How various his employments whom the world Calls idle; and who justly in return Esteems that busy world an idler too! — William Cowper
Idleness and lack of occupation tend - nay are dragged - towards evil. — Hippocrates
Work is not always required. There is such a thing as sacred idleness. — George Macdonald
Short Idle Quotes
People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day. — A. A. Milne
On a mission your worst enemy is idle time. — Nipsey Hussle
Look At The Clock When You Are Sitting idle. But Never Look At The Clock When You Are Working. — Bill Gates
It is the working man who is the happy man. It is the idle man who is the miserable man. — Benjamin Franklin
The devil finds work for idle hands. — Henry David Thoreau
A little knowledge that acts is worth infinitely more than much knowledge that is idle. — Kahlil Gibran
For Satan always finds some mischief still for idle hands to do. — Isaac Watts
As a Jew I cannot sit idle while genocidal atrocities continue to unfold in Darfur, Sudan. — Jan Schakowsky
A book lying idle on a shelf is wasted ammunition. — Henry Miller
Do not sit idle, for indeed death is seeking you — Hasan of Basra
Idle Image Quotes
I'm not a fan of idleness, except in small doses.
The devil tempts all men, but idle men tempt the devil. — Arabic Proverbs
Hunger is not the worst feature of unemployment; idleness is. — William Barrett
Sitting Idle Quotes
Give me a flagon of red wine, a book of verses, a loaf of bread, and a little idleness. If with such store I might sit by thy dear side in some lonely place, I should deem myself happier than a king in his kingdom. — Omar Khayyam
Today, I am an inquisitor. I shall not sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution. — Barbara Jordan
Sit in reverie and watch the changing color of the waves that break upon the idle seashore of the mind. — Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Could a mariner sit idle if he heard the drowning cry? Could a doctor sit in comfort and just let his patients die? Could a fireman sit idle, let men burn and give no hand? Can you sit at ease in Zion with the world around you damned? — Leonard Ravenhill
It is better to sit alone than in company with the bad, and it is better still to sit with the good than alone. It is better to speak to a seeker of knowledge than to remain silent, but silence is better than idle words. — Muhammad
Nothing can match the treasure of common memories, of trials endured together, of quarrels and reconciliations and generous emotions. It is idle, having planted an acorn in the morning, to expect that afternoon to sit in the shade of the oak. — Antoine de Saint-Exupery
It's a matter of ABC: When we encounter ADVERSITY, we react by thinking about it. Our thoughts rapidly congeal into BELIEFS. These beliefs may become so habitual we don't even realize we have them unless we stop to focus on them. And they don't just sit there idly; they have CONSEQUENCES. — Martin Seligman
My purity manifests itself in countless ways, including an utter inability to sit idly when exposed to attacks on truth, reason, logic, and/or individual dignity. — Gad Saad
Omission to do what is necessary Seals a commission to a blank of danger; And danger, like an ague, subtly taints Even then when we sit idly in the sun. — William Shakespeare
Here with my beer I sit, while golden moments flit: alas! They pass unheeded by: and as they fly, I, being dry, sit idly sipping here, my beer. — George Arnold
Being Idle Quotes
Idleness is the enemy of the soul; and therefore the brethren ought to be employed in manual labor at certain times, at others, in devout reading. — Benedict of Nursia
Sometimes I think that idlers seem to be a special class for whom nothing can be planned, plead as one will with them - their only contribution to the human family is to warm a seat at the common table. — F. Scott Fitzgerald
Be industrious, let thine eyes be open, lest you become a beggar, for the man that is idle cometh not to honor. — Egyptian Proverbs
You must obey this now for a law, that he that will not work shall not eat (except by sickness he be disabled). For the labors of thirty or forty honest and industrious men shall not be consumed to maintain a hundred and fifty idle loiterers. — John Smith
It is better wither to be silent, or to say things of more value than silence. Sooner throw a pearl at hazard than an idle or useless word; and do not say a little in many words, but a great deal in a few. — Pythagoras
If we look on idly, heaven and earth will never be joined. To join heaven and earth, some decisive deed of purity is necessary. To accomplish so resolute an action, you have to stake your life, giving no thought to personal gain or loss. — Yukio Mishima
we must be as satisfied to be powerless, idle and still before God, and dried up and barren when He permits it, as to be full of life, enjoying His presence with ease and devotion. The whole matter of our union with God consists in being content either way. — Jane Frances de Chantal
Give me the boy who rouses when he is praised, who profits when he is encouraged and who cries when he is defeated. Such a boy will be fired by ambition; he will be stung by reproach, and animated by preference; never shall I apprehend any bad consequences from idleness in such a boy. — Quintilian
All of our days are numbered. We cannot afford to be idle. To act on a bad idea is better than to not act at all, because the worth of an idea never becomes apparent until you do it. — Nick Cave
When I look back at the past and think of all the time I squandered in error and idleness,... then my heart bleeds. Life is a gift... every minute could have been an eternity of happiness! If only youth knew! Now my life will change; now I will be reborn. — Fyodor Dostoevsky
Idle Time Quotes
People count with self-satisfaction the number of times they have recited the name of God on their prayer beads, but they keep no beads for reckoning the number of idle words they speak. — Al-Ghazali
The way I think I should stay out of trouble is by stayin' busy. With idle time comes a lot of biz, so the more my work load is heavy, I'll have no time to get into any trouble or makin' dis tracks or get into conversation about any other rappers. — Gucci Mane
Life is best enjoyed when time periods are evenly divided between labor, sleep, and recreation...all people should spend one-third of their time in recreation which is rebuilding, voluntary activity, never idleness. — Brigham Young
A bed or a chair will trick you if you stay still on them long at a time. They will draw out your strength and leave you weak as water. — Julia Peterkin
Rather, ten times, die in the surf, heralding the way to a new world, than stand idly on the shore. — Florence Nightingale
It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing. — Thomas Jefferson
Regret for time wasted can become a power for good in the time that remains, if we will only stop the waste and the idle, useless regretting. — Arthur Brisbane
Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing. — Thomas Jefferson
One who does not rouse themself when it is time to rise, who, though capable, is full of sloth, whose will and thought are weak, that lazy and idle person will never find their way to true knowledge. — Buddha
Idle Hands Quotes
Toil is man's allotment; toil of brain, or toil of hands, or a grief that's more than either, the grief and sin of idleness. — Herman Melville
You should not have idle hands, you should always be working. All your life. — Ivan Bunin
Idleness and pride tax with a heavier hand than kings and governments. — Benjamin Franklin
I would rather play with forked lightning, or take in my hand living wires with their fiery current, than to speak a reckless word against any servant of Christ, or idly repeat the slanderous darts which thousands of Christians are hurling on others, to the hurt of their own souls and bodies. — A. B. Simpson
That the Devil finds work for idle hands to do is probably true. But there is a profound difference between leisure and idleness. — Henry Ford
although it has been said that idle hands are the devil's workshop, when it comes to teenagers, both idle and active hands are the devil's workshop. — Amy Sedaris
You can bet the rent money that whatever politicians do will end up harming consumers. ... Economic ignorance is to politicians what idle hands are to the devil. Both provide the workshop for the creation of evil. — Walter E. Williams
Jewels, lies, slips of paper, dried flowers, memories of thing long past, useless quotations, idle hands, beads, buttons, and mischief. — Holly Black
Idle Chatter Quotes
We open our mouths and out flow words whose ancestries we do not even know. We are walking lexicons. In a single sentence of idle chatter we preserve Latin, Anglo-Saxon, Norse: we carry a museum inside our heads, each day we commemorate peoples of whom we have never heard. — Penelope Lively
The things that really matter don't mix with idle chatter. — Mose Allison
You must lie upon the daisies and discourse in novel phrases of complicated state of mind. The meaning doesn't matter if it's only idle chatter of a transcendental kind. — W. S. Gilbert
I have a scholar's love of silence and solitude. To sit and pass hour after hour in idle chatter with a roomful of strangers is to me the worst sort of torment. — Susanna Clarke
This is a most unfortunate affair, and will probably be much talked of. But we must stem the tide of idle chatter, and pour into our wounded bosoms the soothing balm of vengeance. — Seth Grahame-Smith
As to people saying a few idle words about us, we must not mind that, any more than the old church steeple minds the rooks cawing about it. — George Eliot
Most women indulge in idle gossip, which is the henchman of rumor and scandal. — Octave Feuillet
Soup simmering, music of idle gossip, yammering kids, domestic chaos - long adjusted to this rolling scene, you show them your lofty calm. — Gottfried Keller
History is idle gossip about a happening whose truth is lost the instant it has taken place. — Gore Vidal
Can you suggest any suitable aspersions to spread abroad about Mrs. Thatcher? It is idle to suggest she has unnatural relations with Mrs. Barbara Castle; what is needed is something socially lower: that she eats asparagus with knife and fork, or serves instant mash potatoes. — Sylvia Townsend Warner
A newspaper, not having to act on its descriptions and reports, but only to sell them to idly curious people, has nothing but honor to lose by inaccuracy and non-veracity. — George Bernard Shaw
My faith in the Constitution is whole, it is complete, it is total, and I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminuation, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution. It is reason and not passion which must guide our deliberations, guide our debate, and guide our decision. — Barbara Jordan
Our youth must be steadfast and take advantage of the benefits of modern civilization. Do not fall prey to idleness for it shall be a curse to you and to succeeding generations. You must set yourselves us as examples of determination and hard work. Plan your time and use both your physical and mental powers purposefully and productively. — Haile Selassie
God, I pray Thee, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, Lord Jesus. — Jim Elliot
I don't think necessity is the mother of invention. Invention, in my opinion, arises directly from idleness, possibly also from laziness - to save oneself trouble. — Agatha Christie
Until the control of the issue of currency and credit is restored to government and recognized as its most conspicuous and sacred responsibility, all talks of the sovereignty of Parliament and of democracy is idle and futile. — William Lyon Mackenzie King
At Kansas City, Kansas, before the saloons were closed, they were getting ready to build an addition to the jail. Now the doors swing idly on the hinges and there is nobody to lock in the jails. — Billy Sunday
O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, meddling, lust of power, and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to Thy servant. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sins and not to judge my brother; for Thou art blessed unto ages of ages. Amen. — Ephrem the Syrian
Idleness leads to relaxation, sooner or later bringing about ideological and material corruption, accompanied by lack of discipline, anarchy chaos and defeat. — Samora Machel
God helps those who work, not those who are idle. No one helps an inactive person, but one who joins in the labor. The good God himself will bring...work to perfection. — Saint John Chrysostom
Want is one only of five giants on the road of reconstruction; the others are Disease, Ignorance, Squalor, and Idleness. — William Beveridge
Want is one only of five giants on the road of reconstruction; the others are Disease, Ignorance, Squalor, and Idleness. — Baron William Henry Beveridge
These eyes, tho' clear To outward view of blemish or of spot, Bereft of light, their seeing have forgot, Nor to their idle orbs doth sight appear Of sun, or moon, or star, throughout the year, Or man, or woman. Yet I argue not Against Heaven's hand or will, not bate a jot Of heart or hope; but still bear up and steer Right onward. — John Milton
Remember, grab you're future with both hands and mold it into what you want it to be. It's the determined, who create the life they want, while the idle sit by and watch it fade away into nothingness. The future belongs to the exceptional individuals, who can see the light of the future, at the end of the tunnel. — James D. Watson
There is never finality in the display terminal's screen, but an irresponsible whimsicality, as words, sentences, and paragraphs are negated at the touch of a key. The significance of the past, as expressed in the manuscript by a deleted word or an inserted correction, is annulled in idle gusts of electronic massacre. — Alexander Cockburn
In Conclusion
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