--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is not a how-to book, but if it…" description: "\"“This is not a how-to book, but if it were, the only instruction would be to become more curious about your own darkness. What can you learn about your..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/196/barbara-brown-taylor-3225_books_this-is-not-a-how-to-book-but-if-it-were_1967389.png" --- # This is not a how-to book, but if it were, the only… ![“This is not a how-to book, but if it were, the only instruction would be to become more curious about your own darkness. What can you learn about your fear of it by staying with it for a moment before turning on the lights? Where can you feel the fear in your body? When have you felt that way…” quote by Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/196/barbara-brown-taylor-3225_books_this-is-not-a-how-to-book-but-if-it-were_1967389.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/196/barbara-brown-taylor-3225_books_this-is-not-a-how-to-book-but-if-it-were_1967389.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/196/barbara-brown-taylor-3225_books_this-is-not-a-how-to-book-but-if-it-were_1967389.png) > ““This is not a how-to book, but if it were, the only instruction would be to become more curious about your own darkness. What can you learn about your fear of it by staying with it for a moment before turning on the lights? Where can you feel the fear in your body? When have you felt that way before? What are you afraid is going to happen to you, and what is your mind telling you to do about it? What stories do you tell yourself to keep your fear in place? What helps you stay conscious even when you are afraid? What have you learned in the dark that you could never have learned in the light?”” [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage urges confronting personal darkness with curiosity, using bodily awareness and storytelling to transform fear into insight. **In simple terms:** Face fear with curiosity and bodily awareness to learn from it. Key Takeaway Explore fear, stay present, and learn from darkness. Themes self‑exploration fear mindfulness Mood introspective cautious Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - meditation retreats - creative writing - personal crisis Key Concepts psychology spirituality embodiment Questions to Reflect On - How does bodily awareness change your perception of fear? - What stories keep your fear alive? A Different Perspective Fear may overwhelm if not balanced with grounding practices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Curious Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curious-darkness-3282926/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Darkness Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness-learn-1771677/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Feel Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-fear/) [Learn Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-fear-740381/) [Learned Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learned-dark-2382778/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“... In this world, darkness is always looming on the horizon. At Gottfried, instead of avoiding the dark, we meet it head on ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-woon/in-this-world-darkness-is-always-looming-on-the-horizon-at-gottfried/) [Yvonne Woon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-woon/) > [“And so the liked of us Have learned: Dark cannot right Our cursed bodies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-baytan/and-so-the-liked-of-us-have-learned-dark-cannot-right-our-cursed/) [Ronald Baytan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-baytan/) > [“They learned about each other in the dark, bodies like braille to their souls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stylo-fantome/they-learned-about-each-other-in-the-dark-bodies-like-braille-to/) [Stylo Fantome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stylo-fantome/) > [I learnt that loneliness is not real; it only dwells in our lustful imagination. I learn that fear is not real; it only lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-uyi/i-learnt-that-loneliness-is-not-real-it-only-dwells-in-our-lustful/) [Angela Uyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-uyi/) > [“It feels like days since we've made eye contact. We avoid it like we expect to be injured. When did we learn to fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/it-feels-like-days-since-we-ve-made-eye-contact-we-avoid-it-like-we/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [We can all reprogram our brain's responses by putting ourselves into new, initially uncomfortable situations. We'll learn fear might not mean 'stop'; I've come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-moore-lapp/we-can-all-reprogram-our-brain-s-responses-by-putting-ourselves-into/) [Frances Moore Lappé](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-moore-lapp/) > [“I am no longer afraid of fear, and I will not let it rule me. Fear will learn to fear me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-am-no-longer-afraid-of-fear-and-i-will-not-let-it-rule-me-fear-will/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“It will help when you learn them. Fear dims when you learn things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/it-will-help-when-you-learn-them-fear-dims-when-you-learn-things/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [“Stored in everyone's memory are past experiences of terror. By reminding you of those feelings, fear is trying to protect you from repeating the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/stored-in-everyone-s-memory-are-past-experiences-of-terror-by/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“Once out of the mailroom, I began to learn more about fear. As soon as fear begins to ascend, anatomically, from the pit of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/once-out-of-the-mailroom-i-began-to-learn-more-about-fear-as-soon-as/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [From one learn all. I fear the Greeks, even when they bring gifts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil/from-one-learn-all-i-fear-the-greeks-even-when-they-bring-gifts/) [Virgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil/) > [Everyone's frightened. It's how you deal with that fear. It's very, very powerful. And what you've got to do is get it as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-iovine/everyone-s-frightened-it-s-how-you-deal-with-that-fear-it-s-very-very/) [Jimmy Iovine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-iovine/) > [We are to learn about fear, not how to escape from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/we-are-to-learn-about-fear-not-how-to-escape-from-it/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [Learn when to fear, and how to fear, and how much to fear, before you squander all you have left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-morris/learn-when-to-fear-and-how-to-fear-and-how-much-to-fear-before-you/) [Janet Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-morris/) > [The more you learn, the less you fear. "Learn" not in the sense of academic study, but in the practical understanding of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/the-more-you-learn-the-less-you-fear-learn-not-in-the-sense-of/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) ## More by Barbara Brown Taylor > [The poets began drifting away from churches as the jurists grew louder and more insistent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/the-poets-began-drifting-away-from-churches-as-the-jurists-grew/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [I decided I got to say whether I was Christian or not, and so I've relaxed enormously since then. I'm the one who gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/i-decided-i-got-to-say-whether-i-was-christian-or-not-and-so-i-ve/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [Having been brought up with a definition of faith as adherence to a set of beliefs, I have more and more begun to turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/having-been-brought-up-with-a-definition-of-faith-as-adherence-to-a/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [I don't miss the ministry, because I'm completely engaged in it. In terms of parish ministry, I miss the intimacy with a group of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/i-don-t-miss-the-ministry-because-i-m-completely-engaged-in-it-in/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [ With all the conceptual truths in the universe at His disposal \[Jesus\] did not give them something to think about together when He was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/with-all-the-conceptual-truths-in-the-universe-at-his-disposal-jesus/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [There comes a time when it is vitally important for your spiritual health to drop your clothes, look in the mirror, and say, ‘Here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/there-comes-a-time-when-it-is-vitally-important-for-your-spiritual/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [The problem is, many of the people in need of saving are in churches, and at least part of what they need saving from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/the-problem-is-many-of-the-people-in-need-of-saving-are-in-churches/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [“I cannot say for sure when my reliable ideas about God began to slip away, but the big chest I used to keep them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/i-cannot-say-for-sure-when-my-reliable-ideas-about-god-began-to-slip/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [I love being alone. I learned that from my father, I think, who loved his own company.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/i-love-being-alone-i-learned-that-from-my-father-i-think-who-loved/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [There was no time anymore to be quiet or still or pray. So, in many ways, that's what led to my downward spin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/there-was-no-time-anymore-to-be-quiet-or-still-or-pray-so-in-many/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [The beauty in the losing is a loss finally of self-consciousness. There's a gorgeous moment that can happen in all kinds of places. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/the-beauty-in-the-losing-is-a-loss-finally-of-self-consciousness/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [“The world for which you have been so carefully prepared is being taken away from you,' he said, 'by the grace of God.' (Walter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/the-world-for-which-you-have-been-so-carefully-prepared-is-being-2/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [So if waiting is an aggravation, it is at least partly because we do not like being reminded of our limits. We like doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/so-if-waiting-is-an-aggravation-it-is-at-least-partly-because-we-do/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [Jesus was not killed by atheism and anarchy. He was brought down by law and order allied with religion, which is always a deadly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/jesus-was-not-killed-by-atheism-and-anarchy-he-was-brought-down-by/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [It can be difficult to be an introvert in church, especially if you happen to be the pastor. Liking to be alone can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/it-can-be-difficult-to-be-an-introvert-in-church-especially-if-you/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) [Explore all 136 Barbara Brown Taylor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This is not a how-to book, but if it were, the only instruction would be to become more curious about your own darkness. What can you learn about your fear of it by staying with it for a moment before turning on the lights? Where can you feel the fear in your body? When have you felt that way before? 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