109 Quotes about Fate and Destiny in 12 Categories
Jacqueline Eisenbraun
(Senior Editor)
Are you on the hunt for quotes and sayings about fate and destiny? Then you’ve come to the right place. In this article you’ll find over 100 quotes about fate in 12 different categories.
You probably know the feeling: you make plans for your life, and suddenly everything changes. Fate comes in unexpectedly and influences your life in ways you would never have predicted.
These brushes with destiny often mean facing new challenges. From time to time you will find yourself in testing situations that life has spontaneously thrown at you. But all of this makes you stronger, too.
Wisdoms about Fate
Wisdoms about Fate
First of all you will find wise quotes about fate in this section. They discuss predestination and how to deal with blows of fate. If you are looking for insights into destiny, this is the category for you.
- As for omens, there is no such thing as an omen. Destiny does not send us heralds. She is too wise or too cruel for that.
(Oscar Wilde, Irish poet, 1854-1900) - Fate is nothing but the deeds committed in a prior state of existence.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, 1803-1882) - What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate.
(Henry David Thoreau, American philosopher, 1817-1862) - How a person masters his fate is more important than what his fate is.
(Wilhelm von Humboldt, German linguist, 1767-1835) - A tree cannot choose the bird which lands on it.
(From China) - Adapt yourself to the environment in which your lot has been cast, and show true love to the fellow-mortals with whom destiny has surrounded you.
(Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor, 121-180) - Man makes his own destiny, and destiny makes the man. And so freedom and necessity are intertwined.
(Johann Michael Sailer, German theologian, 1751-1832) - The stars are only the father of your fate. The mother is your own soul.
(Johannes Kepler, German astronomer, 1571-1630) - Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter. Who would think that those branches would turn green again and blossom, but we hope it, we know it.
(Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, 1749-1832) - There is a tide in the affairs of men
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afloat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616)
Fate and Destiny Quotes
Fate and Destiny Quotes
In this section you will find a variety of quotes about fate and destiny, from short quotes, funny sayings, sad and beautiful quotes about fate to encouraging quotes and words of wisdom.
And if you are searching for quotes that discuss how destiny interacts with sickness, consequences, coincidence and love, we have just what you’re looking for.
Here you will find more smart quotes.
Fate Quotes on Meeting Someone
Fate Quotes on Meeting Someone
Sometimes when you meet someone, it feels like it must be fate. You instantly get along with the person and they become an important part of your life.
The following quotes are about the feeling of fate on meeting someone, whether they are a friend or a romantic partner.
Looking for more love quotes? Here you will find them.
- Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, but falling in love with you I had no control over.
(Unknown) - Are we not like two volumes of one book?
(Marceline Desbordes-Valmore, French poet, 1786-1859) - Fate chooses our relatives, we choose our friends.
(Jacques Delille, French poet, 1738-1813) - Friends and acquaintances are the surest passport to fortune.
(Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher, 1788-1860) - Fate decides who comes into your life, your heart decides who stays.
(Unknown) - When you meet that special someone, you’ll understand why it didn’t work out with anyone else.
(Unknown) - When the soul is ready, its mate will appear.
(Unknown) - A sad thing in life is when you meet someone who means a lot to you, only to find out in the end that it was never meant to be and you just have to let go.
(Unknown)
“Everything Happens for a Reason” Quotes
“Everything Happens for a Reason” Quotes
Some people believe that everything happens for a reason. When fate deals you a blow, there just might be a reason for it – maybe it will make you stronger, or lead to better things.
The following quotes discuss the idea that everything happens for a reason. They talk about why things happen in our lives and how to deal with them, if we believe that they did not happen by chance.
- Every man has his own destiny: the only imperative is to follow it, to accept it, no matter where it leads him.
(Henry Miller, American novelist, 1891-1980) - There is no such thing as accident: it is fate misnamed.
(Napoleon Bonaparte, French statesman, 1769-1821) - The hardest thing about "everything happens for a reason" is waiting for that reason to show up.
(Unknown) - Nothing happens to anybody which nature does not fit him to bear.
(Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor, 121-180) - Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you.
(Rashi, French rabbi, 1040-1105) - Fate always knows what is best for us.
(Max Dauthendey, German poet, 1867-1918) - Here is the rule to remember in the future, When anything tempts you to be bitter: not, 'This is a misfortune' but 'To bear this worthily is good fortune.'
(Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor, 121-180)
Quotes about Love and Fate
Quotes about Love and Fate
The quotes in this section discuss love, fate, and predestination in romances. You will find quotes here about how fate can test your love or stand in love’s way, and how love can overcome this.
- Love is more powerful than fate.
(Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian writer, 1313-1375) - What love unites, fate can never truly separate.
(Johann Caspar Lavater, Swiss pastor, 1741-1801) - Soulmates always find their way back to each other.
(Unknown) - What destiny sends, bear! Whoever perseveres will be crowned.
(Johann Gottfried von Herder, German philosopher, 1744-1803) - Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.
(Rumi, Persian Sufi mystic, 1207-1273) - There are people who can be thrown off balance by small incidents, while they steadfastly endure great blows.
(Sully Prudhomme, French writer, 1839-1907) - There is no fate on Earth so grim,
That love can find no happiness within.
(Carl Spitteler, Swiss poet, 1845-1924) - It lies not in our power to love or hate,
For will in us is over-rul’d by fate.
(Christopher Marlowe, English poet, 1564-1593) - The heart’s impulse is the voice of fate.
(Friedrich von Schiller, German playwright, 1759-1805)
Here you will find beautiful self love quotes.
Quotes about Destiny and Consequences
Quotes about Destiny and Consequences
In this section you will find quotes about the consequences of fate, about changes and unforeseen developments in life. If A doesn’t lead to B, but rather to C, then fate might just have played its hand.
- Not without a shudder may the human hand reach into the mysterious urn of destiny.
(Friedrich von Schiller, German playwright, 1759-1805) - Not what we experience, but how we perceive what we experience, determines our fate.
(Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, Moravian-Austrian writer, 1830-1916) - It is the most embarrassing despondency to feel that we have earned our fate.
(Leopold Schefer, German poet, 1784-1862) - Every bird has its decoy, and every man is led and misled in his own peculiar way.
(Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, 1749-1832) - The unforeseen is the real test.
(Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.) - As is your desire, so is your intention. As is your intention, so is your will. As is your will, so is your deed. As is your deed, so is your destiny.
(From the Upanishads) - I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.
(Gilbert K. Chesterton, English writer, 1874-1936) - Though men determine, the gods doo dispose: and oft times many things fall out between the cup and the lip.
(Robert Greene, English writer, 1558-1592) - Whither the fates lead virtue will follow without fear.
(Lucan, Roman poet, 39-65 AD) - Fortune makes visible our virtues or our vices, as light does objects.
(François de La Rochefoucauld, French author, 1613-1680) - But woe to anyone who does not bind his fate to that of the community, for not only will he find no peace, but he will also lose all inner stability and be exposed to the contempt of the people like a weed that stands in the way.
(Gottfried Keller, Swiss poet, 1819-1890)
Short Destiny Quotes
Short Destiny Quotes
Here we have selected particularly short quotes about destiny for you. Quotes in this category are especially suitable for memorizing or sending to others, because they are so short and concise.
- But, O vain boast!
Who can control his fate?
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616) - Destiny is no more than us.
(Rainer Maria Rilke, Austrian storyteller and lyricist,1875-1926) - God’s dice always have a lucky roll.
(Sophocles, Greek poet, 496-406 B.C.) - Wherever the fates lead us let us follow.
(Virgil, Roman poet, 70-19 B.C.) - I will seize fate by the throat: it shall certainly never wholly overcome me.
(Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer, 1770-1827) - The sun cannot bleach what fate has written in black ink.
(From Greece) - Man creates his own destiny.
(Gottfried Kinkel, German writer, 1815-1882) - For rarely man escapes his destiny.
(Ludovico Ariosto, Italian author, 1474-1533) - No man alive can say, This shall not happen to me.
(Menander, Greek comedy poet, 342/341 B.C.-291/290 B.C.) - Fate will find a way.
(Virgil, Roman poet, 70-19 B.C.)
Funny Quotes about Fortune
Funny Quotes about Fortune
In this section you will find a handful of funny quotes about destiny. If you are the kind of person who likes to take things with good humor and let life surprise you, then these quotes are perfect for you.
- It’s better to bear your cross than to drag it.
(Breton proverb) - Our destiny is frequently met in the very paths we take to avoid it.
(Jean De La Fontaine, French writer, 1621-1695) - What fate takes in hair, it replaces with humor.
(German proverb) - Fate leads the willing and drags along the unwilling.
(Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Roman philosopher, c. 4 B.C.-65 A.D.) - Fate would have no divinity if we were wise: it is we who make her a goddess and place her in heaven.
(Juvenal, Roman poet, c. 55-130) - Fate throws fortune, but not everyone catches.
(Polish proverb)
Encouraging Quotes about Fate
Encouraging Quotes about Fate
Here you will find quotes to encourage you and give you confidence. Even if fate comes into your life uninvited and changes your plans, it doesn’t mean that you are completely powerless.
- How a person masters his fate is more important than what his fate is.
(Wilhelm von Humboldt, German linguist, 1767-1835) - As if whipped by invisible spirits, the sun steeds of time run away with the light chariot of our destiny, and nothing remains to us but to hold onto the reins with calm courage, steering the wheels, now right, now left, from the stone here and the abyss there. Where it carries us – who knows? One hardly remembers whence once came.
(Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, 1749-1832) - Whoever has the courage to wrestle with fate is a king born among men.
(Ludwig Anzengruber, Austrian writer, 1839-1889) - Things at the worst will cease or else climb upward
To what they were before.
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616) - Here’s a sigh to those who love me,
And a smile to those who hate;
And whatever sky’s above me,
Here’s a heart for every fate.
(Lord Byron, British poet, 1788-1824) - The little incidents and accidents of every day fill us with emotion, anxiety, annoyance, passion, as long as they are close to us, when they appear so big, so important, so serious; but as soon as they are borne down the restless stream of time they lose what significance they had; we think no more of them and soon forget them altogether. They were big only because they were near.
(Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher, 1788-1860) - There are good and bad times, but our mood changes more often than our fortune.
(Thomas Carlyle, Scottish essayist, 1795-1881) - Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.
(Franklin D. Roosevelt, American president, 1882-1945) - I am more and more convinced that our happiness or our unhappiness depends far more on the way we meet the events of life than on the nature of those events themselves.
(Wilhelm von Humboldt, German linguist, 1767-1835)
Here you will get more quotes about confidence.
Beautiful Quotes about Fortune
Beautiful Quotes about Fortune
In this category you will find especially beautiful quotes about fate and fortune. They helpfully remind us that although you can’t control everything in life, you can still make your own destiny.
- Refrain from asking what is going to happen tomorrow, and every day that fortune grants you, count as gain.
(Horace, Roman poet, 65-8 B.C.) - Whatever fortune brings, don’t be afraid of doing things.
(Herman Melville, American writer, 1819-1891) - Destiny is not decided by forces outside of man, but comes from within himself.
(Rainer Maria Rilke, Austrian storyteller and lyricist,1875-1926) - There is no destiny; there is only courage and will; be strong in yourself, and your fate will remain in your own hands.
(Ernst Schulze, German poet, 1789-1817) - It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616) - Let us, then, be up and doing, with a heart for any fate; still achieving, still pursuing, learn to labor and to wait.
(Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet, 1807-1882)
Sad Fate Quotes
Sad Fate Quotes
Here you will find sad quotes about realizing that you are not in a position to control everything that you would like to. Impermanence and tenacity are common themes here.
- Fates, we will know your pleasures.
That we shall die, we know, ’tis but the time,
And drawing days out, that men stand upon.
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616) - Destiny: A tyrant’s authority for crime and a fool’s excuse for failure.
(Ambrose Bierce, American short story writer, 1842-1914) - We should find solace for misfortune in the happy memory of the things that are gone and in the knowledge that what has come to be cannot be undone.
(Epicurus of Samos, Greek philosopher, 341 B.C.-270 B.C.) - If someone’s fate is to drown, then he will drown even in a cup of water.
(Jewish proverb) - The greater the promise that hangs over your life, the longer the time before it is fulfilled.
(Unknown) - All human things are subject to decay,
And when fate summons, monarchs must obey.
(John Dryden, English poet, 1631-1700) - The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.
(William Shakespeare, English playwright, 1564-1616) - We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.
(Oscar Wilde, Irish poet, 1854-1900)
Quotes about Fate and Coincidence
Quotes about Fate and Coincidence
In this section you will find quotes about the similarities and differences between fate and coincidence. They deal with situations when supposed coincidence turns out to be fate, and when fate seems like mere coincidence. If this is the dynamic you are dealing with, choose one of these quotes.
- Sometimes destiny, so as not to frighten us, takes on the air of chance.
(Johann Nestroy Austrian playwright, 1801-1862) - Does the sun shine on me today that I may reflect on yesterday? That I may endeavor to foresee and control what can neither be foreseen nor controlled – the destiny of tomorrow?
(Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, 1749-1832) - Coincidence is a riddle that fate gives to man.
(Christian Friedrich Hebbel, German Playwright, 1813-1863) - Ein konsequenter Mensch glaubt an das Schicksal, ein launenhafter an den Zufall.
(Benjamin Disraeli, British statesman, 1804-1881) - When a coincidence has bad consequences we call it fate.
(Unknown) - Coincidence is the most common alias of fate.
(Theodor Fontane, German writer, 1819-1898) - Three forces work together and produce results. These are fate, chance and effort. Effort is the prerequisite for all good things.
(Mahabharata, ancient Indian epic, 400 AD) - Could it be that random events have a connection? And that what we call destiny is really just chance?
(Johann Wolfgang von Goethe) - Fortune converts everything to the advantage of her favorites.
(François de La Rochefoucauld, French author, 1613-1680) - For chance is ever raising up the unhappy and casting down the happy, and none can say whether a man’s destiny be the one or the other.
(Sophocles, Greek poet, 496-406 B.C.)
Quotes about Predestination and Disease
Quotes about Predestination and Disease
Sometimes, when someone close to you becomes ill, you might ask yourself: why this person? It isn’t fair when a loved one suffers from an illness even though they led a healthy life. The quotes in this section talk about the relationship between illness and fate.
- Sickness can be cured, but not fate.
(From China) - We are not the masters of our destiny. The whirlwind of events sweeps us away and we are powerless against it.
(Frederick the Great, King of prussia, 1712-1786) - Inconveniences, even horrible things that are bound to come, can only be stripped of their terrible character to some extent by grabbing them by the chest as quickly as possible and fighting the battle that must be fought.
(Theodor Fontane, German writer, 1819-1898) - Every man must have his misfortunes.
(Frederick the Great) - And the vexatious thing about it is that all such premonitions, inspirations, hints from above, warnings from dreams and apparitions are of no use; because the thing happens anyway.
(Denis Diderot, French philosopher, 1713-1784) - Fate does what it wants with people; one could speak of a tyranny. According to the principles of progress, fate should have ceased to exist long ago.
(Johann Nestroy Austrian playwright, 1801-1862)
"What Is Destiny" Quotes
"What Is Destiny" Quotes
In this category you will find out what destiny is and what it isn’t. These “What is Destiny” quotes and sayings show what people think predestination is all about.
- Character and fate are two words for the same thing.
(Novalis, German poet, 1772-1801) - Fate is what life throws at you. Purpose is what you make of it.
(Unknown) - Fate is nothing but the deeds committed in a prior state of existence.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, 1803-1882) - Fate rules the affairs of mankind with no recognizable order.
(Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Roman philosopher, c. 4 B.C.-65 A.D.) - The destiny of man is in his own soul.
(Herodotus, Greek historian, c. 485 – c. 425 B.C.) - What people commonly call fate is mostly their own stupidity.
(Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher, 1788-1860) - Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.
(William Jennings Bryan, American lawyer, 1860-1925) - The best way to predict your future is to create it.
(Abraham Lincoln, American president, 1809-1865) - Man is not the creature of circumstances, circumstances are the creatures of men. We are free agents, and man is more powerful than matter.
(Benjamin Disraeli, British statesman, 1804-1881)
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