Good fortune turns aside destruction by a great god.
—Instructions of Ankhsheshonqy, c. 100 BC
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Quotes
It is so difficult not to become vain about one’s own good luck.
—Simone de Beauvoir, 1963Good or ill fortune is very little at our disposal.
—David Hume, 1742When the abbot throws the dice, the whole convent will play.
—Martin Luther, c. 1540Misfortune, n. The kind of fortune that never misses.
—Ambrose Bierce, 1906Luck is believing you’re lucky.
—William Carlos Williams, 1947There are two times in a man’s life when he should not speculate: when he can’t afford it, and when he can.
—Mark Twain, 1897You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from.
—Cormac McCarthy, 2005Those who trust to chance must abide by the results of chance.
—Calvin Coolidge, 1932’Tis not a ridiculous devotion to say a prayer before a game at tables?
—Thomas Browne, 1642Survivors look back and see omens, messages they missed.
—Joan Didion, 2005Fortune resists half-hearted prayers.
—Ovid, 8We do not suffer by accident.
—Jane Austen, 1813