--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The greatest stories are those that…" description: "\"The greatest stories are those that resonate our beginnings and intuit our endings, our mysterious origins and our numinous destinies, and dissolve the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg" --- # The greatest stories are those that resonate our… ![“The greatest stories are those that resonate our beginnings and intuit our endings, our mysterious origins and our numinous destinies, and dissolve them both into one.” quote by Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg) > “The greatest stories are those that resonate our beginnings and intuit our endings, our mysterious origins and our numinous destinies, and dissolve them both into one.” [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories weave together origins and destinies, merging mystery with purpose into a unified narrative. **In simple terms:** Stories connect beginnings and ends. Key Takeaway Seek unity in personal narrative. Themes storytelling identity spirituality Mood contemplative hopeful Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - creative writing - therapy - cultural study - personal reflection Key Concepts myth destiny meaning connection Questions to Reflect On - What personal myths shape your life? - How can stories guide future choices? A Different Perspective Interpretations may vary, risking oversimplification. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning/) [Greatest Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatest-stories-330599/) [Mysterious Origins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious-origins-4110975/) [Origins Numinous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/origins-numinous-4437247/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Resonate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-resonate-2325749/) ## Related quotes > ['I am not adopted; I have mysterious origins.' I have said that sentence many times in the course of my life as an adopted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-ullman/i-am-not-adopted-i-have-mysterious-origins-i-have-said-that-sentence/) [Ellen Ullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-ullman/) > [“How do you create emotionally resonant stories? It’s simple: Create stories with which you resonate. Learn to listen to your body and identify emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-m-weiland/how-do-you-create-emotionally-resonant-stories-it-s-simple-create/) [K.M. Weiland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-m-weiland/) > [“Great stories resonate with the human mind because they reflect the conflicts our minds have to deal with as we learn and grow in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baboulene/great-stories-resonate-with-the-human-mind-because-they-reflect-the/) [David Baboulene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baboulene/) > [I'm a songwriter, and people will tell you the greatest stories about their lives, whether you want to hear it or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-richie/i-m-a-songwriter-and-people-will-tell-you-the-greatest-stories-about/) [Lionel Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-richie/) > [Noah was this sort of patron saint in my life. When I finished Pi and I started to think about what was next, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-aronofsky/noah-was-this-sort-of-patron-saint-in-my-life-when-i-finished-pi-and/) [Darren Aronofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-aronofsky/) > [Great Expectations' is one of the greatest stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-irvine/great-expectations-is-one-of-the-greatest-stories/) [Jeremy Irvine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-irvine/) > [“The greatest stories come from trying to make your own contradictions meet and get along.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-hall/the-greatest-stories-come-from-trying-to-make-your-own-contradictions/) [Barbara Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-hall/) > [Ego is certainly there in many of the greatest and most dizzying tales of success - but it's there in some of the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/ego-is-certainly-there-in-many-of-the-greatest-and-most-dizzying/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [The greatest stories go to those who don’t give in to fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-greatest-stories-go-to-those-who-don-t-give-in-to-fear/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“The greatest stories ever told trace a path through the charred and exalted landscape of romantic love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/the-greatest-stories-ever-told-trace-a-path-through-the-charred-and/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [I don't necessarily start with the beginning of the book. I just start with the part of the story that's most vivid in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beverly-cleary/i-don-t-necessarily-start-with-the-beginning-of-the-book-i-just-start/) [Beverly Cleary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beverly-cleary/) > [Some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle and end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilda-radner/some-stories-don-t-have-a-clear-beginning-middle-and-end/) [Gilda Radner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilda-radner/) > [Every Finish Line is the beginning of a new race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-finish-line-is-the-beginning-of-a-new-race/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [At the very beginning, I was a page at Letterman, and I freelanced for any place that would let me write any word. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-schwartz/at-the-very-beginning-i-was-a-page-at-letterman-and-i-freelanced-for/) [Ben Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-schwartz/) ## More by Ben Okri > [We never think that our mothers will die. It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [“In a fractured age, when cynicism is god, here is a possible heresy: we live by stories, we also live in them. One way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/in-a-fractured-age-when-cynicism-is-god-here-is-a-possible-heresy-we/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [The best writing is not about the writer, the best writing is absolutely not about the writer, it's about us, it's about the reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-best-writing-is-not-about-the-writer-the-best-writing-is/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Maybe there are only three kinds of stories: those we live, those we tell, and those that help our souls fly upwards to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/maybe-there-are-only-three-kinds-of-stories-those-we-live-those-we/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [The earliest storytellers were magi, seers, bards, griots, shamans. They were, it would seem, old as time, and as terrifying to gaze upon as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-earliest-storytellers-were-magi-seers-bards-griots-shamans-they/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [An inner darkness is darker than an outer darkness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/an-inner-darkness-is-darker-than-an-outer-darkness/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [The strange thing about Africa is how past, present and future come together in a kind of rough jazz, if you like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-strange-thing-about-africa-is-how-past-present-and-future-come/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Our time here is magic! It's the only space you have to realize whatever it is that is beautiful, whatever is true, whatever is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/our-time-here-is-magic-it-s-the-only-space-you-have-to-realize/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Fire is one of my temperaments. It is behind all my work... Fire is a chemical presence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/fire-is-one-of-my-temperaments-it-is-behind-all-my-work-fire-is-a/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [I lived rough, by my wits, was homeless, lived on the streets, lived on friends' floors, was happy, was miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/i-lived-rough-by-my-wits-was-homeless-lived-on-the-streets-lived-on/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [If we could be pure dancers in spirit we would never be afraid to love, and we would love with strength and wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/if-we-could-be-pure-dancers-in-spirit-we-would-never-be-afraid-to/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Without stories we would go mad. Life would lose its moorings or lose its orientations. even in silence we are living our stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/without-stories-we-would-go-mad-life-would-lose-its-moorings-or-lose/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Literature doesn't have a country. Shakespeare is an African writer. His Falstaff, for example, is very African in his appetite for life, his largeness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/literature-doesn-t-have-a-country-shakespeare-is-an-african-writer/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [“So long as a canvas is empty its potential is infinite… The empty canvas can become a gateway into the landscape of nightmares or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/so-long-as-a-canvas-is-empty-its-potential-is-infinite-the-empty/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [I went to London because, for me, it was the home of literature. I went there because of Dickens and Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/i-went-to-london-because-for-me-it-was-the-home-of-literature-i-went/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) [Explore all 124 Ben Okri quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) ## More Beginning quotes > [At the very beginning, I was a page at Letterman, and I freelanced for any place that would let me write any word. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-schwartz/at-the-very-beginning-i-was-a-page-at-letterman-and-i-freelanced-for/) [Ben Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-schwartz/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Every Finish Line is the beginning of a new race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-finish-line-is-the-beginning-of-a-new-race/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) [Adam Imad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-imad/) > [We are beginning to see intimations of this in the implantation of computer devices into the human body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/we-are-beginning-to-see-intimations-of-this-in-the-implantation-of/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [The only vocal training I had was playing with a tape recorder as a kid, and you know, doing the beginning of the 'Lone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-buffer/the-only-vocal-training-i-had-was-playing-with-a-tape-recorder-as-a/) [Michael Buffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-buffer/) > [January is the beginning of a new year for us in the Western world. Let us give to God what belongs to him: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-white/january-is-the-beginning-of-a-new-year-for-us-in-the-western-world/) [Paula White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-white/) > [In the beginning, if you look at those early label albums of the Chicks, we didn't write all that much. We had an A&R…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martie-maguire/in-the-beginning-if-you-look-at-those-early-label-albums-of-the/) [Martie Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martie-maguire/) > [You need more than a beginning if you're going to start a book. If all you have is a beginning, then once you've written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-need-more-than-a-beginning-if-you-re-going-to-start-a-book-if-all/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [When there is a mission before you, you see it from its beginning to its conclusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-white/when-there-is-a-mission-before-you-you-see-it-from-its-beginning-to/) [Jesse White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-white/) > [When God made the world, all things began with him. Life, death, it all began when he said so. That includes you and me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manae-poet-of-carisis/when-god-made-the-world-all-things-began-with-him-life-death-it-all/) [Manae Poet Of Carisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manae-poet-of-carisis/) > [From the beginning at Intel, we planned on being big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-noyce/from-the-beginning-at-intel-we-planned-on-being-big/) [Robert Noyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-noyce/) > [In the very beginning, Yelp started as a service where we really didn't think people would write reviews for fun. The whole concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stoppelman/in-the-very-beginning-yelp-started-as-a-service-where-we-really-didn/) [Jeremy Stoppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stoppelman/) > [Some projects feel like the stars are aligning for them from the very beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-smith/some-projects-feel-like-the-stars-are-aligning-for-them-from-the-very/) [Gregory Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-smith/) > [Do not judge me by my beginning, Only by my end, Nor by the path I took, But where it led me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacklyn-h-lucas/do-not-judge-me-by-my-beginning-only-by-my-end-nor-by-the-path-i-took/) [Jacklyn H Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacklyn-h-lucas/) [Browse all 3,566 Beginning quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The greatest stories are those that resonate our beginnings and intuit our endings, our mysterious origins and our numinous destinies, and dissolve them both into one.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ben Okri" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-resonate-our-beginnings-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beginning" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-resonate-our-beginnings-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e18/ben-okri-3640_beginning_the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-reso_527191.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The greatest stories are those that resonate our beginnings and intuit our endings, our mysterious origins…” — Ben Okri", "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": "Ben Okri", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The greatest stories are those that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-resonate-our-beginnings-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-greatest-stories-are-those-that-resonate-our-beginnings-and/#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 } } ] } ```