--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The businessman who assumes that his life…" description: "\"The businessman who assumes that his life is everything, and the mystic who asserts that it is nothing, fail, on this side and on that, to hit the trut..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/anonymous-1_alive_the-businessman-who-assumes-that-his-lif_213179.jpg" --- # The businessman who assumes that his life is everything… ![“The businessman who assumes that his life is everything, and the mystic who asserts that it is nothing, fail, on this side and on that, to hit the truth. ‘Yes, I see, dear; it’s about half-way between,’ Aunt Juley had hazarded in earlier years. No; truth, being alive, was not halfway between…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/anonymous-1_alive_the-businessman-who-assumes-that-his-lif_213179.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/anonymous-1_alive_the-businessman-who-assumes-that-his-lif_213179.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/add/anonymous-1_alive_the-businessman-who-assumes-that-his-lif_213179.jpg) > “The businessman who assumes that his life is everything, and the mystic who asserts that it is nothing, fail, on this side and on that, to hit the truth. ‘Yes, I see, dear; it’s about half-way between,’ Aunt Juley had hazarded in earlier years. No; truth, being alive, was not halfway between anything. It was only to be found by continuous excursions into either realm, and though proportion is the final secret, to espouse it at the outset is to ensure sterility.” [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 contrasts two extreme worldviews—materialism and mysticism—suggesting that truth lies beyond both and is discovered through ongoing exploration rather than fixed proportions. **In simple terms:** Truth isn’t in extremes; it’s found by continual searching. Key Takeaway Seek truth through ongoing exploration, not fixed extremes. Themes philosophy spirituality materialism truth exploration Mood reflective inquisitive thoughtful Type aphilosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - spiritual practice - academic study - creative work - life decisions Key Concepts dualism continuous inquiry proportion sterility extremes Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance material goals with spiritual inquiry? - What habits help you stay open to new perspectives? A Different Perspective Fixed ideas can limit insight; true understanding requires openness to change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Assuming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assuming/) [Aunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt/) [Aunt Juley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt-juley-2196985/) [Businessman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/businessman/) [Dear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dear/) [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Finals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finals/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [Halfway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/halfway/) [Halfway Continuous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/halfway-continuous-2196987/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Mystic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystic/) [Mystic Asserts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystic-asserts-2196986/) [Proportion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proportion/) [Realms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realms/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sides/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [A mystic is a man who separates heaven and earth even if he enjoys them both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-mystic-is-a-man-who-separates-heaven-and-earth-even-if-he-enjoys/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The revealed and mystic literature of mankind bears ample testimony to the fact that religious experience has been too enduring and dominant in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-revealed-and-mystic-literature-of-mankind-bears-ample-testimony/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I, you, he, she, we In the garden of mystic lovers, these are not true distinctions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-you-he-she-we-in-the-garden-of-mystic-lovers-these-are-not-true/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I like to borrow a metaphor from the great poet and mystic Rumi who talks about living like a drawing compass. One leg of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-like-to-borrow-a-metaphor-from-the-great-poet-and-mystic-rumi-who/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A Hindu is a born mystic, and the luxuriant nature of his country has made him a zealous pantheist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-hindu-is-a-born-mystic-and-the-luxuriant-nature-of-his-country-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A mystic is anyone who has a gnawing suspicion that the apparent discord, brokenness, contradiction, and discontinuities that assault us every day might conceal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-mystic-is-anyone-who-has-a-gnawing-suspicion-that-the-apparent/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [...it is only when a man goes out into the world with the thought that there are heroisms all round him, and with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-only-when-a-man-goes-out-into-the-world-with-the-thought-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't view it as mystic. I believe that God is our father. He created us. He is powerful because he knows everything. Therefore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-don-t-view-it-as-mystic-i-believe-that-god-is-our-father-he-created/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The greatest religious problem today is how to be both a mystic and a militant; in other words how to combine the search for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-greatest-religious-problem-today-is-how-to-be-both-a-mystic-and-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Believe you can and your halfway there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/believe-you-can-and-your-halfway-there/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-lie-gets-halfway-around-the-world-before-the-truth-has-a-chance-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The word itself has another color. It’s not a word with any resonance, although the e was once pronounced. There is only the bump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-word-itself-has-another-color-it-s-not-a-word-with-any-resonance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know you'll probably get angry with me for that, shout, stamp your feet: "speak just for yourself and your miseries in the underground,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-you-ll-probably-get-angry-with-me-for-that-shout-stamp-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Man, as we know him, is a poor creature; he is halfway between an ape and a god and he is travelling in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/man-as-we-know-him-is-a-poor-creature-he-is-halfway-between-an-ape/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hope meets you halfway on a bridge called faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hope-meets-you-halfway-on-a-bridge-called-faith/) [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 Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [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/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The businessman who assumes that his life is everything, and the mystic who asserts that it is nothing, fail, on this side and on that, to hit the truth. ‘Yes, I see, dear; it’s about half-way between,’ Aunt Juley had hazarded in earlier years. No; truth, being alive, was not halfway between anything. 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