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Viktor E. Frankl quotes

Austrian Psychologist March 26, 1905 – September 2, 1997

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A man's concern, even his despair, over the worthwhileness of life is an existential distress but by no means a mental disease. Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "The meaning of life is to give life meaning."
The meaning of life is to give life meaning. Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by..."
Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose. Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life..."
Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked. Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "If there is meaning in life at all, then there must be meaning..."
If there is meaning in life at all, then there must be meaning in suffering. Viktor E. Frankl
Don't aim at success - the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one's dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it. Viktor E. Frankl
One evening, when we were already resting on the floor of our hut, dead tired, soup bowls in hand, a fellow prisoner rushed in and asked us to run out to the assembly grounds and see the wonderful sunset. Standing outside we saw sinister clouds glowing in the west and the whole sky alive with clouds of ever-changing shapes and colors, from steel blue to blood red. The desolate grey mud huts provided a sharp contrast, while the puddles on the muddy ground reflected the glowing sky. Then, after... Viktor E. Frankl
Just consider a child who, absorbed in play, forgets himself—this is the moment to take a snapshot; when you wait until he notices that you are taking a picture, his face congeals and freezes, showing his unnatural self-consciousness rather than his natural graciousness. Why do most people have that stereotyped expression on their faces whenever they are photographed? This expression stems from their concern with the impression they are going to leave on the onlooker. It is "cheese" that... Viktor E. Frankl
To the European, it is a characteristic of the American culture that, again and again, one is commanded and ordered to 'be happy.' But happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue. One must have a reason to 'be happy.' Once the reason is found, however, one becomes happy automatically. As we see, a human being is not one in pursuit of happiness but rather in search of a reason to become happy, last but not least, through actualizing the potential meaning inherent and dormant in a given... Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "It is the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness."
It is the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness. Viktor E. Frankl
Viktor E. Frankl quote: "Happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue."
Happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue. Viktor E. Frankl
Sunday neurosis, that kind of depression which afflicts people who become aware of the lack of content in their lives when the rush of the busy week is over and the void within themselves becomes manifest. Viktor E. Frankl
We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms -- to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way. Viktor E. Frankl
Man is able to snatch everything except one thing, the last of human freedoms: the choice of an attitude under any given set of circumstances to determine his own path. Viktor E. Frankl
I shall never forget how I was roused one night by the groans of a fellow prisoner, who threw himself about in his sleep, obviously having a horrible nightmare. Since I had always been especially sorry for people who suffered from fearful dreams or deliria, I wanted to wake the poor man. Suddenly I drew back the hand which was ready to shake him, frightened at the thing I was about to do. At that moment I became intensely conscious of the fact that no dream, no matter how horrible, could... Viktor E. Frankl

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