---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel…"
description: "\"“Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their disintegration? In other words, what will happen to your consciousness? But what is consciousness? Let's..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg"
---

#  Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their…

![“Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their disintegration? In other words, what will happen to your consciousness? But what is consciousness? Let's see. A conscious attempt to fall asleep is sure to produce insomnia, to try to be conscious of one's own digestion is a sure way to upset the…” quote by Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg)

> ““Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their disintegration? In other words, what will happen to your consciousness? But what is consciousness? Let's see. A conscious attempt to fall asleep is sure to produce insomnia, to try to be conscious of one's own digestion is a sure way to upset the stomach. Consciousness is a poison when we apply it to ourselves. Consciousness is a light directed outward, it lights up the way ahead of us so that we don't stumble. It's like the headlights on a locomotive - turn them inward and you'd have a crash.””

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Consciousness, when turned inward, becomes a hindrance; it should illuminate the external path, not the self, to avoid self‑destruction.

**In simple terms:** Thinking about yourself too much harms you; focus outward.

Key Takeaway

Use awareness to guide actions, not to over‑analyze yourself.

Themes

self‑awareness mindfulness psychology

Mood

reflective cautious

Type

philosophical advice

When to use this quote

- meditation
- creative work
- decision making
- stress management

Key Concepts

consciousness self‑reflection metacognition

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you channel self‑awareness outward?
- When does introspection become counterproductive?

A Different Perspective

Consciousness can also foster insight when balanced, not just a poison.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/)

## Related quotes

> [A conscious attempt to fall asleep is sure to produce insomnia, to try to be conscious of one's own digestion is a sure way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/a-conscious-attempt-to-fall-asleep-is-sure-to-produce-insomnia-to-try/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [Below the incandescent stars / below the incandescent fruit, / the strange experience of beauty; / its existence is too much; / it tears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-moore/below-the-incandescent-stars-below-the-incandescent-fruit-the-strange/)

[Marianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-moore/)

> [Floating in and out of consciousness...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/floating-in-and-out-of-consciousness/)

[Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/)

> [So many people are passive participants in their very short time of having a consciousness, and those who aren't inspire me. Like Malala Yousafzai…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-gelulla/so-many-people-are-passive-participants-in-their-very-short-time-of/)

Dylan Gelulla

> [A language possesses utility only insofar as it can construct conventional boundaries. A language of no boundaries is no language at all, and thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/a-language-possesses-utility-only-insofar-as-it-can-construct/)

[Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/)

> [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/)

[Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/)

> [“Entropy is the normal state of consciousness—a condition that is neither useful nor enjoyable. To avoid this condition, people are naturally eager to fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/entropy-is-the-normal-state-of-consciousness-a-condition-that-is/)

[Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/)

> [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/)

[David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/)

> [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/)

[Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/)

> [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [“People and situations always show us what we need to see and learn about ourselves, and when we take responsibility for our own feelings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-mada-dalian/people-and-situations-always-show-us-what-we-need-to-see-and-learn/)

[Eliza Mada Dalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-mada-dalian/)

> [How wonderful it would be to scatter words as they rise to consciousness, to let them lie where they fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/how-wonderful-it-would-be-to-scatter-words-as-they-rise-to/)

[Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/)

> [“I now argue that entry into Upper Palaeolithic caves was probably seen as virtually indistinguishable from entry into the mental vortex that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-now-argue-that-entry-into-upper-palaeolithic-caves-was-probably/)

[James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/)

> [“You're never alone if you're with your soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/you-re-never-alone-if-you-re-with-your-soul/)

[Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/)

## More by Boris Pasternak

> [“Happy are the downtrodden.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/happy-are-the-downtrodden/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [“The saddest thing of all was that their party represented a deviation from the conditions of the time. It was impossible to imagine that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/the-saddest-thing-of-all-was-that-their-party-represented-a-deviation/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [No deep and strong feeling, such as we may come across here and there in the world, is unmixed with compassion. The more we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/no-deep-and-strong-feeling-such-as-we-may-come-across-here-and-there/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [She was here on earth to make sense of its wild enchantments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/she-was-here-on-earth-to-make-sense-of-its-wild-enchantments/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [Art has two constant, two unending concerns: It always meditates on death and thus always creates life. All great, genuine art resembles and continues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/art-has-two-constant-two-unending-concerns-it-always-meditates-on/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [I think that if the beast who sleeps in man could be held down by threats of any kind, whether of jail or retribution,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/i-think-that-if-the-beast-who-sleeps-in-man-could-be-held-down-by/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [And so it turned out that only a life similar to the life of those around us, merging with it without a ripple, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/and-so-it-turned-out-that-only-a-life-similar-to-the-life-of-those/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [I come here to speak poetry. It will always be in the grass. It will also be necessary to bend down to hear it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/i-come-here-to-speak-poetry-it-will-always-be-in-the-grass-it-will/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [“I'll stay with you a little, my unforgettable delight, for as long as my arms and my hands and my lips remember you. I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/i-ll-stay-with-you-a-little-my-unforgettable-delight-for-as-long-as/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [If it's so painful to love and absorb electricity, how much more painful it is to be a woman, to be the electricity, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/if-it-s-so-painful-to-love-and-absorb-electricity-how-much-more/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [I don't like purely philosophical works. I think a little philosophy should be added to life and art by way of seasoning, but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/i-don-t-like-purely-philosophical-works-i-think-a-little-philosophy/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [“But sometimes, to enable her to bear her life, she needed the accompaniment of an inward music and she could not always compose it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/but-sometimes-to-enable-her-to-bear-her-life-she-needed-the/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [“We’ve been lucky. The autumn happened to be dry and warm. We managed to dig the potatoes before the rain and cold set in.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/we-ve-been-lucky-the-autumn-happened-to-be-dry-and-warm-we-managed-to/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [Departure beyond the borders of my country is for me equivalent to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/departure-beyond-the-borders-of-my-country-is-for-me-equivalent-to/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [“As he scribbled his odds and ends, he made a note reaffirming his belief that art always serves beauty, and beauty is delight in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/as-he-scribbled-his-odds-and-ends-he-made-a-note-reaffirming-his/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

[Explore all 189 Boris Pasternak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

## More Consciousness quotes

> [“You're never alone if you're with your soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/you-re-never-alone-if-you-re-with-your-soul/)

[Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/)

> [“I now argue that entry into Upper Palaeolithic caves was probably seen as virtually indistinguishable from entry into the mental vortex that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-now-argue-that-entry-into-upper-palaeolithic-caves-was-probably/)

[James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/)

> [How wonderful it would be to scatter words as they rise to consciousness, to let them lie where they fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/how-wonderful-it-would-be-to-scatter-words-as-they-rise-to/)

[Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/)

> [“People and situations always show us what we need to see and learn about ourselves, and when we take responsibility for our own feelings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-mada-dalian/people-and-situations-always-show-us-what-we-need-to-see-and-learn/)

[Eliza Mada Dalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-mada-dalian/)

> [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/)

[Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/)

> [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/)

[David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/)

> [“Entropy is the normal state of consciousness—a condition that is neither useful nor enjoyable. To avoid this condition, people are naturally eager to fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/entropy-is-the-normal-state-of-consciousness-a-condition-that-is/)

[Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/)

> [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/)

[Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/)

> [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [A language possesses utility only insofar as it can construct conventional boundaries. A language of no boundaries is no language at all, and thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/a-language-possesses-utility-only-insofar-as-it-can-construct/)

[Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/)

> [So many people are passive participants in their very short time of having a consciousness, and those who aren't inspire me. Like Malala Yousafzai…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-gelulla/so-many-people-are-passive-participants-in-their-very-short-time-of/)

Dylan Gelulla

> [Floating in and out of consciousness...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/floating-in-and-out-of-consciousness/)

[Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/)

> [“The vision teller tells the vision to unguarded minds' of prey. The programmed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/the-vision-teller-tells-the-vision-to-unguarded-minds-of-prey-the/)

[T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/)

> [Human freedom involves our capacity to pause between the stimulus and response and, in that pause, to choose the one response toward which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rollo-may/human-freedom-involves-our-capacity-to-pause-between-the-stimulus-and/)

[Rollo May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rollo-may/)

[Browse all 6,062 Consciousness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their disintegration? In other words, what will happen to your consciousness? But what is consciousness? Let's see. A conscious attempt to fall asleep is sure to produce insomnia, to try to be conscious of one's own digestion is a sure way to upset the stomach. Consciousness is a poison when we apply it to ourselves. Consciousness is a light directed outward, it lights up the way ahead of us so that we don't stumble. It's like the headlights on a locomotive - turn them inward and you'd have a crash.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Boris Pasternak"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-their-disintegration-in-other/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Consciousness"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-their-disintegration-in-other/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/boris-pasternak-1944_consciousness_will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-t_3210420.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Will you feel pain? Do the tissues feel their disintegration? In other words, what will happen to your…” — Boris Pasternak",
                "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": "Boris Pasternak",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Will you feel pain? Do the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-their-disintegration-in-other/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/will-you-feel-pain-do-the-tissues-feel-their-disintegration-in-other/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
