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the true knowledge is disciplined and tested knowledge,—not the first thought that comes, so the true passion is disciplined and tested passion,—not the first passion that comes. The first that come are the vain, the false, the treacherous; if you yield to them they will lead you wildly and far, in vain pursuit, in hollow enthusiasm, till you have no true purpose and no true passion left. Not that any feeling possible to humanity is in itself wrong, but only wrong when undisciplined.
the true knowledge is disciplined and tested knowledge,—not the first thought that comes, so the true passion is disciplined and tested passion,—not the first passion that comes. The first that come are the vain, the false, the treacherous; if you yield to them they will lead you wildly and far, in vain pursuit, in hollow enthusiasm, till you have no true purpose and no true passion left. Not that any feeling possible to humanity is in itself wrong, but only wrong when undisciplined.
Approximate author period: c. 1859 AD · industrial
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- Author or tradition
- John Ruskin
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- Approximate author period: c. 1859 AD · industrial
Approximate author-period anchor from life dates 1819 to 1900; Wikidata Q179126, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q179126 (accessed 2026-10-08). Not a quotation composition date.
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Supplied reference C; CSV row 46968; supplied attribution, independently unverified
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