The most important part of teaching is to teach what it is to know.

— Simone Weil

The notion of obligations comes before that of rights, which is subordinate and relative to the former. A right is not effectual by itself, but only in relation to the obligation to which it corresponds, the effective exercise of a right springing not from the individual who possesses it, but from other men who consider themselves as being under a certain obligation towards him. Recognition of an obligation makes it effectual. An obligation which goes unrecognized by anybody loses none of the full force of its existence. A right which goes unrecognized by anybody is not worth very much. It makes nonsense to say that men have, on the one hand, rights, and on the other hand, obligations. Such words only express differences in point of view. The actual relationship between the two is as between object and subject. A man, considered in isolation, only has duties, amongst which are certain duties towards himself. A man left alone in the universe would have no rights whatever, but he would have obligations.

— Simone Weil

There are two atheism of which one is a purification of the notion of God.

— Simone Weil

There isn't a man on earth who doesn't at times pronounce an opinion on good and evil, even if it is only to find fault with somebody else.

— Simone Weil

There is one, and only one, thing in modern society more hideous than crime namely, repressive justice.

— Simone Weil

There is something else which has the power to awaken us to the truth. It is the works of writers of genius. They give us, in the guise of fiction, something equivalent to the actual density of the real, that density which life offers us every day but which we are unable to grasp because we are amusing ourselves with lies.

— Simone Weil

There is something in our soul that loathes true attention much more violently than flesh loathes fatigue. That something is much closer to evil than flesh is. That is why, every time we truly give our attention, we destroy some evil in ourselves. If one pays attention with this intention, fifteen minutes of attention is worth a lot of good works.

— Simone Weil

The role of the intelligence - that part of us which affirms and denies and formulates opinions is merely to submit.

— Simone Weil

The sum of the particular intentions of God is the universe itself.

— Simone Weil

Those who are unhappy have no need for anything in this world but people capable of giving them their attention.

— Simone Weil