7 Quotes & Sayings By George William Russell

George William Russell (1816-1878) was born at St. Andrews, Fifeshire, Scotland, into an old and wealthy family. He received his education at the University of Edinburgh and graduated at the age of twenty-three. He then went to London, where he continued his studies in moral philosophy under Francis Hare and in divinity under Thomas Chalmers at Glasgow University Read more

This period also saw him establish a close friendship with John Stuart Mill, who later wrote to Russell's father: "If you were to take the whole genus of men thus formed for excellence, I do not think you could find another man who would shine so much as George William Russell." Determined to become a minister of the Church of Scotland, Russell traveled to Paris, where he was ordained by the bishop of Edinburgh. After five years of missionary work among the poor in England's industrial north, he settled down into a quiet life as a teacher and writer. After spending several years traveling through Europe and North America, Russell returned home to Scotland where he died at Overton on August 20, 1878, leaving behind him a legacy that would be revered by generations of Scottish admirers.

1
When steam first began to pump and wheels go round at so many revolutions per minute, what are called business habits were intended to make the life of man run in harmony with the steam engine, and his movement rival the train in punctuality. George William Russell
2
Our hearts were drunk with a beauty Our eyes could never see. George William Russell
3
Love and hate have a magical transforming power. They are the great soul changers. We grow through their exercise into the likeness of what we contemplate. George William Russell
4
The relation of landlord and tenant is not an ideal one, but any relations in a social order will endure if there is infused into them some of that spirit of human sympathy which qualifies life for immortality. George William Russell
5
Any relations in a social order will endure, if there is infused into them some of that spirit of human sympathy which qualifies life for immortality. George William Russell
6
We have the universe to roam in in imagination. It is our virtue to be infinitely varied. The worst tyranny is uniformity. George William Russell