Terry Goodkind Quotes

79 Sourced Quotes

Laugh all you want. I know my own worth and don't need to prove it to someone who doesn't know theirs.

Terry Goodkind
Reason and reality are the only means to just laws; mindless wishes, if given sovereignty, become deadly masters.

Terry Goodkind
Everyone makes mistakes. How a person deals with their mistakes is a mark of their character.

Terry Goodkind
Reasons are the spoils of victory. When you've destroyed the enemy, then your leaders write down the reasons in books, and give moving speeches about them. If you've done your job, then there aren't any of the enemy left to dispute your leader's reasons. At least not until the next war.

Terry Goodkind
Fate occasionally touches us all in ways we don't always understand...

Terry Goodkind
That's what friends are for-to be strong for you when you need a moment to find your own strength.

Terry Goodkind
We don't want to lose you Lord Rahl. We don't want to go back to way things were." She sounded on the verge of tears. "We like being able to do simple things, like make a joke, and laugh. We could never do such things before. We always lived in fear that if we said the wrong thing we would be beaten, or worse. Now that we have seen another way, we don't want to go back to that. If you throw your life away for the Midlands, then we will.- Cara

Terry Goodkind
The training of a Mord-Sith takes years - to learn to handle the pain. I guess it's also why only women are Mord-Sith, men are too weak.

Terry Goodkind
There is no such thing as pure good or pure evil, least of all in people. In the best of us there are thoughts or deeds that are wicked, and in the worst of us, at least some virtue. An adversary is not one who does loathsome acts for their own sake. He always has a reason that to him is justification. My cat eats mice. Does that make him bad? I don't think so, and the cat doesn't think so, but I would bet the mice have a different opinion.

Terry Goodkind
The sun has already set on the days we made those choices. We must concentrate on what we can do tomorrow; we can't relive yesterday.

Terry Goodkind
Teachings that defy reason defy reality; what defies reality defies life. Defying life is embracing death.

Terry Goodkind
Sometimes that's all life is... One desperate act after another.

Terry Goodkind
If you care about yourself, you should care about learning - even learning simple things. You come to have pride in yourself only by accomplishing things, even from fixing some old stairs...Others can't grant you self-respect, even others who care about you. You have to earn self-respect yourself.

Terry Goodkind
Sometimes, it is necessary to step beyond what you have known and to reach for something more.

Terry Goodkind
Everybody knows it. Wizards are supposed to have beards. It's common knowledge.

Terry Goodkind
Emotions are the sums created by details, whether those details are true or not.

Terry Goodkind
To the right person, the person who is truly born to it, duty is a form of love, through which all is possible. Duty is not always a denial of things, but an expansion of them to others. Duty is not always a chore, but is best carried out with love.

Terry Goodkind
Think of the solution, not the problem. If your mind was filled only with thoughts of why you were going to lose, then you couldn't think of how to win.

Terry Goodkind
It is said that the greatest cruelty is drawn from those with the kindest hearts.

Terry Goodkind
Intent is guilt. Failure to successfully carry out the intent does not absolve the guilt.

Terry Goodkind
Culture carries no privilege to exist. Cultures do not have value simply because they are. Some cultures, the world is better off without.

Terry Goodkind
Richard thought a moment. "I don't know, but we have to get across the pass. We're too tired to have to spend tonight fighting shadows again. We must get to the Midlands before dark. And this time, I promise I won't let go of your hand." Kahlan smiled and squeezed his hand. I won't let go of yours either.

Terry Goodkind
You can't love anyone or anything until you love your own existence first. Love can only grow out of a respect for your own life.

Terry Goodkind
The Second Rule is that the greatest harm can result from the best intentions. It sounds a paradox, but kindness and good intentions can be an insidious path to destruction. Sometimes doing what seems right is wrong, and can cause harm. The only counter to it is knowledge, wisdom, forethought, and understanding the First Rule. Even then, that is not always enough.

Terry Goodkind
I thought I was going to die there, alone. I thought I would never see you again." He seemed to shake off the memory and leaned back on an elbow, gazing at her with a lop-sided smile on his face. "The Shadrin left some scars that aren't healed yet. But I would have to take off my pants to show them to you." "Really?" Kahlan gave a throaty laugh. "I think I better have a look... to see if everything is all right.

Terry Goodkind
If you are unwilling to defend your right to your own lives, then you are merely like mice trying to argue with owls. You think their ways are wrong. They think you are dinner.

Terry Goodkind
Even a foolish old woman like me knows that lazy people don't think for themselves; they only think about themselves.

Terry Goodkind
Nothing marks a man's character better than his attraction to intelligence.

Terry Goodkind
I'm afraid that we all make mistakes. One of the things that defines our character is how we handle mistakes. If we lie about having made a mistake, then it can't be corrected and it festers. On the other hand, if we give up just because we made a mistake, even a big mistake, none of us would get far in life.

Terry Goodkind
Teasingly she took the apple from his mouth. Juice ran down his chin. Slowly, deliberately, she leaned over and licked the sweet juice from his chin. I will have to admit though, that I will never look at an apple in quite the same way.

Terry Goodkind