Trevanian Quotes

• As you know, shibumi has to do with great refinement underlying commonplace appearances. It is a statement so correct that it does not have to be bold, so poignant it does not have to be pretty, so true it does not have to be real. Shibumi is understanding, rather than knowledge. Eloquent silence. In demeanor, it is modesty without pudency. In art, where the spirit of shibumi takes the form of sabi, it is elegant simplicity, articulate brevity. In philosophy, where shibumi emerges as wabi, it is spiritual tranquility that is not passive; it is being without the angst of becoming.

  Trevanian

  Spiritual, Art, Real

  Trevanian (2005). “Shibumi: A Novel”, p.77, Broadway Books

  17 Copy quote

• We all desire to be understood, but no one enjoys being obvious.

  Trevanian

  Desire, Enjoy, Obvious

  Trevanian (2005). “The Summer of Katya: A Novel”, p.22, Crown

  17 Copy quote

• It was not their irritating assumption of equality that annoyed Nicholai so much as their cultural confusions. The Americans seemed to confuse standard of living with quality of life, equal opportunity with institutionalized mediocrity, bravery with courage, machismo with manhood, liberty with freedom, wordiness with articulation, fun with pleasure - in short, all of the misconceptions common to those who assume that justice implies equality for all, rather than equality for equals.

  Trevanian

  Fun, Opportunity, Justice

  Trevanian (2005). “Shibumi: A Novel”, p.137, Broadway Books

  23 Copy quote

• Do not fall into the error of the artist who boasts of twenty years experience in his craft while in fact he has had only one year of experience - twenty times.

  Trevanian

  Fall, Artist, Errors

  15 Copy quote

• You can gain experience, if you are careful to avoid empty redundancy. Do not fall into the error of the artisan who boasts of twenty years experience in craft while in fact he has had only one year of experience–twenty times. And never resent the advantage of experience your elders have. Recall that they have paid for this experience in the coin of life, and have emptied a purse that cannot be refilled.

  Trevanian

  Fall, Errors, Years

  18 Copy quote

• Generalization is flawed thinking only when applied to individuals. It is the most accurate way to describe the mass, the Wad. And yours is a democracy, a dictatorship of the Wad.

  Trevanian

  Thinking, Democracy, Way

  Trevanian (2011). “Shibumi”, p.198, Hachette UK

  14 Copy quote

• Go is to Western chess what philosophy is to double-entry accounting.

  Trevanian

  Philosophy, Chess, Western

  Trevanian (2005). “Shibumi: A Novel”, p.165, Broadway Books

  8 Copy quote

• The rope connecting two men on a mountain is more than nylon protection; it is an organic thing that transmits subtle messages of intent and disposition from man to man; it is an extension of the tactile senses, a psychological bond, a wire along which currents of communication flow.

  Trevanian

  Communication, Men, Two

  Trevanian (2005). “The Eiger Sanction: A Novel”, p.255, Crown

  6 Copy quote

• Pass through knowledge to arrive at simplicity.

  Trevanian

  Simplicity

  9 Copy quote

• Ripe for romance? Is that not only the self-conscious and sensitive young man's way of saying he was heavy with passion? Is not, perhaps, romance only the fiction by means of which the tender-minded negotiate their lust?

  Trevanian

  Passion, Mean, Men

  Trevanian (2005). “The Summer of Katya: A Novel”, p.9, Crown

  10 Copy quote

• No one really likes Switzerland, except those who prefer cleanliness to life.

  Trevanian

  Switzerland, Likes, Cleanliness

  Trevanian (2005). “The Eiger Sanction: A Novel”, p.180, Crown

  13 Copy quote

• Irony is Fate's most common figure of speech.

  Trevanian

  Fate, Ironic, Speech

  Trevanian (2005). “Shibumi: A Novel”, p.106, Broadway Books

  9 Copy quote

• Hana: What on Earth is a 'barbeque'? Hel: A primitive tribal ritual featuring paper plates, elbows, flying insects, encrusted meat, hush puppies, and beer. Hana: I daren't ask what a 'hush puppy' is. Hel: Don't.

  Trevanian

  Beer, Flying, Meat

  9 Copy quote

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