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Blaise Pascal
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Pensées - Enhanced Version Kindle Edition

by Blaise Pascal (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 out of 5 stars 597 ratings
The Pensées is simply the compelling "Thoughts" of mathematician, physicist, and religious thinker Blaise Pascal. Originally intending to publish a book defending Christianity, Pascal died before he could complete it. The thoughts and ideas for his book were collected and complied, posthumously, and then published as the Pensées. Pascal's thoughts are as powerful as they are comprehensive. He discusses with great wonder and beauty the human condition, the incarnation, God, the meaning of life, revelation, and the paradoxes of Christianity. He passionately argues for the Christian faith, using both argumentation and his famous "Wager." His ideas and arguments are sometimes developed and intricate, at other times, abrupt and mysterious. Consequently, the Pensées is a startling and powerful book--with each successive read, one discovers new profound insights. Anyone curious about the Christian faith, or simply looking for an impassioned defense of it, should look no further than Pascal's Pensées.

Tim Perrine
CCEL Staff Writer

This edition features an artistic cover, a new promotional introduction, an index of scripture references, and links for scripture references to the appropriate passages.
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  1. Print length
    378 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
    Learn more
  4. Publication date
    July 14, 2009
  5. File size
    753 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"I know of no religious writer more pertinent to our time."

-- "T. S. Eliot"

From the Back Cover

Destinées pour la plupart à la rédaction ultérieure d'un traité sur la religion chrétienne, les Pensées sont un ensemble de notes éparses prises par Pascal avant de mourir. Il y expose sa conception de l'homme : « imbécile ver de terre », être inconsistant, faible et méprisable, « roseau », certes « pensant », mais que l'imagination et le divertissement détournent de la vérité... Il se fait un devoir de démontrer la misère de l'homme sans Dieu et exhorte les coeurs à le rechercher... Ce penseur du Grand Siècle - l'un des plus brillants de son époque - offre une réflexion dont la profondeur fascine encore aujourd'hui le lecteur...

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002HMD1O6
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Christian Classics Ethereal Library
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 14, 2009
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1.1
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 753 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 378 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Best Sellers Rank: #3,099,167 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 597 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
597 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find this book thought-provoking, with one noting it provides pleasant days and evenings of insights, and another highlighting its profound insights into the human condition. Moreover, they appreciate its readability, with one mentioning it's ideal for short sessions, and its writing style, with one describing Pascal as a writer in the history of humanity. The book receives positive feedback for its content, with one noting the helpful 32-page introduction, and its library value, particularly for its case for Christianity.

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Thought provokingReadabilityInterestWriting styleClassic bookContentFaithLibrary value
15 customers mention "Thought provoking"13 positive2 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking, with one mentioning it provides pleasant days and evenings of insights, while another notes it offers profound insights into the human condition and helps understand the power of God.

"Bascal was brilliant and very thoughtful - and his writing is thought-provoking...." Read more

"No plot involved ... deep philosophical musings, mainly a studied defense of Christianity's central tenet of Jesus Christ being the Son of God." Read more

"...Based on Pascal's beliefs and life, it seems great science, great thought, and belief in God are totally compatible." Read more

"...very clever and witty and will give you many pleasant days and evenings of thought provoking insights into the human character." Read more

14 customers mention "Readability"13 positive1 negative

Customers find the book readable, with one mentioning it's ideal for short sessions, and another noting it's worth the time and investment.

"...Great read, worth your time and investment." Read more

"One of the best books in the world even if I do say so myself. Buy it. Read it. Re-read it all your life." Read more

"A good read for a brilliant mind by a brilliant writer in the history of humanity." Read more

"Read many years ago. enjoyed seeing it again" Read more

5 customers mention "Interest"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting, with one mentioning how Pascal enlightens readers.

"...It is universally true and comforting as Pascal enlightens and gives true understanding of man's wretched state...." Read more

"He was one of history's more interesting, thoughtful and mufti-faceted characters...." Read more

"It was interesting. The book did not contain everything I was looking for. They were interesting, however. I'll keep your service in mind." Read more

"very interesting." Read more

4 customers mention "Writing style"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the writing style of the book, with one customer noting it is thought-provoking, and another describing it as one of the greatest writers in human history.

"Bascal was brilliant and very thoughtful - and his writing is thought-provoking...." Read more

"I am focused on this one section (p. 324 -326) as it is so brilliantly written and describes the varying degrees of self-love -- it grabbed me from..." Read more

"A good read for a brilliant mind by a brilliant writer in the history of humanity." Read more

"I love this book because I love the thoughts and writings of Blaise Pascal." Read more

3 customers mention "Classic book"3 positive0 negative

Customers describe this book as a classic.

"This is a classic. His thoughts about the evidence for God are especially interesting...." Read more

"Best edition of this classic book." Read more

"A timeless classic." Read more

3 customers mention "Content"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the content of the book, with one noting the helpful 32-page introduction.

"...It contains active links to footnotes. The table of contents is very good. It also uses standard paragraph breaks...." Read more

"...I like the way it is organized. The 32 page introduction is very helpful...." Read more

"Item arrived just as indicated... great condition... great content in the book." Read more

3 customers mention "Faith"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's religious content, with one noting that belief in God is compatible with its teachings, and another describing it as universally true.

"...It is universally true and comforting as Pascal enlightens and gives true understanding of man's wretched state...." Read more

"...and life, it seems great science, great thought, and belief in God are totally compatible." Read more

"Timeless faith and spiritual thoughts......." Read more

3 customers mention "Library value"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's library value, with some noting it serves as a great case for Christianity, and one mentioning it's a perfect addition to their flush-tank collection.

"The book made a great case for Christianity and Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior! I was very surprised! I would highly recommend this book!" Read more

"An addition to personal library, do not know when chance will arise to read as seminary still requires another year of reading, no time for personal..." Read more

"...It is the perfect addition to my flush-tank library." Read more

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2 out of 5 stars
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Dan Panetti
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great read, insightful
    Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2025
    Format: Audible AudiobookVerified Purchase
    Bascal was brilliant and very thoughtful - and his writing is thought-provoking. Pensees is basically a stream-of-consciousness about all aspects of life, God, meaning, purpose, etc. I especially loved his powerful comparison of Mohammad and Jesus, brought up some really important distinctions that I had never thought of before. Great read, worth your time and investment.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • RhondaLee
    5.0 out of 5 stars Read Pascal's chapter on Self-Love!
    Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I am focused on this one section (p. 324 -326) as it is so brilliantly written and describes the varying degrees of self-love -- it grabbed me from the 1st sentence. It explains why we are out of harmony with our fellow human beings (and they, with us).
    It is universally true and comforting as Pascal enlightens and gives true understanding of man's wretched state.

    (I thought to myself after reading it, "What is the answer to mankind's varying degrees of selfishness, as outlined by Pascal, and the answer is to ponder the life of the most perfect human being who ever lived and try to follow His commands and try to live life according to His teachings, i.e., "the Sermon on the Mount.")

    Romans, Chapter 8, in the New Testament discusses the carnal [or natural] mind which is "enmity against God." What you have in Pascal's "Self-Love" is the sad and hopeless picture of the natural man and why the natural man can never know peace, but only discontent. The answer is to be spiritually minded which is "life and peace." (NKJV)
    9 people found this helpful
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  • Robert W. Kellemen
    5.0 out of 5 stars Religion of the Heart and of the Head
    Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2005
    Verified Purchase
    Before actually reading "Pensees," I knew Blaise Pascal and his "Pensees" only from snippets of quotes such as, "The heart has its reason of which reason knows nothing" and from "Pascal's Wager": better to risk believing in God and living with Him for all eternity and being wrong, then risk not believing in God and living apart from Him in all eternity and because you were wrong.

    Having read him, I know now that the quote and wager just mentoned, though only snippets, do summarize his brilliance and his beauty. Like few others, Pascal fuses head and heart in his defense of Christianity. His ability is likely due to his brilliant mind that on November 23, 1654, from 10:30 PM to 12:30 AM encountered God in a mysterious, mystical experience that he could only describe with the one-word epitaph: "Fire."

    For the rest of his brief life (he died at age 39), the fire in his soul and the genius of his mind merged in the "writing" of "Pensees." I place "writing" in quotation marks because Pascal's early death never allowed him to finish "Pensees." What we have is akin to his outline (though 325 pages in length!). Imagine if he had actually finished it. Pascal, ever the absent-minded professor, would have a thought run through his mind, write it down, cut it in a strip, and splice it in with other similar subject headings.

    It's helpful to understand this before reading "Pensee" for what you find is brilliant disorder--an incomplete sentence here, half a thought there, then long and insightful paragraphs here. In other words, you do need to wade through the unusual design of the book, but in the wading you will find oceans of depth that flood both your heart and your head with passion and reason to love and know God.

    Pascal's "real world" arguments for God are the most rationally and personally compelling ones that I have ever read. Pascal honestly faces the reality that we see God only in part and that by evidence alone, whether of reason or nature or both, we might just as well conclude that there is no God (the atheists), or that He is not loving, or not powerful, or that He is disinterested (Deism), or dispassionate (the Greek philosophers). He then explains that God reveals enough in nature to cause us to perceive His existence and to perceive that we are finite and fallen. Nature, according to Pascal, points more to the Mediator--Christ--the One who reveals the hidden God as a God of holiness and love, and the One who reveals us as God's prodigal children who need to come home.

    Reviewer: Dr. Robert W. Kellemen is the author of "Soul Physicians: A Theology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction," "Spiritual Friends: A Methodology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction," and the forthcoming "Sacred Companions: A History of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction."
    80 people found this helpful
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  • Ed Heckman
    4.0 out of 5 stars On various Kindle versions
    Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2009
    Verified Purchase
    Update: May 2012

    In revisiting the Kindle editions of Pensees, I've discovered that there is now a Kindle version of the Penguin Classics edition. This version is the one translated by A. J. Krailsheimer. It also contains the Introduction written by Mr. Kreilsheimer which gives what appears to be an excellent background of the work. (I haven't read it yet.)

    The formatting is generally good. It uses Kindle standard fonts. Each note is visually separated from the one before it. It contains active links to footnotes. The table of contents is very good. It also uses standard paragraph breaks. (No blank line between, and first line indented.) Unfortunately, the left margin wanders left and right. (I've seen this on a few other books, so I'm not sure it's the publisher's fault.)

    This is the edition I was hoping to find when I first wrote the review. I recommend it.

    ----------

    Warning! If you reached this Kindle edition by way of the edition published by Penguin Classics, be aware that this Kindle edition (by Douglas Editions) of Pensees is not the same book. The Penguin version was translated by A. J. Krailsheimer, while this Kindle edition was translated by W. F. Trotter.

    In my opinion, the Trotter translation is far weaker than the Krailsheimer translation, or any other translation I've checked. For example, consider these two translations of this thought:

    "How is it that a lame man does not annoy us while a lame mind does? Because a lame man recognizes that we are walking straight, while a lame mind says that it is we who are limping."
    --from A. J. Krailsheimer's translation

    "How comes it that a cripple does not offend us, but that a fool does? Because a cripple recognises [sic] that we walk straight, whereas a fool declares that it is we who are silly;"
    --from W. F. Trotter's translation

    All the other translations I've compared these sentences to are far closer to the Krailsheimer translation than Trotter's. Unfortunately, all the Kindle editions of Pensees (as of this writing) are the Trotter translation. So all that's left is to compare the differences of the Kindle editions.

    The rest of this review is based on the sample of the Douglas Editions version. This one has a table of contents, but it's not very good. All it lists is "Section 1", "Section 2", and so forth instead of descriptive names. It's also not linked directly from the menu, so you have to go to the cover then the next page to get to it. Footnotes are not active links.

    I also noticed that there is a blank space between each paragraph. It doesn't really bother me, but I'm mentioning it anyway in case it bothers you.

    Otherwise, this is a pretty vanilla Kindle edition. The font size is standard. (Some Kindle editions aren't.) There don't seem to be any flaws beyond what I mentioned. There's also no introduction or cover art.

    It seems that this review will also show up under the Kindle edition I did buy. That's the version of Pensées by Christian Classics Ethereal Library. It does have a descriptive Table of Contents which is accessible directly from the menu, cover art, and better formatting, though I would prefer a blank space before each numbered section. But it's still the Trotter translation, so I would give it only 3 stars.
    45 people found this helpful
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  • SC person
    5.0 out of 5 stars A classic for good reason
    Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This is a classic. His thoughts about the evidence for God are especially interesting.
    Based on Pascal's beliefs and life, it seems great science, great thought, and belief in God are totally compatible.
    5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Siddharth Verma
    2.0 out of 5 stars Price high
    Reviewed in India on August 10, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    Price is too high for this kind of print.
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  • Marcos Luz
    5.0 out of 5 stars What an extraordinary book we have here...
    Reviewed in Brazil on October 9, 2024
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Blaise Pascal’s reflections in *Pensées* offer profound insights into human nature, our pursuit of happiness, and the traps of distraction. His exploration of how we live either in the past or the future, never fully embracing the present, is particularly striking: "So we never live, but we hope to live; and, as we are always preparing to be happy, it is inevitable we should never be so." This resonates deeply with modern life, where we constantly chase fulfillment in future promises, neglecting the present moment.

    Pascal's thoughts on correcting others are both practical and deeply humane. He argues that to effectively show someone their error, we must first acknowledge the truth in their perspective, for “on that side it is usually true.” This approach not only disarms defensiveness but also fosters understanding.

    His warnings about distractions, especially the theatre, being "dangerous to the Christian life," challenge us to consider the influence of entertainment on our spiritual well-being. Pascal’s commentary on merit, where he observes that people tend to claim achievements as solely their own when, in reality, much is owed to others, humbles the individualistic pride we often find in creative and intellectual endeavors.

    Pascal’s examination of why we get angry when our reasoning is questioned, but not when told we have a headache, is both humorous and insightful. "We are not so sure that we make a true choice," he says, highlighting the fragility of human certainty.

    Lastly, his thoughts on how the will influences belief—where "things are true or false according to the aspect in which we look at them"—speak to the modern issue of confirmation bias and how we often see only what we wish to see.

    Overall, *Pensées* is a timeless exploration of the human condition, offering wisdom that challenges both mind and soul. Five stars without hesitation.
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  • JoelC
    5.0 out of 5 stars This is a classic for a reason
    Reviewed in Canada on November 19, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    I enjoyed Pascal's thoughts and these are fairly bite sized which is nice for short reading sessions. Although there are some deep waters here, most of the thoughts felt accessible for the layperson.
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  • Maura
    5.0 out of 5 stars un classico
    Reviewed in Italy on January 8, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    un classico da leggere
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  • mark dungworth
    5.0 out of 5 stars Classic
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 11, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Great thinker and worth a read
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