An aphorism is an original thought, spoken or written in a laconic (concise) and memorable form.^[1] Aphorism literally means a "distinction" or "definition", from Greek ἀφορισμός (aphorismós), which is from ἀπό (apo) and ὁρίζειν (horizein), meaning "from/to bound". The term was first used in the Aphorisms of Hippocrates. The oft-cited first sentence of this work (see Ars longa, vita brevis) is:

The term was later applied to maxims of physical science, then statements of all kinds of philosophical, moral, or literary principles. In modern usage an aphorism is generally understood to be a concise statement containing a subjective truth or observation cleverly and pithily written.

Literature[link]

Aphoristic collections, sometimes known as wisdom literature, have a prominent place in the canons of several ancient societies, such as the Sutra literature of India, the Biblical Ecclesiastes, Islamic Hadith, The Golden Verses of Pythagoras, Hesiod's Works and Days, the Delphic maxims, and Epictetus' Handbook. Aphoristic collections also make up an important part of the work of some modern authors, such as Josemaría Escrivá (compiled from other spiritual authors), Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Arthur Schopenhauer, Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Franz Kafka, Karl Kraus, Montaigne, La Rouchefoucauld, Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, Andrzej Majewski, Mikhail Turovsky, Antonio Porchia, Celia Green, Robert A. Heinlein, Blaise Pascal, E. M. Cioran and Oscar Wilde. A 1559 oil–on–oak-panel painting, Netherlandish Proverbs (also called The Blue Cloak or The Topsy Turvy World) by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, artfully depicts a land populated with literal renditions of Flemish aphorisms (proverbs) of the day.

The aphoristic genre developed together with literacy, and after the invention of printing, aphorisms were collected and published in book form. The first noted published collection of aphorisms is Adagia by Erasmus of Rotterdam. Other important early aphorists were Baltasar Gracián, François de La Rochefoucauld and Blaise Pascal.

Two influential collections of aphorisms published in the 20th century were The Uncombed Thoughts by Stanislaw Jerzy Lec (in Polish), and Itch of Wisdom by Mikhail Turovsky (in Russian and English).^[2]

Society[link]

In many cultures, including Samuel Johnson's England, many East and Southeast Asian societies, and throughout the world, the ability to spontaneously produce aphoristic sayings at exactly the right moment is a key determinant of social status. Many societies have traditional sages or culture heroes to whom aphorisms are commonly attributed, such as the Seven Sages of Greece, Confucius or King Solomon.

Misquoted or misadvised aphorisms are frequently used as a source of humour; for instance, wordplays of aphorisms appear in the works of P. G. Wodehouse, Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams. Aphorisms being misquoted by sports players, coaches, and commentators form the basis of Private Eye's Colemanballs section.

See also[link]

Look up aphorism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Aphorisms

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Aphorisms

• Adage
• Book of Proverbs
• Chiasmus
• Cliché
• Ecclesiastes
• Wisdom of Sirach
• Epigram
• Gospel of Thomas
• Greguería
• Maxim
• Proverb
• Pseudo-Phocylides
• Sūtra

References[link]

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

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Time Requiem is a Swedish neoclassical, melodic power metal band created by Richard Andersson in 2001.^[1] Andersson created the band that summer, when he felt that his previous project - Majestic - had come to a dead end.

Biography[link]

Andersson took Peter Wildoer, Apollo Papathanasio and Magnus Nord with him to his new band. Martin Wezovski turned out to be too inexperienced to be able to play the bass in the band and was replaced by Dick Lövgren (Meshuggah). They produced their first selftitled album, in 2002 .

In 2003, Andersson and the rest of the band played in Japan. This concert was recorded and released on a live CD. Unleashed In Japan contained some songs from Time Requiem, but also had some new material.

Afterwards, Wildoer became preoccupied with death metal band Darkane, and left Time Requiem to focus more on his own project. Lövgren and Andersson were having issues in regards to their musical differences, and also left. They were later replaced by Zoltan Csörsz and Jonas Reingold. With this lineup, a new album was made. It was given the name The Inner Circle of Reality.

Line-up[link]

• Richard Andersson - keyboards
• Göran Edman - vocals
• Magnus Nilsson - guitars
• Andy Rose - bass
• Jörg Andrews - drums

Former members[link]

• Peter Wildoer - drums
• Apollo Papathanasio - vocals
• Magnus Nord - guitars
• Zoltan Csörsz - drums
• Jonas Reingold - bass
• Dick Lövgren - bass

Discography[link]

• Time Requiem (2002)
• Unleashed In Japan (2003)
• The Inner Circle of Reality (2004)
• Optical Illusion (2006)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Homepage of Andersson's projects
• Profile page at their record label
• An interview with Andersson