--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If joy is the aim and the core of…" description: "\"“If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought, and if that which has the power to give one joy is always guarded as one’s deepest secret, t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg" --- # If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought… ![“If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought, and if that which has the power to give one joy is always guarded as one’s deepest secret, then they had seen each other naked in that moment.” quote by Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg) > ““If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought, and if that which has the power to give one joy is always guarded as one’s deepest secret, then they had seen each other naked in that moment.”” [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) ## 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 suggests that true joy is central to life, and that the deepest, most personal sources of joy are hidden and intimate, revealed only in vulnerable moments. **In simple terms:** Joy is core, hidden, revealed in vulnerability. Key Takeaway Seek authentic joy in intimate moments. Themes joy existence vulnerability intimacy Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - romantic relationships - self‑discovery - creative expression Key Concepts philosophy psychology existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What hidden sources of joy have you guarded? - How does vulnerability reveal deeper happiness? A Different Perspective Joy can be elusive and may require trust to uncover. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Deepest Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deepest-secret-1789479/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Joy Guarded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy-guarded-1789478/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Naked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naked/) [Naked Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naked-moment-1789477/) [Seen Naked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seen-naked-421398/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“The one thing you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-one-thing-you-have-that-nobody-else-has-is-you-your-voice-your/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [The moment that you feel that just possibly you are walking down the street naked...that's the moment you may be starting to get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-moment-that-you-feel-that-just-possibly-you-are-walking-down-the/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“I’ve never been with a boy who hasn’t seen me naked. It’s always the squeaky futon, bear-it-all, turn-off-the-lights quickstep. Don’t chalk it up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-rhodes/i-ve-never-been-with-a-boy-who-hasn-t-seen-me-naked-it-s-always-the/) [Taylor Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-rhodes/) > [Despite my best efforts I’ve seen you naked before – doesn’t do much for me so no worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/despite-my-best-efforts-i-ve-seen-you-naked-before-doesn-t-do-much/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) > [“The deepest secret is that life is not a process of discovery, but a process of creation. 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Here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud And the sky of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/here-is-the-deepest-secret-nobody-knows-here-is-the-root-of-the-root/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I had a feeling that I shouldn't be here listening to this sinful man who had mixed children and didn't care who knew it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/i-had-a-feeling-that-i-shouldn-t-be-here-listening-to-this-sinful-man/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“Tell me your deepest secret," she said softly... After a long moment, he spoke. "The only secret I've borne my entire life is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/tell-me-your-deepest-secret-she-said-softly-after-a-long-moment-he/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [The deepest secret is that life is not a process of discovery, but a process of creation. You are not discovering yourself, but creating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/the-deepest-secret-is-that-life-is-not-a-process-of-discovery-but-a-3/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [The deepest secret is that life is not a process of discovery, but a process of creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-harland/the-deepest-secret-is-that-life-is-not-a-process-of-discovery-but-a-2/) [Eric Harland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-harland/) > [Having begun my life in science searching for the equation beyond time, I now believe that the deepest secret of the universe is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/having-begun-my-life-in-science-searching-for-the-equation-beyond/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [He confided his deepest secret to you; be always wary of his secret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/he-confided-his-deepest-secret-to-you-be-always-wary-of-his-secret/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“Emerson, you just shared your deepest secret with me. I value that. Don't make light of it." If he wasn't already holding my heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myra-mcentire/emerson-you-just-shared-your-deepest-secret-with-me-i-value-that-don/) [Myra McEntire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myra-mcentire/) ## More by Ayn Rand > [There are no white lies, there is only the blackest of destruction, and a white lie is the blackest of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/there-are-no-white-lies-there-is-only-the-blackest-of-destruction-and/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [She watched the prairies the rivers, the towns slipping past at an untouchable distance below - and she noted that the sense of detachment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/she-watched-the-prairies-the-rivers-the-towns-slipping-past-at-an/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“This was reality, she thought, this sense of clear outlines, of purpose, of lightness, of hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/this-was-reality-she-thought-this-sense-of-clear-outlines-of-purpose/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [A “collective” mind does not exist. It is merely the sum of endless numbers of individual minds. If we have an endless number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/a-collective-mind-does-not-exist-it-is-merely-the-sum-of-endless/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Lobbying' is the activity of attempting to influence legislation by privately influencing the legislators. It is the result and creation of a mixed economy-of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/lobbying-is-the-activity-of-attempting-to-influence-legislation-by/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“She moved her hand and let it rest against his. He did not withdraw his fingers and he did not pretend indifference. She bent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/she-moved-her-hand-and-let-it-rest-against-his-he-did-not-withdraw/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [This miracle of me is mine to own and keep, and mine to guard, and mine to use, and mine to kneel before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/this-miracle-of-me-is-mine-to-own-and-keep-and-mine-to-guard-and-mine/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“There was still one response, the greatest, that she had missed. She thought: To find a feeling that would hold, as their sum, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/there-was-still-one-response-the-greatest-that-she-had-missed-she/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Inflation is not caused by the actions of private citizens, but by the government: by an artificial expansion of the money supply required to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/inflation-is-not-caused-by-the-actions-of-private-citizens-but-by-the/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“We are fornicating in the sight of six billion people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/we-are-fornicating-in-the-sight-of-six-billion-people/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“She was fifteen when it occurred to her for the first time that women did not run railroads and that people might object. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/she-was-fifteen-when-it-occurred-to-her-for-the-first-time-that-women/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Fransisco, you're some kind of very high nobility, aren't you?" He answered, "Not yet. The reason my family has lasted for such a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/fransisco-you-re-some-kind-of-very-high-nobility-aren-t-you-he/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Have you felt it too? Have you seen how your best friends love everything about you- except the things that count? And your most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/have-you-felt-it-too-have-you-seen-how-your-best-friends-love/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Every coercive monopoly was created by government intervention into the economy: by special privileges, such as franchises or subsidies, which closed the entry of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/every-coercive-monopoly-was-created-by-government-intervention-into/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [We are all brothers under the skin - and I, for one, would be willing to skin humanity to prove it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/we-are-all-brothers-under-the-skin-and-i-for-one-would-be-willing-to/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) [Explore all 1,777 Ayn Rand quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) ## More Joy quotes > [These joys were so trifling as to be as imperceptible as grains of gold among the sand, and in moments of depression she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/these-joys-were-so-trifling-as-to-be-as-imperceptible-as-grains-of/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“When you finally realize your gifts and talents, joy and satisfaction come as you walk in your purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanya-richards-ross/when-you-finally-realize-your-gifts-and-talents-joy-and-satisfaction/) [Sanya Richards-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanya-richards-ross/) > [When I first started, my message was about joy, but I didn't really have the vocabulary and life experience to fully deliver it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/when-i-first-started-my-message-was-about-joy-but-i-didn-t-really/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Of everything I have done, 'The Archers' always gets the most excitement; there's a sort of uncontrollable joy from fans of the program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/of-everything-i-have-done-the-archers-always-gets-the-most-excitement/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [Safin, in his way, is very talented. It is a joy to watch them play; it is tennis of a very high quality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-krajicek/safin-in-his-way-is-very-talented-it-is-a-joy-to-watch-them-play-it/) [Richard Krajicek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-krajicek/) > [The writings of latter-day prophets clearly teach that the sorrows and sufferings endured by Adam and Eve upon their leaving the Garden of Eden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-k-judd/the-writings-of-latter-day-prophets-clearly-teach-that-the-sorrows/) [Daniel K Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-k-judd/) > [“Start the daily practice of joyful living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/start-the-daily-practice-of-joyful-living/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [I have touched with a sense of art some people-they felt the love and the life. Can you offer me anything to compare to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-cassatt/i-have-touched-with-a-sense-of-art-some-people-they-felt-the-love-and/) [Mary Cassatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-cassatt/) > [“Reverend Veronica Goines sums this up as, “Peace is joy at rest, and joy is peace on its feet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/reverend-veronica-goines-sums-this-up-as-peace-is-joy-at-rest-and-joy/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Be in a state of gratitude for everything that shows up in your life. Be thankful for the storms as well as the smooth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/be-in-a-state-of-gratitude-for-everything-that-shows-up-in-your-life/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Spiritually, life is a festival, a celebration. Joy is of the essence of life;](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnivesh/spiritually-life-is-a-festival-a-celebration-joy-is-of-the-essence-of/) [Agnivesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnivesh/) [Browse all 15,003 Joy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought, and if that which has the power to give one joy is always guarded as one’s deepest secret, then they had seen each other naked in that moment.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ayn Rand" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existence-she-thought-and-if-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Joy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existence-she-thought-and-if-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a7/ayn-rand-59_joy_if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existe_163604.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If joy is the aim and the core of existence, she thought, and if that which has the power to give one joy is…” — Ayn Rand", "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": "Ayn Rand", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If joy is the aim and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existence-she-thought-and-if-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/if-joy-is-the-aim-and-the-core-of-existence-she-thought-and-if-that/#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 } } ] } ```