Quotes by Abraham Cowley

Abraham Cowley

Abraham Cowley

English poet

Lived from: 1618 - 1667

Category: Poets (Contemporary) Country: FlagUnited Kingdom

  • I never had any other desire so strong, and so like to covetousness, as that one which I have had always, that I might be master at last of a small house and a large Garden.
  • The thirsty earth soaks up the rain, And drinks, and gapes for drink again; The plants suck in the earth, and are With constant drinking fresh and fair.
  • An harmless flaming meteor shone for hair, And fell adown his shoulders with loose care.
  • Money was made, not to command our will, But all out lawful pleasure to fulfil. Shame and woe to use, if we our wealth obey; The horse doth with the horseman run away.
  • We may talk what we please of lilies, and lions rampant, and spread eagles, in fields of d'or or d'argent, but if heraldry were guided by reason, a plough in a field arable would be the most noble and ancient arms.
  • The first three men in the world were a gardener, a ploughman, and a grazier; and if any man object that the second of these was a murderer, I desire he would consider that as soon as he was so, he quitted our profession and turned builder.
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Quotes 1 till 20 of 56.

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  • A mighty pain to love it is,
    And 't is a pain that pain to miss;
    But of all pains, the greatest pain
    It is to love, but love in vain.
    From Anacreon, vii. Gold; reported in Bartletts Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Ah! wretched and too solitary he who loves not his own company!
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  • Ah, yet, e'er I descend to th' grave, May I a small House and a large Garden have. And a few Friends, and many Books both true, Both wise, and both delightful too. And since Love ne'er will from me flee, A mistress moderately fair, And good as Guardian angels are, Only belov'd and loving me.
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  • All the world's bravery that delights our eyes is but thy several liveries.
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  • All this world's noise appears to me a dull, ill-acted comedy!
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  • An harmless flaming meteor shone for hair,
    And fell adown his shoulders with loose care.
    Davideis, book ii, line 95. Compare: Loose his beard and hoary hair / Streamd like a meteor to the troubled air, Thomas Gray, The Bard, i. 2.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • As for being much known by sight, and pointed out, I cannot comprehend the honor that lies withal; whatsoever it be, every mountebank has it more than the best doctor.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Begin, be bold, and venture to be wise, He who defers this work from day to day, Does on a river's bank expecting stay, Till the whole stream, which stopped him, should be gone, That runs, and as it runs, for ever will run on.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Curiosity does, no less than devotion, pilgrims make.
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  • Enjoy the present hour, be thankful for the past, And neither fear nor wish th' approaches of the last.
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  • Fill all the glasses there, for why
    Should every creature drink but I?
    Why, man of morals, tell me why?
    From Anacreon, ii. Drinking; reported in Bartletts Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Fond archer, Hope! who tak'st thy aim so far,
    That still or short, or wide thine arrows are!
    Against Hope.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • For the whole world, without a native home, Is nothing but a prison of larger room.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Gold begets in brethren hate; Gold in families debate; Gold does friendship separate; Gold does civil wars create.
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  • Happy insect! what can be In happiness compared to thee? Fed with nourishment divine, The dewy morning's gentle wine! Nature waits upon thee still, And thy verdant cup does fill; 'Tis fill'd wherever thou dost tread, Nature's self's thy Ganymede.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • Here tears and sighs speak his imperfect moan, In language far more moving than his own.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • His faith perhaps in some nice tenets might be wrong; his life, I'm sure, was always in the right.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • I never had any other desire so strong, and so like to covetousness, as that one which I have had always, that I might be master at last of a small house and a large Garden.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • I would not fear nor wish my fate,
    But boldly say each night,
    To-morrow let my sun his beams display,
    Or in clouds hide them; I have lived today.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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  • It is a hard and nice subject for a man to speak of himself: it grates his own heart to say anything of disparagement, and the reader's ear to hear anything of praise from him.
    ― Abraham Cowley
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Questions and Answers

What are the most famous quotes from Abraham Cowley?

The two most famous quotes from Abraham Cowley are:

  • "A mighty pain to love it is,
    And 't is a pain that pain to miss;
    But of all pains, the greatest pain
    It is to love, but love in vain."
  • "Ah! wretched and too solitary he who loves not his own company!"

When did Abraham Cowley live?

Abraham Cowley was born in 1618 and died in the year 1667.