“Whatever satisfies the soul is truth.”

“A writer can do nothing for men more necessary, satisfying, than just simply to reveal to them the infinite possibility of their own souls.”

“Argue not concerning God,…re-examine all that you have been told at church or school or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your soul…”

“I am satisfied ... I see, dance, laugh, sing.”

“A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books.”

“re-examine all you have been told in school or church or in any book, and dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh shall be a great poem, and have the richest fluency, not only in its words, but in the silent lines of its lips and face, and between the lashes of your eyes, and in every motion and joint of your body.[From the preface to Leaves Grass]”

“Clear and sweet is my soul, clear and sweet is all that is not my soul.”