--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The belief in immortality has always…" description: "\"The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to me. When very young I learned that all things die, and all that we wish of good must be won on ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg" --- # The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to… ![“The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to me. When very young I learned that all things die, and all that we wish of good must be won on this earth or not at all.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg) > “The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to me. When very young I learned that all things die, and all that we wish of good must be won on this earth or not at all.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## 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 expresses that believing in an afterlife feels like avoiding responsibility for this life’s actions and outcomes. **In simple terms:** Believing in afterlife avoids present responsibility. Key Takeaway Focus on making impact now. Themes mortality responsibility meaning existential Mood reflective serious Type philosophical existential When to use this quote - personal growth - career decisions - relationships - community service Key Concepts philosophy ethics psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you find meaning without belief in afterlife? - What responsibilities feel most urgent now? A Different Perspective It may overlook comfort some find in spiritual beliefs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Immortality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immortality/) ## Related quotes > [The temple is concerned with things of immortality. It is a bridge between this life and the next. All of the ordinances that take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/the-temple-is-concerned-with-things-of-immortality-it-is-a-bridge/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [For thirty years I have leaned toward the theory of Reincarnation. It seems a most reasonable philosophy and explains many things. No, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/for-thirty-years-i-have-leaned-toward-the-theory-of-reincarnation-it/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [I have heard that death takes us away from ill things, not from good. I have heard that when we pronounce the name of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-have-heard-that-death-takes-us-away-from-ill-things-not-from-good-i/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Belief in immortality is harmful because it is not in our power to conceive of the soul as really incorporeal. So this belief is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/belief-in-immortality-is-harmful-because-it-is-not-in-our-power-to/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [“The belief in immortality is based on the strong instinct of self-preservation that calls forth an insatiable longing for longevity. It is another form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/the-belief-in-immortality-is-based-on-the-strong-instinct-of-self/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [The belief of immortality is impressed upon all men, and all men act under an impression of it, however they may talk, and though,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-belief-of-immortality-is-impressed-upon-all-men-and-all-men-act/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“I have long ago lost my belief in immortality also my interest in it… I have sampled this life and it is sufficient… Annihilation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-t-joshi/i-have-long-ago-lost-my-belief-in-immortality-also-my-interest-in-it/) [S.T. Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-t-joshi/) > [All spiritual things must have in them a childlike quality. The belief in immortality rests not very much on the hope of going on.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heywood-broun/all-spiritual-things-must-have-in-them-a-childlike-quality-the-belief/) [Heywood Broun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heywood-broun/) > [ “The belief in the immortality of man is the belief in the divinity of man\[.\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/the-belief-in-the-immortality-of-man-is-the-belief-in-the-divinity-of/) [Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/) > [If you were to destroy the belief in immortality in mankind, not only love but every living force on which the continuation of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/if-you-were-to-destroy-the-belief-in-immortality-in-mankind-not-only/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“If you were to destroy in mankind the belief in immortality, not only love but every living force maintaining the life of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/if-you-were-to-destroy-in-mankind-the-belief-in-immortality-not-only/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [You think suicide is cowardly? I'll tell you what's cowardly. Hurting someone so much that they think ending their lives is the only way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-think-suicide-is-cowardly-i-ll-tell-you-what-s-cowardly-hurting/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Cry for cut n stiches nt for bastard n bitches... I may b slow walker but i never walk bachward cowardly man bark loudest...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/cry-for-cut-n-stiches-nt-for-bastard-n-bitches-i-may-b-slow-walker/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Nada em mim foi covarde, nem mesmo as desistências. Desistir, ainda que não pareça, foi meu grande gesto de coragem. Some like this Nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nada-em-mim-foi-covarde-nem-mesmo-as-desist-ncias-desistir-ainda-que/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Suicide isn't cowardly,wanna know whats cowardly? treating someone so badly that they want to end their life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/suicide-isn-t-cowardly-wanna-know-whats-cowardly-treating-someone-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Belief quotes > [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/) [Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/) > [“MIND & GRIND Self-belief and hard work can propel you past more talented peers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/mind-grind-self-belief-and-hard-work-can-propel-you-past-more/) [Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/) [Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/) > [“Here is a fundamental difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is 'of the world', judges everything by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/here-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-the-man-of-faith-and-the-man/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [“She herself vacillated when it came to belief. She did not particularly believe in God. Or, rather, she didn't believe in a particular God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/she-herself-vacillated-when-it-came-to-belief-she-did-not/) [Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“Rigid traditions capture souls prisons of spiritual thought man’s religion has captured a god grown too small and very weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle/rigid-traditions-capture-souls-prisons-of-spiritual-thought-man-s/) [David W Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [In business, as in politics, it is never easy to go against the beliefs and attitudes held by the majority. The businessman who moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-paul-getty/in-business-as-in-politics-it-is-never-easy-to-go-against-the-beliefs/) [J. Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/) > [There's no greatest moment in the arts. It's a life; it's a continuity thing. You can't have a great moment because it's spiritual. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-neiman/there-s-no-greatest-moment-in-the-arts-it-s-a-life-it-s-a-continuity/) [LeRoy Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-neiman/) > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) [Browse all 10,268 Belief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to me. When very young I learned that all things die, and all that we wish of good must be won on this earth or not at all.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-seemed-cowardly-to-me-when-very/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belief" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-seemed-cowardly-to-me-when-very/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/anonymous-1_belief_the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-see_2553076.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The belief in immortality has always seemed cowardly to me. When very young I learned that all things die…” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The belief in immortality has always...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-seemed-cowardly-to-me-when-very/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-belief-in-immortality-has-always-seemed-cowardly-to-me-when-very/#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 } } ] } ```