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No! No one who was great in the world will be forgotten…

“No! No one who was great in the world will be forgotten, but everyone was great in his own way, and everyone in proportion to the greatness of that which he loved. He who loved himself became great by virtue of himself, and he who loved other men became great by his devotedness, but he who loved…” quote by Søren Kierkegaard
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““No! No one who was great in the world will be forgotten, but everyone was great in his own way, and everyone in proportion to the greatness of that which he loved. He who loved himself became great by virtue of himself, and he who loved other men became great by his devotedness, but he who loved God became the greatest of all. Everyone shall be remembered, but everyone became great in proportion to his expectancy. One became great by expecting the possible, another by expecting the eternal; but he who expected the impossible became the greatest of all. Everyone shall be remembered, but everyone was great wholly in proportion to the magnitude of that with which he struggled. For he who struggled with the world became great by conquering the world, and he who struggled with himself became great by conquering himself, but he who struggled with God became the greatest of all. Thus did they struggle in the world, man against man, one against thousands, but he who struggled with God was the greatest of all. Thus did they struggle on earth: there was one who conquered everything by his power, and there was one who conquered God by his powerlessness. There was one who relied upon himself and gained everything; there was one who in the security of his own strength sacrificed everything; but the one who believed God was the greatest of all. There was one who was great by virtue of his power, and one who was great by virtue of his hope, and one who was great by virtue of his love, but Abraham was the greatest of all, great by that power whose strength is powerlessness, great by that wisdom which is foolishness, great by that hope whose form is madness, great by the love that is hatred to oneself.””

Søren Kierkegaard

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Greatness is measured by what one loves and strives for; loving God, oneself, or others yields different magnitudes of greatness.

In simple terms: Greatness depends on love and struggle.

Key Takeaway

Align love with purpose to achieve greatness.

Themes

philosophy spirituality ethics

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

  • personal growth
  • religious devotion
  • self-improvement
  • leadership
  • historical analysis

Key Concepts

love struggle expectation

Questions to Reflect On

  • What does "greatness" mean to you?
  • How does love shape your aspirations?
A Different Perspective

The concept of greatness is subjective and culturally contingent.

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