--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Do not get too attached to life] for it…" description: "\"“[Do not get too attached to life] for it is like a sailor's leave on the shore and at any time, the captain may sound the horn, calling you back to et..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/epictetus-413_captain_do-not-get-too-attached-to-life-for-it-i_2466796.jpg" --- # \[Do not get too attached to life\] for it is like a… ![“[Do not get too attached to life] for it is like a sailor's leave on the shore and at any time, the captain may sound the horn, calling you back to eternal darkness.” quote by Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/epictetus-413_captain_do-not-get-too-attached-to-life-for-it-i_2466796.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/epictetus-413_captain_do-not-get-too-attached-to-life-for-it-i_2466796.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/epictetus-413_captain_do-not-get-too-attached-to-life-for-it-i_2466796.jpg) > ““\[Do not get too attached to life\] for it is like a sailor's leave on the shore and at any time, the captain may sound the horn, calling you back to eternal darkness.”” [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is fleeting; attachment creates suffering, and death can come unexpectedly. **In simple terms:** Attachment causes pain; death is sudden. Key Takeaway Practice detachment and cherish present moments. Themes impermanence attachment mortality Mood reflective serene Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - daily life - relationships - career decisions - health crises Key Concepts Stoicism mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance love with impermanence? - What practices help you stay present? A Different Perspective Detachment may be hard when love is deep. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Sailor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailor/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Cursing like a sailor don't make you cool -Stephanie Mayfield.(:](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie/cursing-like-a-sailor-don-t-make-you-cool-stephanie-mayfield/) [Stephanie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie/) > [Sometimes my mouth is a little too big and a little too open and sounds too much like a sailor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/sometimes-my-mouth-is-a-little-too-big-and-a-little-too-open-and/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [He who loves practice without theory is like the sailor who boards ship without a rudder and compass and never knows where he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/he-who-loves-practice-without-theory-is-like-the-sailor-who-boards/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [He wants his home and security, he wants to live like a sailor at sea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-seger/he-wants-his-home-and-security-he-wants-to-live-like-a-sailor-at-sea/) [Bob Seger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-seger/) > [I feel like a sailor, or better, like an explorer of the immense universe of art. The artist is a discoverer in search of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusto-de-luca/i-feel-like-a-sailor-or-better-like-an-explorer-of-the-immense/) [Augusto De Luca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusto-de-luca/) > [Those who fall in love with practice without science are like a sailor who enters a ship without a helm or a compass, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/those-who-fall-in-love-with-practice-without-science-are-like-a/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [I swear like a sailor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anya-taylor-joy/i-swear-like-a-sailor/) [Anya Taylor-Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anya-taylor-joy/) > [“Men can not discover oceans until they leave the shore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-can-not-discover-oceans-until-they-leave-the-shore/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Well, now If little by little you stop loving me I shall stop loving you Little by little If suddenly you forget me Do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/well-now-if-little-by-little-you-stop-loving-me-i-shall-stop-loving-2/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [“Our bodies were trash. We leave them on the shore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/our-bodies-were-trash-we-leave-them-on-the-shore/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [If you want to discover new oceans, you must first have the courage to leave shore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-you-want-to-discover-new-oceans-you-must-first-have-the-courage-to/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [Its hard to reach the ocean if you dont leave the shore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/its-hard-to-reach-the-ocean-if-you-dont-leave-the-shore/) Unknow > [If you think it long and mad the wind of banners that passes through my life And you decide to leave me at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-think-it-long-and-mad-the-wind-of-banners-that-passes-through/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll never discover new horizons if you're afraid to leave the shore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/you-ll-never-discover-new-horizons-if-you-re-afraid-to-leave-the-shore/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“for a woman knows the face of the man she loves like a sailor knows the open sea”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/for-a-woman-knows-the-face-of-the-man-she-loves-like-a-sailor-knows/) [Honore De Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) ## More by Epictetus > [“We are at the mercy of whoever wields authority over the things we either desire or detest. If you would be free, then, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/we-are-at-the-mercy-of-whoever-wields-authority-over-the-things-we/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Practice yourself, for heaven's sake in little things, and then proceed to greater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/practice-yourself-for-heaven-s-sake-in-little-things-and-then-proceed/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Do not laugh much or often or unrestrainedly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/do-not-laugh-much-or-often-or-unrestrainedly/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [When men are unhappy, they do not imagine they can ever cease to be so; and when some calamity has fallen on them, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/when-men-are-unhappy-they-do-not-imagine-they-can-ever-cease-to-be-so/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [We are not disturbed by what happens to us, but by our thoughts about what happens to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/we-are-not-disturbed-by-what-happens-to-us-but-by-our-thoughts-about/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Don't be prideful with any excellence that is not your own](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/don-t-be-prideful-with-any-excellence-that-is-not-your-own/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [You know yourself what you are worth in your own eyes; and at what price you will sell yourself. 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