Leto II Atreides Quotes

“It is difficult to live in the present, pointless to live in the future and impossible to live in the past.”

“Most men go through a lifetime unchallenged, except at the final moment.”

“Leto had found his accusation irritating, like a grain of sand in an eye. He held onto the remnants of his once-human self with a grimness which could not be denied, although irritation was the closest he could come to anger.”

“Most civilization is based on cowardice. It’s so easy to civilize by teaching cowardice. You water down the standards which would lead to bravery. You restrain the will. You regulate the appetites. You fence in the horizons. You make a law for every movement. You deny the existence of chaos. You teach even the children to breathe slowly. You tame.”

“The truth always carries the ambiguity of the words used to express it.”

“This wise man observed that wealth is a tool of freedom. But the pursuit of wealth is the way to slavery.”

“When I need to identify rebels, I look for men with principles.”

″‘For what do you hunger, Lord?’ Moneo ventured. ‘For a humankind which can make truly long-term decisions. Do you know the key to that ability, Moneo?’ ‘You have said it many times, Lord. It is the ability to change your mind.‘”

“Most believe that a satisfactory future requires a return to an idealized past, a past which never in fact existed.”