--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Deeper than our instinct to live is our…" description: "\"Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive.\" — Erwin McManus" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png" --- # Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive. ![“Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive.” quote by Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png) > “Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive.” [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Beyond basic survival, humans seek a deeper sense of vitality and purpose, yearning to truly feel alive. **In simple terms:** Desire for meaningful existence beyond mere survival. Key Takeaway Pursue experiences that awaken you. Themes meaning existence purpose spirituality Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical personal When to use this quote - travel - creative projects - mindfulness practices Key Concepts Existential yearning self‑actualization Questions to Reflect On - What makes you feel truly alive? - How can you integrate this longing daily? A Different Perspective Seeking meaning can cause existential anxiety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) ## Related quotes > [We have no hope and yet we live in longing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/we-have-no-hope-and-yet-we-live-in-longing/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) > [All lovers live by longing, and endure: Summon a vision and declare it pure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/all-lovers-live-by-longing-and-endure-summon-a-vision-and-declare-it/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [I, with a deeper instinct, choose a man who compels my strength, who makes enormous demands on me, who does not doubt my courage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-with-a-deeper-instinct-choose-a-man-who-compels-my-strength-who/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Poetry keeps longing alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bly/poetry-keeps-longing-alive/) [Robert Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bly/) > [Longing is like a seed that wrestles in the ground](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/longing-is-like-a-seed-that-wrestles-in-the-ground/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) > [Sometimes it has to do with other longings that are much more existential. Sometimes you go elsewhere not because you are not liking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/sometimes-it-has-to-do-with-other-longings-that-are-much-more/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [Human nature is so constituted that insults sink deeper than kindnesses; the remembrance of the latter soon passes away, while that of the former…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/human-nature-is-so-constituted-that-insults-sink-deeper-than/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [I have an unquenchable desire to slow down and find my life going deeper in my walk with Christ. I want to meet him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stowell/i-have-an-unquenchable-desire-to-slow-down-and-find-my-life-going/) [Joseph Stowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stowell/) > [Could it be in longing we are most ourselves?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/could-it-be-in-longing-we-are-most-ourselves/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [We have the bad habit, some of us, of looking back to a time - almost any time will do - when society was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-anne-porter/we-have-the-bad-habit-some-of-us-of-looking-back-to-a-time-almost-any/) [Katherine Anne Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-anne-porter/) > [“Go deeper after your feelings created by your awareness and go into your heart beyond this simple word.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raz-mihal/go-deeper-after-your-feelings-created-by-your-awareness-and-go-into/) [Raz Mihal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raz-mihal/) > [It (taking photographs) is all about longingwithout longing-no pictures at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anders-petersen/it-taking-photographs-is-all-about-longingwithout-longing-no-pictures/) [Anders Petersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anders-petersen/) > [To show a longing for anything that one cannot have, for instance, is not a clever position.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/to-show-a-longing-for-anything-that-one-cannot-have-for-instance-is/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I can negate everything of that part of me that lives on vague nostalgias, except this desire for unity, this longing to solve, this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-can-negate-everything-of-that-part-of-me-that-lives-on-vague/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“Haunted by the longing to feel something real, deep and magical; I searched for a shared ecstasy... that's when you came along.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lebo-grand/haunted-by-the-longing-to-feel-something-real-deep-and-magical-i/) [Lebo Grand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lebo-grand/) ## More by Erwin McManus > [I guess when I really think about it, God's voice sounds a lot like my voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/i-guess-when-i-really-think-about-it-god-s-voice-sounds-a-lot-like-my/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [When we lack integrity, we use power to control. When we lead with integrity, we use power to bless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/when-we-lack-integrity-we-use-power-to-control-when-we-lead-with/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [The shape of your character is the shape of your future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/the-shape-of-your-character-is-the-shape-of-your-future/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [You need to remember who God is, forget the painful wounds and let Him renew you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/you-need-to-remember-who-god-is-forget-the-painful-wounds-and-let-him/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [It’s a wonderful thing when you look inside your own heart and like what you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/it-s-a-wonderful-thing-when-you-look-inside-your-own-heart-and-like/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [I think Christianity is the same as Buddhism and Hinduism - whenever a religion begins to say that these are the things you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/i-think-christianity-is-the-same-as-buddhism-and-hinduism-whenever-a/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [The world doesn't need more great leaders, it needs more great people who lead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/the-world-doesn-t-need-more-great-leaders-it-needs-more-great-people/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [Faith is the determination to create with our lives what only our hearts can conceive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/faith-is-the-determination-to-create-with-our-lives-what-only-our/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [How in the world could you ever imagine a life of faith that does not require risk? Faith and risk are inseparable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/how-in-the-world-could-you-ever-imagine-a-life-of-faith-that-does-not/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [Greatness comes with discipline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/greatness-comes-with-discipline/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [Love, no matter how you come at it, is a huge risk. It makes it easier for me to remember that God will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/love-no-matter-how-you-come-at-it-is-a-huge-risk-it-makes-it-easier/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [My goal is to destroy Christianity as a world religion and be a recatalyst for the movement of Jesus Christ ... Some people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/my-goal-is-to-destroy-christianity-as-a-world-religion-and-be-a/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [So many of us have abdicated our passions for obligations, as if passion is a luxury for the young, and we must all grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/so-many-of-us-have-abdicated-our-passions-for-obligations-as-if/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [Truth should never travel faster than love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/truth-should-never-travel-faster-than-love/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) > [People who are fully alive look out of their minds to those who simply exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/people-who-are-fully-alive-look-out-of-their-minds-to-those-who/) [Erwin McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) [Explore all 106 Erwin McManus quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/) ## 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": "Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Erwin McManus" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our-longing-to-be-alive/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our-longing-to-be-alive/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ed/erwin-mcmanus-4838_alive_deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our_227266.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Deeper than our instinct to live is our longing to be alive.” — Erwin McManus", "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": "Erwin McManus", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-mcmanus/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Deeper than our instinct to live...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our-longing-to-be-alive/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-mcmanus/deeper-than-our-instinct-to-live-is-our-longing-to-be-alive/#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 } } ] } ```