Jorge Luis Borges, born on August 24, 1899, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, was a masterful Argentine writer, poet, and essayist whose imaginative works explored profound themes like infinity, dreams, and reality. Throughout his career, Borges achieved global recognition, including winning the Cervantes Prize in 1979, and his short stories, such as those in “Ficciones” and “The Aleph,” continue to influence literature and philosophy. His quotes, sourced from books, interviews, and essays, offer timeless reflections on existence. In this collection, we’ve curated 15 quotes by Borges specifically about life, drawn from various points in his career, to inspire contemplation on the human experience.
15 Jorge Luis Borges Quotes
1. “Life itself is a quotation.” (Book, “Labyrinths,” 1962)
2. “We accept reality so readily – perhaps a reality we suspect is flawed.” (Book, “Dreamtigers,” 1960)
3. “Time is the substance I am made of. Time is a river which sweeps me along, but I am the river.” (Essay, “A New Refutation of Time,” 1946)
4. “A man sets out to draw the world. As the years go by, he peoples a space with images of provinces, kingdoms, mountains, bays, ships, islands, fishes, rooms, instruments, stars, horses, and individuals. A short time before he dies, he discovers that the patient labyrinth of lines traces the lineaments of his own face.” (Book, “The Aleph,” 1949)
5. “All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassments, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art.” (Interview, The New York Times, 1970)
6. “The task of art is to transform chaos into order.” (Essay, “The Argentine Writer and Tradition,” 1951)
7. “We are our memory, we are that chimerical museum of shifting shapes, that pile of broken mirrors.” (Book, “Dreamtigers,” 1960)
8. “To be immortal is commonplace; except for man, all creatures are immortal, for they are ignorant of death; what is divine, terrible, incomprehensible, is to know that one is immortal.” (Book, “The Immortal,” 1949)
9. “I have suspected that the only thing without mystery is happiness, because it justifies itself.” (Book, “The Aleph,” 1949)
10. “Life is too short to be small.” (Interview, BBC, 1971)
11. “In the course of time, truth will be stripped of every veil, and at last stand forth in all its native sublimity.” (Lecture, University of Buenos Aires, n.d.)
12. “To die for a religion is easier than to live it absolutely.” (Book, “Other Inquisitions,” 1952)
13. “Happiness is a matter of one’s most trivial desires being fulfilled.” (Book, “The Book of Imaginary Beings,” 1957)
14. “The universe is a library of which I am the inventor and the user.” (Book, “The Library of Babel,” 1941)
15. “I have committed the worst sin that can be committed. I have not been happy.” (Interview, The Paris Review, 1967)
These quotes from Borges illuminate his deep philosophical musings on life’s intricacies, revealing a world where reality blurs with dreams, time shapes identity, and every moment holds profound meaning. They showcase his respect for the human condition, encouraging reflection on mortality, memory, and the search for truth. What do these words evoke in you? Share your favorite Borges quote or personal reflections in the comments below to continue the conversation.