Celebration is a confrontation, giving attention to the transcendent meaning of one's actions.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
We can never sneer at the stars, mock the dawn, or scoff at the totality of being.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses reverence for the universe and existence, encouraging humility and awe towards greater realities.
Abraham Joshua Heschel's quote emphasizes the importance of respecting the vastness of the universe and the complexities of existence. It suggests that rather than dismissing or ridiculing the profound mysteries of life and the cosmos, one should embrace them with humility and wonder, recognizing our place within this grand tapestry.
Themes
StarsDawnBeingHumilityAwe
In practice
Example use cases
This quote would be fitting in a speech about the importance of scientific inquiry and respect for nature.
More from Abraham Joshua Heschel
All quotes βNormal consciousness is a state of stupor, in which the sensibility to the wholly real and responsiveness to the stimuli of the spirit are reduced. The mystics, knowing that man is involved in a hidden history of the cosmos, endeavor to awake from the drowsiness and apathy and to regain the state of wakefulness for their enchanted souls.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
Prayer cannot bring water to parched fields, or mend a broken bridge, or rebuild a ruined city; but prayer can water an arid soul, mend a broken heart, and rebuild a weakened will.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
The worship of reason is arrogance and betrays a lack of intelligence. The rejection of reason is cowardice and betrays a lack of faith.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
We worship God through our questions.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
When religion speaks only in the name of authority rather than with the voice of compassion, its message becomes meaningless.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
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Confirming an intuitive sense I've always felt for the interconnectedness of all things, this doctrine has provided me ways to understand the intricate web of co-arising that links one being with all other beings, and to apprehend the reciprocities between thought and action, self and universe.
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