For the execution of the voyage to the Indies, I did not make use

"For the execution of the voyage to the Indies, I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics or maps." — Christopher Columbus

These words, spoken by Christopher Columbus, are not a denial of reason, but a revelation of faith, vision, and destiny. In them, we hear the voice of a man who looked beyond the instruments of navigation and the calculations of intellect, trusting instead in the mysterious compass of the soul. To say, “I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics, or maps,” is not to scorn knowledge, but to declare that the greatest journeys are guided by something higher than logic — by the unseen wind of conviction, by the whisper of divine purpose, by the unyielding fire of belief when reason falters.

In the fifteenth century, when Columbus set sail into the western horizon, the world trembled at the thought of the unknown. The oceans were monsters in the minds of men, their edges believed to fall into nothingness. Scholars and skeptics told him his plan was madness, that the Earth was too vast, that he would sail into oblivion. But Columbus carried in his heart a map drawn not by human hands. It was the map of faith, charted by courage and guided by an inner star. His ships, fragile as leaves before the storm, were borne not by certainty, but by the strength of his vision. Thus, he reminds us that the boldest voyages are not measured in degrees and distances, but in the daring of the spirit.

In truth, Columbus was not without learning; he knew the arts of navigation and had studied the scholars of his time. Yet when he spoke these words, he confessed something deeper: that all knowledge bows before belief. For in every human endeavor, there comes a moment when intellect can go no further — when the path ahead is darkness, and only faith can light the way. It is in that moment, when reason has reached its shore, that the soul must set sail alone. Columbus crossed not only the ocean of the world, but the ocean of doubt.

Such faith has guided countless seekers before and since. Consider Joan of Arc, who at seventeen rode forth to lead armies, claiming guidance not from generals or kings, but from the voice of God. She possessed no maps of war, no strategies of conquest, yet her conviction moved nations and bent the will of men twice her age. Like Columbus, she acted not through the cold clarity of intelligence, but through the blazing certainty of purpose. Both faced ridicule, danger, and despair — and both triumphed, not by the strength of their knowledge, but by the courage to trust the invisible.

Columbus’s confession reveals the timeless law of creation: that reason may guide the hand, but faith must guide the heart. The mathematician can chart the stars, but only the dreamer can sail toward them. The scientist can measure the world, but only the visionary can reshape it. For knowledge without belief is a ship without wind — precise, but motionless. And belief without courage is a wind without sails — strong, but wasted. The great voyager united both: knowledge in his hands, faith in his heart.

This truth does not belong only to explorers and conquerors; it belongs to every soul who dares to begin. Each of us, in our own way, must face the uncharted ocean — a dream, a challenge, a calling that others deem impossible. There will be times when the maps of others fail, when the calculations of logic falter, when even our own minds whisper, “Turn back.” In those moments, Columbus speaks across the centuries: Go forth anyway. For within you lies a compass truer than any chart — the quiet certainty that your purpose is worthy of risk.

So let this be your lesson, child of the horizon: knowledge prepares the way, but faith completes the voyage. Study, learn, and plan — but when the hour of courage arrives, do not let fear bind you to the shore. Step into the unknown. Trust the winds that rise unseen. For those who dare to sail beyond the edges of certainty discover new worlds — not only on the maps of men, but in the limitless seas of the human spirit.