When people search for Leonard Cohen Quotes, they’re often looking for something deep, emotional, and poetic — words that stay in the heart long after reading. Cohen, known for his soulful lyrics and spiritual insights, gave us lines that capture love, loss, and the human spirit. Below are the best Leonard Cohen quotes, arranged in 7 sections — each with 13 quotes and one Best Pick. Simple enough for anyone to understand and powerful enough to inspire reflection.
🌹 Love and Desire Quotes
- Love is the only engine of survival. — Leonard Cohen
- I wish I could say everything in one word. I mean, I wish I could say love. — Leonard Cohen
- Love is not a victory march. It’s a cold and it’s a broken hallelujah. — Leonard Cohen
- There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in. — Leonard Cohen
- I’ve loved you all my life; it has just taken me this long to find you. — Leonard Cohen
- I have tried in my way to be free. — Leonard Cohen
- Let us compare mythologies. — Leonard Cohen
- The heart has its own hunger. — Leonard Cohen
- You know that I love to live with you, but you make me forget so very much. — Leonard Cohen
- I don’t know where love went wrong, but I still believe in the song. — Leonard Cohen
- The last refuge of the insomniac is a sense of superiority to the sleeping world. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m aching for you, baby, I can’t pretend. — Leonard Cohen
- A wound is a place where light enters you. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.
🌧️ Life and Existence Quotes
- Act the way you’d like to be, and soon you’ll be the way you act. — Leonard Cohen
- I choose the crooked man to walk with me. — Leonard Cohen
- The purpose of art is not to comfort the afflicted, but to afflict the comfortable. — Leonard Cohen
- We are all waiting for the miracle to come. — Leonard Cohen
- I am not looking for another as I wander in my time. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m ready, my Lord. — Leonard Cohen
- The older I get, the surer I am that I’m not running the show. — Leonard Cohen
- Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. — Leonard Cohen
- Poetry is just the evidence of life. If your life is burning well, poetry is the ash. — Leonard Cohen
- The blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold. — Leonard Cohen
- I’ve seen the future, brother; it is murder. — Leonard Cohen
- Everything has a crack, but that’s how the light gets in. — Leonard Cohen
- I don’t dwell on my success, I just keep trying to be better. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: Act the way you’d like to be, and soon you’ll be the way you act.
🕯️ Faith and Spirituality Quotes
- I don’t know which side anybody is on anymore, and I don’t really care. — Leonard Cohen
- The light in the darkness shines, and the darkness has not overcome it. — Leonard Cohen
- God is alive, magic is afoot. — Leonard Cohen
- When you stop thinking about yourself all the time, a certain sense of repose overtakes you. — Leonard Cohen
- If it be your will that I speak no more, may my voice be still. — Leonard Cohen
- We are so lightly here. It is in love that we are made, and in love we disappear. — Leonard Cohen
- You want it darker. We kill the flame. — Leonard Cohen
- Prayer is translation. A man translates himself into a child asking for all there is in a language he has barely mastered. — Leonard Cohen
- I never found the girl, I found God instead. — Leonard Cohen
- There is a war between the ones who say there is a war and the ones who say there isn’t. — Leonard Cohen
- The light came through the crack, but I still prayed for more. — Leonard Cohen
- I don’t trust my inner voice. It’s in a bad neighborhood. — Leonard Cohen
- We are just sparks in the darkness. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: We are so lightly here. It is in love that we are made, and in love we disappear.
💔 Sadness and Healing Quotes
- I fought every war for you. — Leonard Cohen
- The stories of the street are mine. — Leonard Cohen
- Everybody knows that the boat is leaking. — Leonard Cohen
- There is no comfort in the truth. — Leonard Cohen
- The wound is where the light enters you. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m not looking for another lover. I’m looking for another world. — Leonard Cohen
- Everybody knows that love is old. — Leonard Cohen
- I came so far for beauty. — Leonard Cohen
- It’s a cold and it’s a broken hallelujah. — Leonard Cohen
- The future is murder. — Leonard Cohen
- Even though it all went wrong, I’ll stand before the Lord of song. — Leonard Cohen
- I have tried in my way to be free. — Leonard Cohen
- Love’s the only thing left to give. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: Even though it all went wrong, I’ll stand before the Lord of song.
🌿 Art and Creativity Quotes
- Poetry is just the evidence of life. If your life is burning well, poetry is the ash. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m just paying my rent every day in the Tower of Song. — Leonard Cohen
- Dance me to the end of love. — Leonard Cohen
- I have always been attracted to broken things. — Leonard Cohen
- The poets don’t draw, they unravel their handwriting and then tie it up again, but differently. — Leonard Cohen
- A poet is a man who can pour light into a cup, then raise it to nourish your spirit. — Leonard Cohen
- I was born like this, I had no choice. — Leonard Cohen
- You have loved enough, now let me be the love. — Leonard Cohen
- I remember you well in the Chelsea Hotel. — Leonard Cohen
- The music is not in the notes but in the silence between. — Leonard Cohen
- You lose your grip, and then you slip into the masterpiece. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m guided by the beauty of our weapons. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m the little Jew who wrote the Bible. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: Poetry is just the evidence of life. If your life is burning well, poetry is the ash.
🌤️ Wisdom and Reflection Quotes
- Ring the bells that still can ring. — Leonard Cohen
- Forget your perfect offering. — Leonard Cohen
- I think I follow a tradition that says you can have the whole shot. — Leonard Cohen
- I don’t dwell on mistakes; I learn from them. — Leonard Cohen
- It’s hard to hold the hand of anyone who is reaching for the sky just to surrender. — Leonard Cohen
- There’s a blaze of light in every word. — Leonard Cohen
- A saint is someone who has achieved a remote human possibility. — Leonard Cohen
- The older I get, the surer I am that I’m not running the show. — Leonard Cohen
- The light gets in through the cracks of living. — Leonard Cohen
- We all need a little grace. — Leonard Cohen
- I am what I am because of love. — Leonard Cohen
- The heart is never wrong. — Leonard Cohen
- Be kind; it’s the only way to survive. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: Ring the bells that still can ring.
🌺 Happiness and Hope Quotes
- There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in. — Leonard Cohen
- The miracle is always here. — Leonard Cohen
- There’s a blaze of light in every word. — Leonard Cohen
- I’m ready for the light. — Leonard Cohen
- Hope is not lost; it’s only waiting. — Leonard Cohen
- Every heart to love will come. — Leonard Cohen
- Take this longing from my tongue. — Leonard Cohen
- May everyone live in ease and joy. — Leonard Cohen
- I still have faith in love. — Leonard Cohen
- The sun rises even on the darkest days. — Leonard Cohen
- Every heart has a story worth singing. — Leonard Cohen
- The music of kindness never fades. — Leonard Cohen
- Hope is the thing that keeps the flame alive. — Leonard Cohen
Best Pick: There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.
💬 Conclusion
Leonard Cohen’s words remind us that life is both fragile and full of meaning. His quotes h touch the soul — blending poetry, love, spirituality, and wisdom into one timeless voice. Whether you’re heartbroken, inspired, or simply searching for truth, Cohen’s words will always offer light through the cracks.
