Quotes by Robert M. Pirsig

"Even in the presence of others he was completely alone."

"If you don't imitate what the teacher wants you get a bad grade. Here, in college, it was more sophisticated, of course; you were supposed to imitate the teacher in such a way as to convince the teacher you were not imitating, but taking the essence of the instruction and going agead with it on your own."

"Montains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down."

"One geometry can not be more true than another; it can only be more convenient. Geometry is not true, it is advantageous."

"Quality isn't something you lay on top of subjects and objects like tinsel on a Christmas tree. Real Quality must be the source of the subjects and objects, the cone from which the tree must start."

"To live only for some future goal is shallow. It's the sides of the mountain which sustain life, not the top. Here's where things grow."