

He stepped down, avoiding any long look at her as one avoids long looks at the sun, but seeing her as one sees the sun, without looking.

Leo Tolstoy
We walked to meet each other up at the time of our love and then we have been irresistibly drifting in different directions, and there's no altering that.

We walked to meet each other up at the time of our love and then we have been irresistibly drifting in different directions, and there's no altering that.

Leo Tolstoy
The Kingdom of God is Within You,

The Kingdom of God is Within You,

Leo Tolstoy
My principal sin is doubt. I doubt everything, and am in doubt most of the time.

My principal sin is doubt. I doubt everything, and am in doubt most of the time.

Leo Tolstoy
Historians are like deaf people who go on answering questions that no one has asked them.

Historians are like deaf people who go on answering questions that no one has asked them.

Leo Tolstoy
The only absolute knowledge attainable by man is that life is meaningless.

The only absolute knowledge attainable by man is that life is meaningless.

Leo Tolstoy
Enough or not...it will have to do

Enough or not...it will have to do

Leo Tolstoy
What a strange illusion it is to suppose that beauty is goodness.

What a strange illusion it is to suppose that beauty is goodness.

Leo Tolstoy
I am always with myself, and it is I who am my tormentor.

I am always with myself, and it is I who am my tormentor.

Leo Tolstoy
Here I am alive, and it's not my fault, so I have to try and get by as best I can without hurting anybody until death takes over.

Here I am alive, and it's not my fault, so I have to try and get by as best I can without hurting anybody until death takes over.

Leo Tolstoy
Life did not stop, and one had to live.

Life did not stop, and one had to live.

Leo Tolstoy
Kings are the slaves of history.

Kings are the slaves of history.

Leo Tolstoy
There is something in the human spirit that will survive and prevail, there is a tiny and brilliant light burning in the heart of man that will not go out no matter how dark the world becomes.

There is something in the human spirit that will survive and prevail, there is a tiny and brilliant light burning in the heart of man that will not go out no matter how dark the world becomes.

Leo Tolstoy
Pure and complete sorrow is as impossible as pure and complete joy.

Pure and complete sorrow is as impossible as pure and complete joy.

Leo Tolstoy
Anna spoke not only naturally and intelligently, but intelligently and casually, without attaching any value to her own thoughts, yet giving great value to the thoughts of the one she was talking to.

Anna spoke not only naturally and intelligently, but intelligently and casually, without attaching any value to her own thoughts, yet giving great value to the thoughts of the one she was talking to.

Leo Tolstoy
Doctoring her seemed to her as absurd as putting together the pieces of a broken vase. Her heart was broken. Why would they try to cure her with pills and powders?

Doctoring her seemed to her as absurd as putting together the pieces of a broken vase. Her heart was broken. Why would they try to cure her with pills and powders?

Leo Tolstoy
In the best, the friendliest and simplest relations flattery or praise is necessary, just as grease is necessary to keep wheels turning.

In the best, the friendliest and simplest relations flattery or praise is necessary, just as grease is necessary to keep wheels turning.

Leo Tolstoy
To educate the peasantry, three things are needed: schools, schools and schools.

To educate the peasantry, three things are needed: schools, schools and schools.

Leo Tolstoy
Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Leo Tolstoy