---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What I call innocence is the spirit's…"
description: "\"“What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object. It is at once a receptiveness and total con..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg"
---

#  What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious…

![“What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object. It is at once a receptiveness and total concentration.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg)

> ““What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object. It is at once a receptiveness and total concentration.””

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Innocence is a pure, unselfconscious devotion that blends openness with deep focus on an object.

**In simple terms:** Pure devotion mixes openness and focus.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate sincere, present attention.

Themes

innocence devotion focus receptiveness

Mood

contemplative reflective

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- meditation
- art appreciation
- nature observation
- creative work

Key Concepts

spirituality mindfulness concentration

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you stay open yet focused?
- What objects deserve your pure devotion?

A Different Perspective

May lack critical distance or lead to over‑attachment.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Concentration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concentration/) [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Devotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devotion/) [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Innocence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocence/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presence/) [Receptivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/receptivity/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [“What I call innocence is the spirit’s unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object. It is at once a receptiveness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-unself-conscious-state-at-any-2/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“When we play with the unself-conscious concentration of a child, this is: art: prayer: love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-we-play-with-the-unself-conscious-concentration-of-a-child-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [She is got the eyes of innocence, the spirit of an angel, a personality of a dreamer and smile that hides more pain that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vishak/she-is-got-the-eyes-of-innocence-the-spirit-of-an-angel-a-personality/)

[Vishak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vishak/)

> [“Work done by you with unconditional love and pure devotion goes straight in the category of divine and immortal craft.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seema-brain-openers/work-done-by-you-with-unconditional-love-and-pure-devotion-goes/)

Seema Brain Openers

> [Almighty Framer of the Skies!O let our pure devotion rise,Like Incense in thy Sight!Wrapt in impenetrable Shade,The Texture of our Souls were made,Till thy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-chatterton/almighty-framer-of-the-skies-o-let-our-pure-devotion-rise-like/)

[Thomas Chatterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-chatterton/)

> [Pure devotion, Hip Hop, is on my skin like lotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-b/pure-devotion-hip-hop-is-on-my-skin-like-lotion/)

[Lil B](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-b/)

> [Consciousness has forced us into the paradoxical position of striving to be unself-conscious of what we are - hunks of spoiling flesh on disintegrating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/consciousness-has-forced-us-into-the-paradoxical-position-of-striving/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [“White people can be so unself-conscious. It’s offensive, charming, and pathetic, all at the same time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-browning/white-people-can-be-so-unself-conscious-it-s-offensive-charming-and/)

[Barbara Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-browning/)

> [“For the rest of the earth’s organisms, existence is relatively uncomplicated. Their lives are about three things: survival, reproduction, death—and nothing else. But we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/for-the-rest-of-the-earth-s-organisms-existence-is-relatively-2/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [“An important spiritual law is here involved. I have explained that you can weaken his prayers by diverting his attention from the Enemy Himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/an-important-spiritual-law-is-here-involved-i-have-explained-that-you/)

[C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/)

> [While a modicum of consciousness may have had survivalist properties during an immemorial chapter of our evolution – so one theory goes – this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/while-a-modicum-of-consciousness-may-have-had-survivalist-properties/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [HYPOTHESES: Evil is boring. Cynicism is idiotic. Fear is a bad habit. Despair is lazy. Joy is fascinating. Love is an act of heroic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-brezsny/hypotheses-evil-is-boring-cynicism-is-idiotic-fear-is-a-bad-habit/)

[Rob Brezsny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-brezsny/)

> [“Books feel more intimate. And the people who go out of their way to read your writings, are initially more open to what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-baker/books-feel-more-intimate-and-the-people-who-go-out-of-their-way-to/)

[Robin S. Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-baker/)

> [“I observe but do not second-guess others’ thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-lourdes/i-observe-but-do-not-second-guess-others-thoughts/)

[Leo Lourdes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-lourdes/)

> [Generosity is not limited to the giving of material things. We can be generous with our kindness and receptivity. Generosity can mean the simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-fronsdal/generosity-is-not-limited-to-the-giving-of-material-things-we-can-be/)

[Gil Fronsdal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-fronsdal/)

## More by Annie Dillard

> [Like everyone in his right mind, I feared Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/like-everyone-in-his-right-mind-i-feared-santa-claus/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [The creatures I seek do not want to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-creatures-i-seek-do-not-want-to-be-seen/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [Nothing moves a woman so deeply as the boyhood of the man she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/nothing-moves-a-woman-so-deeply-as-the-boyhood-of-the-man-she-loves/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“...The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mockingbird-took-a-single-step-into-the-air-and-dropped-his-wings/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“Father had stretched out his long legs and was tilting back in his chair. Mother sat with her knees crossed, in blue slacks, smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/father-had-stretched-out-his-long-legs-and-was-tilting-back-in-his/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-frayed-and-nibbled-survivor-in-a-fallen-world-and-i-am-getting/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-is-madness-to-wear-ladies-straw-hats-and-velvet-hats-to-church-we/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [The sense impressions of one-celled animals are not edited for the brain. This is philosophically interesting in a rather mournful way, since it means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-sense-impressions-of-one-celled-animals-are-not-edited-for-the/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“What can we make of the inexpressible joy of children? It is a kind of gratitude, I think—the gratitude of the ten-year-old who wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-can-we-make-of-the-inexpressible-joy-of-children-it-is-a-kind-of/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [“If we were to judge nature by its common sense or likelihood, we wouldn't believe the world existed. In nature, improbabilities are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/if-we-were-to-judge-nature-by-its-common-sense-or-likelihood-we/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [For writing a first draft requires from the writer a peculiar internal state which ordinary life does not induce. ... how to set yourself spinning?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/for-writing-a-first-draft-requires-from-the-writer-a-peculiar/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

> [I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-fugitive-and-a-vagabond-a-sojourner-seeking-signs/)

[Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

[Explore all 509 Annie Dillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/)

## More Awareness quotes

> [An enlightened awareness is within each one of us, right at this moment. This enlightened awareness is truly unborn and marvellously illuminating; and everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bankei-yotaku/an-enlightened-awareness-is-within-each-one-of-us-right-at-this/)

[Bankei Yotaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bankei-yotaku/)

> [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/)

[Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/)

> [Listening is a very active awareness of the coming together of at least two lives. Listening, as far as I'm concerned, is certainly a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rogers/listening-is-a-very-active-awareness-of-the-coming-together-of-at/)

[Fred Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rogers/)

> [“In the worldly life, due to maadakta (intoxication of the ego of ‘I am Chandubhai’), one has completely lost awareness of everything about one’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/in-the-worldly-life-due-to-maadakta-intoxication-of-the-ego-of-i-am/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [A tree is a self: it is 'unseen shaping' more than it is leaves or bark, roots or cellulose or fruit ... What this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-swimme/a-tree-is-a-self-it-is-unseen-shaping-more-than-it-is-leaves-or-bark/)

[Brian Swimme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-swimme/)

> [I know the importance of highly trained awareness of the “moment” and the immediate and intuitive response of the photographer. It should be obvious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/i-know-the-importance-of-highly-trained-awareness-of-the-moment-and/)

[Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/)

> [The thing about living alone is that it gives you a lot of time to think. You don't necessarily reach any conclusions, because wisdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/the-thing-about-living-alone-is-that-it-gives-you-a-lot-of-time-to/)

[Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/)

> [“It is not so much about fighting against the ego; it is more about harmonizing with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-sara/it-is-not-so-much-about-fighting-against-the-ego-it-is-more-about/)

[Grace Sara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-sara/)

> [I'm part of a team that raises millions of dollars and raises awareness of HIV and AIDS all over the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-evangelista/i-m-part-of-a-team-that-raises-millions-of-dollars-and-raises/)

[Linda Evangelista](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-evangelista/)

> [“Don’t turn your face away. Once you’ve seen, you can no longer act like you don’t know. Open your eyes to the truth. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vashti-quiroz-vega/don-t-turn-your-face-away-once-you-ve-seen-you-can-no-longer-act-like/)

Vashti Quiroz-Vega

> [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [Sometimes I am a collector of data, and only a collector, and am likely to be gross and miserly, piling up notes, pleased with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fort/sometimes-i-am-a-collector-of-data-and-only-a-collector-and-am-likely/)

[Charles Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fort/)

> [The bird with the thorn in its breast, it follows an immutable law; it is driven by it knows not what to impale itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-mccullough/the-bird-with-the-thorn-in-its-breast-it-follows-an-immutable-law-it/)

[Colleen McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-mccullough/)

> [Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal. You, O worthy one, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/seeking-means-to-have-a-goal-but-finding-means-to-be-free-to-be/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Human freedom involves our capacity to pause between the stimulus and response and, in that pause, to choose the one response toward which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rollo-may/human-freedom-involves-our-capacity-to-pause-between-the-stimulus-and/)

[Rollo May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rollo-may/)

[Browse all 4,768 Awareness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object. It is at once a receptiveness and total concentration.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Annie Dillard"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-unself-conscious-state-at-any/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Awareness"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-unself-conscious-state-at-any/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/annie-dillard-509_awareness_what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-un_1892550.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“What I call innocence is the spirit's unself-conscious state at any moment of pure devotion to any object…” — Annie Dillard",
                "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": "Annie Dillard",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“What I call innocence is the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-unself-conscious-state-at-any/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-i-call-innocence-is-the-spirit-s-unself-conscious-state-at-any/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
