No one should approach the temple of science with the soul of a money changer.
Thomas BrowneRead
Thus there are two books from whence I collect my Divinity; besides that written one of God, another of his servant Nature, that universal and public Manuscript, that lies expans'd unto the eyes of all; those that never saw him in the one, have discovered him in the other.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that both the divine and the natural world offer insights into understanding God.
Thomas Browne emphasizes the dual sources of knowledge about divinity: the sacred texts traditionally associated with God and the natural world itself, which he describes as a universal manuscript. He highlights that even those who have not encountered the divine through scripture can find evidence of God in nature, suggesting that the study of the natural world can lead to a greater spiritual understanding.
Themes
DivinityNatureKnowledgeUnderstandingSpirituality
In practice
Example use cases
A speaker discussing the intersection of religion and science can use this quote to illustrate the importance of both perspectives.
More from Thomas Browne
All quotes βContent may dwell in all stations. To be low but above contempt may be high enough to be happy.
Thomas BrowneRead
To be content with death may be better than to desire it.
Thomas BrowneRead
Life itself is but the shadow of death, and souls departed but the shadows of the living.
Thomas BrowneRead
The long habit of living indisposeth us for dying.
Thomas BrowneRead
Life is a pure flame and we live by an invisible sun within us.
Thomas BrowneRead
Similar quotes
We all do no end of feeling, and we mistake it for thinking. And out of it we get an aggregation which we consider a boon. Its name is public opinion. It is held in reverence. Some think it the voice of God.
Mark TwainRead
Lay down true principles and adhere to them inflexibly. Do not be frightened into their surrender by the alarms of the timid, or the croakings of wealth against the ascendency of the people.
Thomas JeffersonRead
Wherever an altar is found, there civilization exists.
Joseph De MaistreRead
Truth be told, John said, the one thing in this world I want more than anything else is a great big crowbar, to jimmy myself open and take whatever creature that's sitting inside and shake it clean like a rug and then rinse it in a cold, clear lake like up in Oregon, and then I want to put it under the sun to let it heal and dry and grow and sit and come to consciousness again with a clear and quiet mind.
Douglas CouplandRead
Blind nature will nearly always select the most probable, but man can let the most improbable become actual.
Hans JonasRead
How do you lose a word? Does it vanish into your memory, like an old toy in a cupboard, and lie hidden in the cobwebs and dust, waiting to be cleaned out or rediscovered?
Amitav GhoshRead