---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The absorption of the individual in the…"
description: "\"The absorption of the individual in the universal is only another term for its destruction.\" — C. H. Dodd"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/c-h-dodd-88200_absorption_the-absorption-of-the-individual-in-the_1342966.png"
---

#  The absorption of the individual in the universal is only…

![“The absorption of the individual in the universal is only another term for its destruction.” quote by C. H. Dodd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/c-h-dodd-88200_absorption_the-absorption-of-the-individual-in-the_1342966.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/c-h-dodd-88200_absorption_the-absorption-of-the-individual-in-the_1342966.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/c-h-dodd-88200_absorption_the-absorption-of-the-individual-in-the_1342966.png)

> “The absorption of the individual in the universal is only another term for its destruction.”

[C. H. Dodd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-h-dodd/)

## About This Quote

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

Merging the self with the whole can erase individuality, effectively destroying the self.

**In simple terms:** Total unity can erase personal identity.

Key Takeaway

Seek balance between self and collective.

Themes

individualism collectivism identity philosophy of self

Mood

reflective philosophical serious

Type

theoretical ethical

When to use this quote

- spiritual practices
- teamwork
- social movements
- psychological therapy

Key Concepts

ontological unity existential risk self‑loss

Questions to Reflect On

- Is individuality essential for meaning?
- How can we honor both self and whole?

A Different Perspective

Complete loss of self may lead to conformity.

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[Absorption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absorption/) [Absorption Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absorption-individual-4542191/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Individual Universal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual-universal-3774870/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/) [Term Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term-destruction-4542189/) [Universal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal/) [Universal Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal-term-4542190/)

## Related quotes

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> [The ecstasy and completion of absorption in God is so fantastic that you can't possibly have lost anything because all the things you've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-ecstasy-and-completion-of-absorption-in-god-is-so-fantastic-that/)

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> [ \[Pope Francis\]sees a world in need of the Gospel, and of friendship with Jesus Christ, as an antidote to the self-absorption and loneliness that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-weigel/pope-francis-sees-a-world-in-need-of-the-gospel-and-of-friendship/)

[George Weigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-weigel/)

> [Prayer gives us relief from the melancholy burden of self-absorption .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/prayer-gives-us-relief-from-the-melancholy-burden-of-self-absorption/)

[Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/)

> [Selfishness and self-absorption are deadly charm-exterminators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-young/selfishness-and-self-absorption-are-deadly-charm-exterminators/)

[Loretta Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-young/)

> [I had learned that science is a rewarding, active process of discovery, not the passive absorption of what others had discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/i-had-learned-that-science-is-a-rewarding-active-process-of-discovery/)

[Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/)

> [Life is a state of constant radiation and absorption; to exist is to radiate; to exist is to be the recipient of radiations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-george-jordan/life-is-a-state-of-constant-radiation-and-absorption-to-exist-is-to/)

[William George Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-george-jordan/)

> [Self-absorption intensifies isolation, but permits it to go unnoticed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/self-absorption-intensifies-isolation-but-permits-it-to-go-unnoticed/)

[Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/)

> [Those who work at a thing heart and soul not only achieve success in it but through their absorption in that they also realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/those-who-work-at-a-thing-heart-and-soul-not-only-achieve-success-in/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [I was in a garden at the Rodin Museum. For a few minutes I was alone, sitting on a bench between two long hedges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-howe/i-was-in-a-garden-at-the-rodin-museum-for-a-few-minutes-i-was-alone/)

[Irving Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-howe/)

> [Melancholy betrays the world for the sake of knowledge. But in its tenacious self-absorption it embraces dead objects in its contemplation, in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/melancholy-betrays-the-world-for-the-sake-of-knowledge-but-in-its/)

[Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/)

> [The greatness of peoples springs from their ability to grasp the grand conceptions of being. It is the absorption of a people, of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-crummell/the-greatness-of-peoples-springs-from-their-ability-to-grasp-the/)

[Alexander Crummell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-crummell/)

> [I am not the center of the universe. And it's a lesson that I keep having to learn; it's my ongoing work, I'd say.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-fabian/i-am-not-the-center-of-the-universe-and-it-s-a-lesson-that-i-keep/)

[Patrick Fabian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-fabian/)

> [In fact, studies show that vegans tend to get more iron than meat eaters. Vitamin C from fruits and vegetables increases iron absorption. Meanwhile,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/in-fact-studies-show-that-vegans-tend-to-get-more-iron-than-meat/)

[Sharon Gannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gannon/)

## More by C. H. Dodd

> [There is no real religious experience that does not express itself in charity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-h-dodd/there-is-no-real-religious-experience-that-does-not-express-itself-in/)

[C. H. Dodd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-h-dodd/)

> [Does truth prevail more if we are not on speaking terms with those whose view of truth differs from ours?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-h-dodd/does-truth-prevail-more-if-we-are-not-on-speaking-terms-with-those/)

[C. H. Dodd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-h-dodd/)

[Explore all 3 C. H. Dodd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-h-dodd/)

## More Absorption quotes

> [In fact, studies show that vegans tend to get more iron than meat eaters. Vitamin C from fruits and vegetables increases iron absorption. Meanwhile,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/in-fact-studies-show-that-vegans-tend-to-get-more-iron-than-meat/)

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[Patrick Fabian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-fabian/)

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[Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/)

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[Loretta Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-young/)

> [Prayer gives us relief from the melancholy burden of self-absorption .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/prayer-gives-us-relief-from-the-melancholy-burden-of-self-absorption/)

[Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/)

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[George Weigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-weigel/)

> [The ecstasy and completion of absorption in God is so fantastic that you can't possibly have lost anything because all the things you've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-ecstasy-and-completion-of-absorption-in-god-is-so-fantastic-that/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [ \[T\]he mass-man sees in the State an anonymous power, and feeling himself, like it, anonymous, he believes that the State is something of his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/t-he-mass-man-sees-in-the-state-an-anonymous-power-and-feeling/)

[Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/)

> [“But the work had told upon the Editor. Work of that sort carries its penalties with it. Success means absorption, and absorption spells softening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/but-the-work-had-told-upon-the-editor-work-of-that-sort-carries-its/)

[P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/)

[Browse all 118 Absorption quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absorption/)

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