--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A million million worlds that move in…" description: "\"A million million worlds that move in peace;A million mighty laws that never cease;And one small ant-heap, hidden by small weeds,Rich with eggs, slaves..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png" --- # A million million worlds that move in peace;A million… ![“A million million worlds that move in peace;A million mighty laws that never cease;And one small ant-heap, hidden by small weeds,Rich with eggs, slaves and store of millet-seeds.They sleep beneath the sodAnd trust in God.” quote by Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png) > “A million million worlds that move in peace;A million mighty laws that never cease;And one small ant-heap, hidden by small weeds,Rich with eggs, slaves and store of millet-seeds.They sleep beneath the sodAnd trust in God.” [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poem contrasts vast, orderly universes with a tiny, humble ant colony, suggesting that even the smallest beings trust in a higher power. **In simple terms:** Small things rely on faith despite their size. Key Takeaway Recognize the power of humility and faith. Themes humility faith scale nature community Mood reflective contemplative Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - observing nature - philosophical reflection - spiritual contemplation Key Concepts cosmology anthropomorphism trust Questions to Reflect On - How does humility shape your worldview? - What does trust mean in your daily life? A Different Perspective The metaphor may oversimplify complex ecological systems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ants/) [Cease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease/) [Eggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eggs/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Mighty Laws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mighty-laws-890428/) [Million Worlds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/million-worlds-890427/) [Millions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/millions/) [Moving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moving/) [Peace Million](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace-million-890429/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Seeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seeds/) [Seeds Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seeds-sleep-890426/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Slaves Store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slaves-store-890430/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) [Stores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stores/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Trust in god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust-in-god/) [Weed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weed/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“Here on this deck, millions of other universes exist unaware of one another..." He raised his wings and spread them wide before folding them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillip-pullman/here-on-this-deck-millions-of-other-universes-exist-unaware-of-one/) [Phillip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillip-pullman/) > [Let us inquire what glory there was in an omnipotent being torturing forever a puny little creature who could in no way defend himself?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/let-us-inquire-what-glory-there-was-in-an-omnipotent-being-torturing/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [There's a scientific hypothesis that every person's name is a primary suggestive command that contains the entire script of their life in highly concentrated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-pelevin/there-s-a-scientific-hypothesis-that-every-person-s-name-is-a-primary/) [Victor Pelevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-pelevin/) > [“Lies are like ants; there's never just one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-ash/lies-are-like-ants-there-s-never-just-one/) [Julia Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-ash/) > [When someone criticizes or disagrees with you, a small ant of hatred and antagonism is born in your heart. If you do not squash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/when-someone-criticizes-or-disagrees-with-you-a-small-ant-of-hatred/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Albert and I would spend hours and hours looking at them. Cleo had this big magnifying glass on his desk, and we'd find centipedes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/albert-and-i-would-spend-hours-and-hours-looking-at-them-cleo-had/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [Oh, ants, my sisters, good old honeydew-seekers! From close up you are sticky and shiny and gristly; and your nymphs have parasitic red mites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/oh-ants-my-sisters-good-old-honeydew-seekers-from-close-up-you-are/) [William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/) > [We know of no behavior in ants or any other social insects that can be construed as play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-holldobler/we-know-of-no-behavior-in-ants-or-any-other-social-insects-that-can/) [Bert Holldobler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-holldobler/) > [“THE FIGHTERS ARE TINY. INSECTS, REALLY. BUT ANTS CAN SLAY AN ELEPHANT, IF THERE ARE ENOUGH OF THEM. ESPECIALLY ANTS ARMED WITH HIGH-YIELD EXPLOSIVES…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amie-kaufman/the-fighters-are-tiny-insects-really-but-ants-can-slay-an-elephant-if/) [Amie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amie-kaufman/) > [There's a good case to be made that having fun is a key evolutionary advantage right next to opposable thumbs in terms of importance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raph-koster/there-s-a-good-case-to-be-made-that-having-fun-is-a-key-evolutionary/) [Raph Koster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raph-koster/) > [“Some people are ants by nature; they have to work, even when it’s useless. Few people have a talent for constructive laziness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/some-people-are-ants-by-nature-they-have-to-work-even-when-it-s/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [People are like ants: Just a few of them give all the orders. And most of them spend their lives getting squashed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/people-are-like-ants-just-a-few-of-them-give-all-the-orders-and-most/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Great God of the Ants, thou hast granted victory to thy servants. I appoint thee honorary Colonel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/great-god-of-the-ants-thou-hast-granted-victory-to-thy-servants-i/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [Some people are like ants. Give them a warm day and a piece of ground and they start digging. There the similarity ends. Ants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/some-people-are-like-ants-give-them-a-warm-day-and-a-piece-of-ground/) [Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/) ## More by Charlotte Perkins Gilman > [“They were inconveniently reasonable, these women.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/they-were-inconveniently-reasonable-these-women/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [Architecture might be more sportive and varied if every man built his own house, but it would not be the art and science that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/architecture-might-be-more-sportive-and-varied-if-every-man-built-his/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [To-day there is hardly a woman of intelligence in all America ... who is not definitely and actively concerned in some social interest, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/to-day-there-is-hardly-a-woman-of-intelligence-in-all-america-who-is/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [“Here she comes, running, out of prison and off the pedestal: chains off, crown off, halo off, just a live woman.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/here-she-comes-running-out-of-prison-and-off-the-pedestal-chains-off/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [“I never saw so much expression in an inanimate thing before, and we all know how much expression they have! I used to lie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/i-never-saw-so-much-expression-in-an-inanimate-thing-before-and-we/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [In New York City, everyone is an exile, none more so than the Americans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/in-new-york-city-everyone-is-an-exile-none-more-so-than-the-americans/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [The fact that women in the home have shut themselves away from the thought and life of the world has done much to retard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/the-fact-that-women-in-the-home-have-shut-themselves-away-from-the/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [Eternity is not something that begins after you are dead. It is going on all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/eternity-is-not-something-that-begins-after-you-are-dead-it-is-going/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [Now why should that man have fainted? But he did,and right across my path by the wall, so that I had to creep over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/now-why-should-that-man-have-fainted-but-he-did-and-right-across-my/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [The best proof of man's dissatisfaction with the home is found in his universal absence from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/the-best-proof-of-man-s-dissatisfaction-with-the-home-is-found-in-his/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [The home is the centre and circumference, the start and the finish, of most of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/the-home-is-the-centre-and-circumference-the-start-and-the-finish-of/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [Audiences are always better pleased with a smart retort, some joke or epigram, than with any amount of reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/audiences-are-always-better-pleased-with-a-smart-retort-some-joke-or/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [No matter what the belief, if it had modestly said, 'This is our best thought, go on, think farther!' then we could have smoothly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/no-matter-what-the-belief-if-it-had-modestly-said-this-is-our-best/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [A house does not need a wife any more than it needs a husband.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/a-house-does-not-need-a-wife-any-more-than-it-needs-a-husband/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [The home is a human institution. All human institutions are open to improvement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/the-home-is-a-human-institution-all-human-institutions-are-open-to/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) [Explore all 167 Charlotte Perkins Gilman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) ## More Ants quotes > [Some people are like ants. Give them a warm day and a piece of ground and they start digging. There the similarity ends. Ants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/some-people-are-like-ants-give-them-a-warm-day-and-a-piece-of-ground/) [Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/) > [Great God of the Ants, thou hast granted victory to thy servants. I appoint thee honorary Colonel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/great-god-of-the-ants-thou-hast-granted-victory-to-thy-servants-i/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [People are like ants: Just a few of them give all the orders. And most of them spend their lives getting squashed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/people-are-like-ants-just-a-few-of-them-give-all-the-orders-and-most/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Some people are ants by nature; they have to work, even when it’s useless. Few people have a talent for constructive laziness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/some-people-are-ants-by-nature-they-have-to-work-even-when-it-s/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [There's a good case to be made that having fun is a key evolutionary advantage right next to opposable thumbs in terms of importance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raph-koster/there-s-a-good-case-to-be-made-that-having-fun-is-a-key-evolutionary/) [Raph Koster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raph-koster/) > [“THE FIGHTERS ARE TINY. INSECTS, REALLY. BUT ANTS CAN SLAY AN ELEPHANT, IF THERE ARE ENOUGH OF THEM. ESPECIALLY ANTS ARMED WITH HIGH-YIELD EXPLOSIVES…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amie-kaufman/the-fighters-are-tiny-insects-really-but-ants-can-slay-an-elephant-if/) [Amie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amie-kaufman/) > [We know of no behavior in ants or any other social insects that can be construed as play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-holldobler/we-know-of-no-behavior-in-ants-or-any-other-social-insects-that-can/) [Bert Holldobler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-holldobler/) > [Oh, ants, my sisters, good old honeydew-seekers! From close up you are sticky and shiny and gristly; and your nymphs have parasitic red mites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/oh-ants-my-sisters-good-old-honeydew-seekers-from-close-up-you-are/) [William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/) > [Albert and I would spend hours and hours looking at them. Cleo had this big magnifying glass on his desk, and we'd find centipedes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/albert-and-i-would-spend-hours-and-hours-looking-at-them-cleo-had/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [When someone criticizes or disagrees with you, a small ant of hatred and antagonism is born in your heart. If you do not squash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/when-someone-criticizes-or-disagrees-with-you-a-small-ant-of-hatred/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“Lies are like ants; there's never just one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-ash/lies-are-like-ants-there-s-never-just-one/) [Julia Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-ash/) > [There's a scientific hypothesis that every person's name is a primary suggestive command that contains the entire script of their life in highly concentrated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-pelevin/there-s-a-scientific-hypothesis-that-every-person-s-name-is-a-primary/) [Victor Pelevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-pelevin/) > [When I was little, I would burn ants with a magnifying glass. But now that I'm older, I'm more of a cat guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/when-i-was-little-i-would-burn-ants-with-a-magnifying-glass-but-now/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [If ants were the size of humans, they would be able to run twice as fast as a Lamborghini.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-ants-were-the-size-of-humans-they-would-be-able-to-run-twice-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 499 Ants quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ants/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A million million worlds that move in peace;A million mighty laws that never cease;And one small ant-heap, hidden by small weeds,Rich with eggs, slaves and store of millet-seeds.They sleep beneath the sodAnd trust in God.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charlotte Perkins Gilman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-peace-a-million-mighty-laws/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ants" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-peace-a-million-mighty-laws/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/charlotte-perkins-gilman-2420_ants_a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-pe_864625.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A million million worlds that move in peace;A million mighty laws that never cease;And one small ant-heap…” — Charlotte Perkins Gilman", "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": "Charlotte Perkins Gilman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A million million worlds that move...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-peace-a-million-mighty-laws/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/a-million-million-worlds-that-move-in-peace-a-million-mighty-laws/#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 } } ] } ```