--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only the other world has substance and…" description: "\"Only the other world has substance and reality; only good deeds and holy learning have tangible worth.\" — Abraham Cahan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg" --- # Only the other world has substance and reality; only good… ![“Only the other world has substance and reality; only good deeds and holy learning have tangible worth.” quote by Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg) > “Only the other world has substance and reality; only good deeds and holy learning have tangible worth.” [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts material reality with moral value, asserting that true substance lies in ethical actions and spiritual learning rather than physical things. **In simple terms:** Moral worth outweighs material substance. Key Takeaway Focus on good deeds and learning. Themes ethics spirituality materialism Mood reflective serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - education - volunteering - community service - personal development Key Concepts moral philosophy existential value Questions to Reflect On - How do you prioritize ethical actions over material concerns? - What spiritual practices reinforce this view? A Different Perspective Physical reality can dominate perception, making moral focus difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deeds/) [Good deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-deeds/) [Holy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Reality Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality-good-643019/) [Substance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/substance/) [Substance Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/substance-reality-1155751/) [Tangible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tangible/) [Tangible Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tangible-worth-5903476/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Substance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-substance-5903475/) ## Related quotes > [That which we call substance and reality is shadow and illusion, and that which we call shadow and illusion is substance and reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/that-which-we-call-substance-and-reality-is-shadow-and-illusion-and/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [A thought-form held in thinking substance is a reality; it is a real thing, whether it has yet become visible to mortal eye or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-d-wattles/a-thought-form-held-in-thinking-substance-is-a-reality-it-is-a-real/) [Wallace D. Wattles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-d-wattles/) > [“To determine your reality... do good things, open you heart and face your truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesam-fawzi/to-determine-your-reality-do-good-things-open-you-heart-and-face-your/) [Wesam Fawzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesam-fawzi/) > [“Jacqs wasn't one to let a little thing like reality get between him and a good insult.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyn-gala/jacqs-wasn-t-one-to-let-a-little-thing-like-reality-get-between-him/) [Lyn Gala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyn-gala/) > [“Good fiction doesn’t claim to mirror reality at all. It indicts reality by providing a paradigm of shape and order and justice—the way we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-s-baber/good-fiction-doesn-t-claim-to-mirror-reality-at-all-it-indicts/) [P.S. Baber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-s-baber/) > [The reality is we are 0-3. The reality is that we can still be a very good football team. We need to show that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-kampman/the-reality-is-we-are-0-3-the-reality-is-that-we-can-still-be-a-very/) [Aaron Kampman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-kampman/) > [“Our relation, all round, exists--it's a reality, and a very good one; we're mixed up, so to speak, and it's too late to change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/our-relation-all-round-exists-it-s-a-reality-and-a-very-good-one-we/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before. You can fight it, you can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/resilience-is-accepting-your-new-reality-even-if-it-s-less-good-than-2/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/resilience-is-accepting-your-new-reality-even-if-it-s-less-good-than/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [Living with reality is a very good trick, it gives you tremendous freedom and it changes the structure of the molecules of your soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hopkins/living-with-reality-is-a-very-good-trick-it-gives-you-tremendous/) [Anthony Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hopkins/) > [I am a lover of what is, not because I'm a spiritual person, but because it hurts when I argue with reality. We can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/i-am-a-lover-of-what-is-not-because-i-m-a-spiritual-person-but-2/) [Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/) > [When we touch the foundation of the reality of the good news of God, we will never bother Him anymore with little personal complaints.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/when-we-touch-the-foundation-of-the-reality-of-the-good-news-of-god/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [Photography does deal with 'truth' or a kind of superficial reality better than any of the other arts, but it never questions the nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-michals/photography-does-deal-with-truth-or-a-kind-of-superficial-reality/) [Duane Michals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-michals/) > [Somehow I have managed to delay looking old. In reality I have good genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-schumacher/somehow-i-have-managed-to-delay-looking-old-in-reality-i-have-good/) [Michael Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-schumacher/) > [I'm a big believer that you can create your own reality, have good people around you, have good energy, accept the struggle and hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-draper/i-m-a-big-believer-that-you-can-create-your-own-reality-have-good/) [Jack Draper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-draper/) ## More by Abraham Cahan > [God, for example, appealed to me as a beardless man wearing a quilted silk cap; holiness was something burning, forbidding, something connected with fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/god-for-example-appealed-to-me-as-a-beardless-man-wearing-a-quilted/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [Be modest, humble, simple. Control your anger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/be-modest-humble-simple-control-your-anger/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [You must never tire fighting Satan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/you-must-never-tire-fighting-satan/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [Above all, you must fight conceit, envy, and every kind of ill-feeling in your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/above-all-you-must-fight-conceit-envy-and-every-kind-of-ill-feeling/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [If a man is tongue-tied, don't laugh at him, but, rather, feel pity for him, as you would for a man with broken legs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/if-a-man-is-tongue-tied-don-t-laugh-at-him-but-rather-feel-pity-for/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [The dearest days in one's life are those that seem very far and very near at once.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/the-dearest-days-in-one-s-life-are-those-that-seem-very-far-and-very/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [If it be true that our people represent a high percentage of mental vigor, the distinction is probably due, in some measure, to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/if-it-be-true-that-our-people-represent-a-high-percentage-of-mental/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [What is wealth? A dream of fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/what-is-wealth-a-dream-of-fools/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [If you study the Talmud you please God even more than you do by praying or fasting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/if-you-study-the-talmud-you-please-god-even-more-than-you-do-by/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [I was a great dreamer of day dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/i-was-a-great-dreamer-of-day-dreams/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [What is this world? A mere curl of smoke for the wind to scatter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/what-is-this-world-a-mere-curl-of-smoke-for-the-wind-to-scatter/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [The orthodox Jewish faith practically excludes woman from religious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/the-orthodox-jewish-faith-practically-excludes-woman-from-religious/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [He considered the Rvolution a victroy for the Jews, which opinion, he said, prevailed on the East Side where rejoicing knew no bounds. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/he-considered-the-rvolution-a-victroy-for-the-jews-which-opinion-he/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [ To say this sacred prayer \[the Kaddish, prayer for the dead\] for a Gentile is a most uncommon proceeding, but so unanimous and ardent… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/to-say-this-sacred-prayer-the-kaddish-prayer-for-the-dead-for-a/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) > [Remember that it is not enough to abstain from lying by word of mouth; for the worst lies are often conveyed by a false…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/remember-that-it-is-not-enough-to-abstain-from-lying-by-word-of-mouth/) [Abraham Cahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) [Explore all 18 Abraham Cahan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/) ## More Deeds quotes > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [When Allah puts barakah (His blessings) in something, it will come beyond your expectations- never underestimate the power of one good deed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nouman-ali-khan/when-allah-puts-barakah-his-blessings-in-something-it-will-come/) [Nouman Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nouman-ali-khan/) > [Time often serves to justify a deed which seems at first unjustifiable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-p-ryan/time-often-serves-to-justify-a-deed-which-seems-at-first-unjustifiable/) [Donald P. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-p-ryan/) > [When deeds speak, words are nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-joseph-proudhon/when-deeds-speak-words-are-nothing/) [Pierre-Joseph Proudhon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-joseph-proudhon/) > [Somehow, what's in our hearts, good or bad is eventually translated into words and deeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-stanley/somehow-what-s-in-our-hearts-good-or-bad-is-eventually-translated/) [Andy Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-stanley/) > [Honest people don't hide their deeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/honest-people-don-t-hide-their-deeds/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [Mechanical instruments, potentially a vehicle of rational human purposes, are scarcely a blessing when they enable the gossip of the village idiot and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-mumford/mechanical-instruments-potentially-a-vehicle-of-rational-human/) [Lewis Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-mumford/) > [Tis e'er the wont of simple folk to prize the deed and o'erlook the motive, and of learned folk to discount the deed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barth/tis-e-er-the-wont-of-simple-folk-to-prize-the-deed-and-o-erlook-the/) [John Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barth/) > [How oft the sight of means to do ill deeds makes ill deeds done!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/how-oft-the-sight-of-means-to-do-ill-deeds-makes-ill-deeds-done/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [A nation of character is filled with citizens who gradually build lives based on the living awareness that their deeds are judged by eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/a-nation-of-character-is-filled-with-citizens-who-gradually-build/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [Time, which wears down and diminishes all things, augments and increases good deeds, because a good turn liberally offered to a reasonable man grows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-rabelais/time-which-wears-down-and-diminishes-all-things-augments-and/) [Francois Rabelais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-rabelais/) > [Alas, you don't need monsters for monstrous deeds to be accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/alas-you-don-t-need-monsters-for-monstrous-deeds-to-be-accomplished/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [I rejoice that the reign of Christ is such, while it thrills the soul with emotions, and opens before the highest intellect the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-simpson/i-rejoice-that-the-reign-of-christ-is-such-while-it-thrills-the-soul/) [Matthew Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-simpson/) > [The final estimate of men shows that history cares not an iota for the rank or title a man has borne, or the office…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-oswald-sanders/the-final-estimate-of-men-shows-that-history-cares-not-an-iota-for/) [J. Oswald Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-oswald-sanders/) > [The World's a Printing-House, our words, our thoughts, Our deeds, are characters of several sizes. Each soul is a Compos'tor, of whose faults The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/the-world-s-a-printing-house-our-words-our-thoughts-our-deeds-are/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) [Browse all 2,029 Deeds quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deeds/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Only the other world has substance and reality; only good deeds and holy learning have tangible worth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Abraham Cahan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-reality-only-good-deeds-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Deeds" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-reality-only-good-deeds-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/abraham-cahan-29449_deeds_only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-r_761395.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Only the other world has substance and reality; only good deeds and holy learning have tangible worth.” — Abraham Cahan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Abraham Cahan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cahan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Only the other world has substance...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-reality-only-good-deeds-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cahan/only-the-other-world-has-substance-and-reality-only-good-deeds-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```