--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It has been universally recognized, in…" description: "\"It has been universally recognized, in all authentic teachings of mankind, that every being born into this world has to work, not merely to keep himsel..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png" --- # It has been universally recognized, in all authentic… ![“It has been universally recognized, in all authentic teachings of mankind, that every being born into this world has to work, not merely to keep himself alive, but to strive towards perfection.” quote by E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png) > “It has been universally recognized, in all authentic teachings of mankind, that every being born into this world has to work, not merely to keep himself alive, but to strive towards perfection.” [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote emphasizes that work is a moral duty toward personal and collective improvement, not merely survival. **In simple terms:** Work aims at personal and societal perfection. Key Takeaway Strive for excellence in all tasks. Themes work self-improvement purpose philosophy Mood reflective inspirational Type ethical motivational When to use this quote - career development - education - volunteering - personal projects Key Concepts human development ethical labor meaningful existence Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance effort and well‑being? - What does perfection mean to you? A Different Perspective Perfection may be unattainable, leading to burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection/) [Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [It is impossible to think of a man of any actual force and originality, universally recognized as having those qualities, who spent his whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/it-is-impossible-to-think-of-a-man-of-any-actual-force-and/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [I don't strive for perfection, because it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mya/i-don-t-strive-for-perfection-because-it-doesn-t-exist/) [Mya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mya/) > [Strive for perfection in everything. Take the best that exists and make it better. If it doesn't exist, create it. Accept nothing nearly right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-royce/strive-for-perfection-in-everything-take-the-best-that-exists-and/) [Henry Royce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-royce/) > [“There were secrets there, the secrets of the ether all mankind is born from; of the blackness that holds our oldest memories captive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hall/there-were-secrets-there-the-secrets-of-the-ether-all-mankind-is-born/) Bryan Hall > [Art will remain the most astonishing activity of mankind born out of struggle between wisdom and madness, between dream and reality in our mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/art-will-remain-the-most-astonishing-activity-of-mankind-born-out-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“And there came to him a feeling which he had often had before in many different places--that he himself was a part of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earnest-poole/and-there-came-to-him-a-feeling-which-he-had-often-had-before-in-many/) [Earnest Poole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earnest-poole/) > [If mankind were born tomorrow it would divide into groups; each would scramble to invent their one and only god, and set about butchering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/if-mankind-were-born-tomorrow-it-would-divide-into-groups-each-would/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [To what gulfs A single deviation from the track Of human duties leads even those who claim The homage of mankind as their born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/to-what-gulfs-a-single-deviation-from-the-track-of-human-duties-leads/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [Better mankind born without mouths and stomachs than always to worry about money to buy, to shop, to fix, to cook, to wash, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tillie-olsen/better-mankind-born-without-mouths-and-stomachs-than-always-to-worry/) [Tillie Olsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tillie-olsen/) > [“He worshipped the past with a strange fervour. It was, he liked to tell her, the weight all mankind was born to bear. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-graudin/he-worshipped-the-past-with-a-strange-fervour-it-was-he-liked-to-tell/) [Ryan Graudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-graudin/) > [Not in innocence, and not in Asia, was mankind born. The home of our fathers was that African highland reaching north from the Cape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ardrey/not-in-innocence-and-not-in-asia-was-mankind-born-the-home-of-our/) [Robert Ardrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ardrey/) > [As for the people that say "God made them that way," that's not true. The bible says that mankind is born in sin. Including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-for-the-people-that-say-god-made-them-that-way-that-s-not-true-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Entrepreneurs are never satisfied. They want to do things better. They strive for perfection and use all the ingenuity to their command to achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-willard-marriott/entrepreneurs-are-never-satisfied-they-want-to-do-things-better-they/) [J. Willard Marriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-willard-marriott/) > [And with a few moments like that, with doubt from here and there, and within ourselves we were just striving for excellence. We had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-rn-utzon/and-with-a-few-moments-like-that-with-doubt-from-here-and-there-and/) Jørn Utzon > [“it is much easier to strive for perfection when you are never bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/it-is-much-easier-to-strive-for-perfection-when-you-are-never-bored/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) ## More by E. F. Schumacher > [Work and leisure are complementary parts of the same living process and cannot be separated without destroying the joy of work and the bliss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/work-and-leisure-are-complementary-parts-of-the-same-living-process/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Study how a society uses its land, and you can come to pretty reliable conclusions as to what its future will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/study-how-a-society-uses-its-land-and-you-can-come-to-pretty-reliable/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Without ... the creative imagination rushing in where bureaucratic angels fear to tread - without this, life is a mockery and a disgrace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/without-the-creative-imagination-rushing-in-where-bureaucratic-angels/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Why precisely do we want to change land ownership? The answer seems to me to be quite clear: to inhibit land speculation, to inhibit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/why-precisely-do-we-want-to-change-land-ownership-the-answer-seems-to/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Our task - and the task of all education - is to understand the present world, the world in which we live and make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/our-task-and-the-task-of-all-education-is-to-understand-the-present/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Infinite growth of material consumption in a finite world is an impossibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/infinite-growth-of-material-consumption-in-a-finite-world-is-an/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Even bigger machines, entailing even bigger concentrations of economic power and exerting ever greater violence against the environment, do not represent progress: they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/even-bigger-machines-entailing-even-bigger-concentrations-of-economic/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [The substance of man cannot be measured by Gross National Product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/the-substance-of-man-cannot-be-measured-by-gross-national-product/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [To describe an animal as a physico-chemical system of extreme complexityis no doubt perfectly correct, except that it misses out on the animalness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/to-describe-an-animal-as-a-physico-chemical-system-of-extreme/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Our task is to look at the world, and see it whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/our-task-is-to-look-at-the-world-and-see-it-whole/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [The most striking about modern industry is that it requires so much and accomplishes so little. Modern industry seems to be inefficient to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/the-most-striking-about-modern-industry-is-that-it-requires-so-much/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [The modern world tends to be skeptical about everything that makes demands on man's higher faculties. But it is not at all skeptical about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/the-modern-world-tends-to-be-skeptical-about-everything-that-makes/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Many people love in themselves what they hate in others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/many-people-love-in-themselves-what-they-hate-in-others/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [I cannot predict the wind but I can have my sail ready.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/i-cannot-predict-the-wind-but-i-can-have-my-sail-ready/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [The technology of mass production is inherently violent, ecologically damaging, self-defeating in terms of non-renewable resources, and stultifying for the human person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/the-technology-of-mass-production-is-inherently-violent-ecologically/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) [Explore all 82 E. F. Schumacher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) ## More Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It has been universally recognized, in all authentic teachings of mankind, that every being born into this world has to work, not merely to keep himself alive, but to strive towards perfection.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. F. Schumacher" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-all-authentic-teachings-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-all-authentic-teachings-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bee/e-f-schumacher-8282_alive_it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-al_3209488.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It has been universally recognized, in all authentic teachings of mankind, that every being born into this…” — E. F. Schumacher", "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": "E. F. Schumacher", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It has been universally recognized, in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-all-authentic-teachings-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/it-has-been-universally-recognized-in-all-authentic-teachings-of/#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 } } ] } ```