--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can't enchant the world, which makes…" description: "\"We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but we can enchant ourselves by paying deep attention\" — Diane Ackerman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png" --- # We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but… ![“We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but we can enchant ourselves by paying deep attention” quote by Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png) > “We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but we can enchant ourselves by paying deep attention” [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We cannot control external events, but by focusing deeply we can create personal wonder and meaning. **In simple terms:** Attention creates personal magic. Key Takeaway Cultivate deep attention. Themes mindfulness self‑creation wonder Mood reflective inspired Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - Meditation - creative work - daily routines - stressful situations Key Concepts Phenomenology subjective experience Questions to Reflect On - How can you practice deep attention today? - What personal magic have you noticed when fully present? A Different Perspective Attention alone may not change external realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Deep Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deep-attention-422059/) [Enchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enchant/) [Enchant World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enchant-world-5728271/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Magic Enchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic-enchant-5728272/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“...love is deep attention, deep compassion...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/love-is-deep-attention-deep-compassion/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [Only a deep attention to the whole of our life can bring us the capacity to love well and live freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/only-a-deep-attention-to-the-whole-of-our-life-can-bring-us-the/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Deep attention, the cognitive style traditionally associated with the humanities, is characterized by concentrating on a single object for long periods (say, a novel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-katherine-hayles/deep-attention-the-cognitive-style-traditionally-associated-with-the/) [N. Katherine Hayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-katherine-hayles/) > [Enchantment can be done with writing but I think enchantment is basically a prospective or an operating system for life. That you can enchant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/enchantment-can-be-done-with-writing-but-i-think-enchantment-is/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [“Given time, words may even enchant an enchanter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/given-time-words-may-even-enchant-an-enchanter/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Beauty seen is as a bee busy buzzing; Not bothered. Attract it's attention, both sting's are never forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-clark/beauty-seen-is-as-a-bee-busy-buzzing-not-bothered-attract-it-s/) [Denise Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-clark/) > [“I am very simple to enchant.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-am-very-simple-to-enchant/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [When you enchant people, your goal is not to make money from them or to get them to do what you want, but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/when-you-enchant-people-your-goal-is-not-to-make-money-from-them-or/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [“How easily such a thing can become a mania, how the most normal and sensible of women once this passion to be thin is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-hurn/how-easily-such-a-thing-can-become-a-mania-how-the-most-normal-and/) [Kathryn Hurn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-hurn/) > [Everything that deceives may be said to enchant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/everything-that-deceives-may-be-said-to-enchant/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“I've just come to my room, Livy darling, I guess this was the memorable night of my life. By George, I never was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-ve-just-come-to-my-room-livy-darling-i-guess-this-was-the-memorable/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“Don’t lose yourself in a man, that’ll make you lose your pizzazz indefinitely. Instead, lose yourself in your own sensuality and you’ll forever enchant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lebo-grand/don-t-lose-yourself-in-a-man-that-ll-make-you-lose-your-pizzazz/) [Lebo Grand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lebo-grand/) > [The word enchant comes from the Latin 'incantare', meaning to sing or chant magical words or sounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-goldman/the-word-enchant-comes-from-the-latin-incantare-meaning-to-sing-or/) [Jonathan Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-goldman/) > [Beautiful works do not intoxicate, but they enchant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/beautiful-works-do-not-intoxicate-but-they-enchant/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [Bid me discourse, I will enchant thine ear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/bid-me-discourse-i-will-enchant-thine-ear/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## More by Diane Ackerman > [A self is a frightening thing to waste, it's the lens through which one's whole life is viewed, and few people are willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/a-self-is-a-frightening-thing-to-waste-it-s-the-lens-through-which/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [“Our lives together, our duet, also continues to evolve, and even if we can’t go back to how it was, we’re designing a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/our-lives-together-our-duet-also-continues-to-evolve-and-even-if-we/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Hit a tripwire of smell and memories explode all at once. A complex vision leaps out of the undergrowth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/hit-a-tripwire-of-smell-and-memories-explode-all-at-once-a-complex/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Horses have made civilization possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/horses-have-made-civilization-possible/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Look at your feet. You are standing in the sky. 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They are the soul of a people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/libraries-change-lives-they-are-the-soul-of-a-people/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [“The etymology of the Hebrew word for prophet, navi, combines three processes: navach (to cry out), nava (to gush or flow), and navuv (to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/the-etymology-of-the-hebrew-word-for-prophet-navi-combines-three/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Knee-deep in the cosmic overwhelm, I’m stricken by the ricochet wonder of it all: the plain everythingness of everything, in cahoots with the everythingness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/knee-deep-in-the-cosmic-overwhelm-i-m-stricken-by-the-ricochet-wonder/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [ Symbolic of life, hair bolts from our head\[s\]. Like the earth, it can be harvested, but it will rise again. We can change its… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/symbolic-of-life-hair-bolts-from-our-head-s-like-the-earth-it-can-be/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [“Most people know that 30 to 40 percent of the world's Jews were killed during World War II, but not that 80 to 90…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/most-people-know-that-30-to-40-percent-of-the-world-s-jews-were/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Choice is a signature of our species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/choice-is-a-signature-of-our-species/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [The further we distance ourselves from the spell of the present, explored by our senses, the harder it will be to understand and protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/the-further-we-distance-ourselves-from-the-spell-of-the-present/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Culture is what people invent when they have lost nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/culture-is-what-people-invent-when-they-have-lost-nature/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) [Explore all 304 Diane Ackerman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [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/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but we can enchant ourselves by paying deep attention", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Diane Ackerman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-its-own-magic-but-we-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-its-own-magic-but-we-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad1/diane-ackerman-1035_attention_we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-i_731357.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We can't enchant the world, which makes its own magic; but we can enchant ourselves by paying deep attention” — Diane Ackerman", "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": "Diane Ackerman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We can't enchant the world, which...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-its-own-magic-but-we-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/we-can-t-enchant-the-world-which-makes-its-own-magic-but-we-can/#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 } } ] } ```