Christopher Paolini Quotes

No hunter of the sky should end his days as prey. Better to die on the wing than pinned to the ground.

“A person may dislike his choice, but he will stand by it because, even in the worst circumstances, he believes that it was the best option available to him at the time.”

“These books are my friends, my companions. They make me laugh and cry and find meaning in life.”

“[L]et no one rule your mind or body.”

“Determination is as common among men who are dull and foolish as it is among those who are brilliant intellects. So, no, determination cannot be what we’re looking for.”

“Take special care that your thoughts remain unfettered. One may be a free man and yet be bound tighter than a slave.”

“Show respect for those in power, but don’t follow them blindly.”

“No one thinks of himself as a villain . . . ”

“Judge with logic and reason, but comment not.”

“Keep in mind that many people have died for their beliefs; it’s actually quite common. The real courage is in living and suffering for what you believe.”

“Respect the past; you never know how it may affect you.”

“I won’t tell you what to believe, Eragon. It is far better to be taught to think critically and then be allowed to make your own decisions than to have someone else’s notions thrust upon you.”

“The sea is emotion incarnate. It loves, hates, and weeps. It defies all attempts to capture it with words and rejects all shackles. No matter what you say about it, there is always that which you can’t.”

“I’m afraid I’ve degenerated into a bibliophile.”

“You cannot miss that which you have never had.”

“Do not dwell on that which you cannot change.”

“If any honor existed in war, he concluded, it was in fighting to protect others from harm.”

“Too many problems in this world are caused by men with noble dispositions and clouded minds.”

“I’ll fight when needed, revel when there’s occasion, mourn when there is grief, and die if my time comes … but I will not let anyone use me against my will.”

″‘How terrible,’ said Eragon, ‘to die alone, separate even from the one who is closest to you.‘”

“The answer is logic. Or, to put it another way, the ability to reason analytically. Applied properly, it can overcome any lack of wisdom, which one only gains through age and experience.”

“Be careful with your money.”

“When you can have anything you want by uttering a few words, the goal matters not, only the journey to it.”

“Pure logic can lead you to conclusions that are ethically wrong, whereas if you are moral and righteous, that will ensure that you don’t act shamefully.”

“There is much you can learn from books . . . ”

“Hold fast to your beliefs and others will listen.”

“I believe, Eragon, that you are full of love and that you are looking for one who will reciprocate your affection. No shame exists in that.”

“A negative outlook is more of a handicap than any physical injury.”

“Always it is thus with my new students, and especially with the human ones; the mind is the last muscle they train or use, and the one that they regard the least.”

“It’s better to be sworn to an honest fool than to a lying scholar.”

“People have an annoying habit of remembering things they shouldn’t.”

“Notice I didn’t specify what kind of doom, so no matter what happens, I predicted it. How very wise of me.”

“History provides us with numerous examples of people who were convinced that they were doing the right thing and committed terrible crimes because of it.”

“Eragon looked back at him, confused. ‘I don’t understand.’ ‘Of course you don’t,’ said Brom impatiently. ‘That’s why I’m teaching you and not the other way around.‘”

“A good compromise leaves everyone angry.”

“On its own, being a decent person is no guarantee that you will act well, which brings us back to the one protection we have against demagogues, tricksters, and the madness of crowds . . . : clear and reasoned thinking.”

“Consider none your superior, whatever their rank or station in life. Treat all fairly, or they will seek revenge.”

“Of the affairs of love ... my only advice is to be honest. That’s your most powerful tool to unlock a heart or gain forgiveness.”

“That’s the spirit, one part brave, three parts fool.”

“Live in the present, remember the past, and fear not the future, for it doesn’t exist and never shall. There is only now.”

“They may fight with us, but they don’t fight for us.”

″‘With all your customs,’ Eragon risked saying, ‘it seems as though you’ve only made it easier to offend people.‘”

“The greatest enemy is one that has nothing to lose.”

“It’s amazing that a man who is dead can talk to people through these pages. As long as this book survives, his ideas live.”

“To have a child is the greatest honor and responsibility that can be bestowed upon any living being.”

“From now on you’re going to have to think. There’s a reason why we’re born with brains in our heads, not rocks.”

“Wise? No, I’ve just learned how to think.”

“Everyone dies alone, Eragon. Whether you are a king on a battlefield or a lowly peasant lying in bed among your family, no one can accompany you into the void.”

“Magic is the art of thinking, not strength or language . . . ”

“I would also contend that if you had to choose between giving a man a noble disposition or teaching him to think clearly, you’d do better to teach him to think clearly. Too many problems in this world are caused by men with noble dispositions and clouded minds.”

“And understanding begets empathy and compassion, even for the meanest beggar . . . ”

“Even we, who were boys but a short while ago, cannot escape the inexorable progress of time. So the generations pass, and soon it will be our turn to send our children out into the land to do the work that needs to be done.”

“The monsters of the mind are far worse than those that actually exist.”

“If you wish to be happy, Eragon, think not of what is to come nor of that which you have no control over but rather of the now and that which you are able to change.”

“Death is part of who we are. It guides us. It shapes us. It drives us to madness. Can you still be human if you have no mortal end?”

“You would be amazed how many magicians have died after being bitten by mad rabbits. It’s far more common than you might think.”

“Love can be a terrible curse, Eragon. It can make you overlook even the largest flaws in a person’s behavior.”

“When someone refuses to tell me a certain piece of information, it only makes me that much more determined to find out the truth. I hate being ignorant. For me, a question unanswered is like a thorn in my side that pains me every time I move until I can pluck it out.”

“Their greatest comfort was a simple one: they were no longer alone. To know that you were with the one who cared for you, and who understood every fiber of your being, and who would not abandon you even in the most desperate of circumstances, that was the most precious relationship a person could have, and they both cherished it.”

“I’ve found there are very few fights you can’t win with a few whacks from a good, strong stick.”

“The trick is to find happiness in the brief gaps between disasters.”

“Misfortune always comes to those who wait.”

“A man rarely knows the day and hour when he will die. I could be killed at any moment, and there’s not a blasted thing I can do about it.”

“Do not become so attached to any one belief that you cannot see past it to another possibility.”

“I know what we do is right but right doesn’t always mean easy.”

“Turmoil accompanies every great change.”

“When you must fight, Roran, does not the fierce joy of combat lend wings to your feet?”

“Some troubles no one else should have to endure, especially not those you love.”

“For her, choices were simple; either there was an action she could take to improve the situation, in which case she took it, or there was not, and everything else said on the subject was so much meaningless noise.”

“Pain is pain. It needs no description.”

“What will happen will happen, and I won’t waste the time I have . . . worrying.”

“I am not who I was, but I know who I am.”

“There is no more exciting sport than flying, for if you lose, you die.”

“Who is it who decides that one man should live and another should die? My life wasn’t worth any more than his, but he’s the one who’s buried, while I get to enjoy at least a few more hours above the ground. Is it chance, random and cruel, or is there some purpose or pattern to all this, even if it lies beyond our ken?”

“However, my path is not so easy as that. Regardless of whether I can shift my affections to another—and the heart, as you observed, is a notoriously fickle beast—the question remains: should I?”

“It’s impossible to go through life unscathed. Nor should you want to. By the hurts we accumulate, we measure both our follies and our accomplishments.”

“On the beach, Roran stood alone, watching them go. Then he threw back his head and uttered a long, aching cry, and the night echoed with the sound of his loss.”

“Your tongue has grown as twisted as the roots of a fir tree. Speak not in riddles.”

“To while away the day contemplating evils that might have been is to poison the happiness we already have.”

“They have not the heart for this battle. So think of your families, think of your homes, and remember it is they you are defending.”

“If you don’t make a few enemies every now and then, you’re a coward . . . ”

“He’s acting as foolish as a kitten . . . but then, everyone’s entitled to a little foolishness once in a while.”

“It is easy to be calm when there is nothing to worry about . . . The true test of your self-control . . . is whether you can remain calm in a trying situation.”

“To achieve greatness, though, that requires artistry. That requires imagination and thoughtfulness, and it is those qualities that the best warriors share, even if, on the surface, they appear completely different.”

“You cannot predict every eventuality, and you cannot guarantee success every time you face an enemy . . . ”

“I have had many years to learn that losing my temper rarely helps.”

“The future will be what it will, and fretting about it will only make your fears more likely to come true.”

“All great fighting is the same, Eragon, even as all great warriors are the same. Past a certain point, it does not matter whether you wield a sword, a claw, a tooth, or a tail. It is true, you must be capable with your weapon, but anyone with the time and the inclination can acquire technical proficiency. To achieve greatness, though, that requires artistry. That requires imagination and thoughtfulness, and it is those qualities that the best warriors share, even if, on the surface, they appear completely different.”

″[A]llow my experience to guide you in this. Let go of your worries and focus only on the task at hand.”

“You must learn . . . to see what you are looking at.”

″[B]y seeing all and discounting nothing, you may adapt without hesitation to any change. The warrior who can adapt the easiest to the unexpected is the warrior who will live the longest.”

“Why does everything have to be so hard?” . . . “Because,” said Saphira, “everyone wants to eat, but no one wants to be eaten.”

“Better to see widely than to see too closely and allow some feature of place or situation to catch you unawares.”

“And the ship sailed onward, gliding serenely down the moonlit river toward the dark lands beyond.”

″[I]t is an overactive imagination that turns men into cowards, not a surfeit of fear, as most believe.”

“And once you are in motion, do not allow your thoughts to distract you. Think without thinking, so that you act as if out of instinct and not reason.”

“Change itself is neither good nor bad, but knowledge is always useful.”

″[Y]ou must strive to be calm, even if a hundred ravening enemies are snapping at your heels. Empty your mind and allow it to become like a tranquil pool that reflects everything around it and yet remains untouched by its surroundings. Understanding will come to you in that emptiness, when you are free of irrational fears about victory and defeat, life and death.”

“All great fighting is the same, Eragon, even as all great warriors are the same. Past a certain point, it does not matter whether you wield a sword, a claw, a tooth, or a tail.”

“You have allowed yourself to become angrier than you should . . . Anger has its place, but it will not help you here. The way of the warrior is the way of knowing. If that knowledge requires you to use anger, then you use anger, but you cannot wrest forth knowledge by losing your temper. Pain and frustration will be your only reward if you try.”

“The way of the warrior is the way of knowing.”

“[Y]ou cannot wrest forth knowledge by losing your temper. Pain and frustration will be your only reward if you try.”