---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The soul's house is not built on such a…"
description: "\"The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only when the conviction - not merely the idea - th..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png"
---

#  The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan…

![“The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only when the conviction - not merely the idea - that the demand of the Spirit, however inconvenient, rules the whole of it, will those objectionable noises die down which have a way of penetrating…” quote by Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png)

> “The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only when the conviction - not merely the idea - that the demand of the Spirit, however inconvenient, rules the whole of it, will those objectionable noises die down which have a way of penetrating into the nicely furnished little oratory and drowning all the quieter voices by their din.”

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

True spiritual conviction must dominate inner life, silencing disruptive thoughts that drown quieter inner voices.

**In simple terms:** Deep conviction quiets inner noise.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate sincere inner commitment.

Themes

spirituality inner conflict conviction

Mood

reflective serene

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- meditation
- prayer
- personal growth

Key Concepts

psychology philosophy faith

Questions to Reflect On

- What practices help you maintain inner quiet?
- How do you discern between true conviction and fleeting ideas?

A Different Perspective

Inner turmoil may persist despite conviction; silence is not guaranteed.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Conviction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conviction/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Oratory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oratory/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/)

## Related quotes

> [“Memorialization is not a passive practice but an active conversation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aanchal-malhotra/memorialization-is-not-a-passive-practice-but-an-active-conversation/)

[Aanchal Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aanchal-malhotra/)

> [“He could not help but admire his posters every time he saw them---the son of a rickshaw puller, now the chief of a prominent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-gore/he-could-not-help-but-admire-his-posters-every-time-he-saw-them-the/)

[Rohit Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-gore/)

> [Many from Peshawar starred in our film industry and Lahore too was the hub of films before the Partition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeenat-aman/many-from-peshawar-starred-in-our-film-industry-and-lahore-too-was/)

[Zeenat Aman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeenat-aman/)

> [“Sharif Miyan: "I wish I did, though. Own some land, that is. My family owned it once when I was a young man. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-gore/sharif-miyan-i-wish-i-did-though-own-some-land-that-is-my-family/)

[Rohit Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-gore/)

> [European anti-Semitism goes much further back than to the partition of Palestine and the establishment of Israel in 1948. It even goes further back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-barenboim/european-anti-semitism-goes-much-further-back-than-to-the-partition/)

[Daniel Barenboim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-barenboim/)

> [The film is intended to unite people and not create division in the society. 'Partition' talks about peace and humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huma-qureshi/the-film-is-intended-to-unite-people-and-not-create-division-in-the/)

[Huma Qureshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huma-qureshi/)

> [What should be the future of Israel? Is the land the most important choice, and for that reason to keep the whole of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/what-should-be-the-future-of-israel-is-the-land-the-most-important/)

[Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/)

> [There can be no such things as an Irish nationalist accepting the loyalist veto and partition. You cannot claim to be an Irish nationalist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-adams/there-can-be-no-such-things-as-an-irish-nationalist-accepting-the/)

[Gerry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-adams/)

> [No settlement with the majority is possible as no Hindu leader speaking with any authority shows any concern or genuine desire for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali-jinnah/no-settlement-with-the-majority-is-possible-as-no-hindu-leader/)

[Muhammad Ali Jinnah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali-jinnah/)

> [We are totally committed to ending partition and to creating the conditions for unity and independence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-adams/we-are-totally-committed-to-ending-partition-and-to-creating-the/)

[Gerry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-adams/)

> [You cannot have partition only on political bases or geographic bases. It should be social first of all when the communities do not live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bashar-al-assad/you-cannot-have-partition-only-on-political-bases-or-geographic-bases/)

[Bashar al-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bashar-al-assad/)

> [I feel as if things are falling apart within me, like so many glass partitions shattering. I walk from place to place in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-houellebecq/i-feel-as-if-things-are-falling-apart-within-me-like-so-many-glass/)

[Michel Houellebecq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-houellebecq/)

> [“Migration is often accompanied by a feeling of unavoidable disorientation, and the circumstances of 1947 would have pronounced this feeling. In most cases, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aanchal-malhotra/migration-is-often-accompanied-by-a-feeling-of-unavoidable/)

[Aanchal Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aanchal-malhotra/)

> [“We should have realized it sooner, at least my father should have, that there was no coming back. Not in September when the riots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aanchal-malhotra/we-should-have-realized-it-sooner-at-least-my-father-should-have-that/)

[Aanchal Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aanchal-malhotra/)

> [Both India and Pakistan have a long history of deploying rhetorical strategies to skirt the issue of plebiscite or complete secession of the former…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nyla-ali-khan/both-india-and-pakistan-have-a-long-history-of-deploying-rhetorical/)

[Nyla Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nyla-ali-khan/)

## More by Evelyn Underhill

> [Sometimes I think the resurrection of the body, unless much improved in construction, a mistake!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/sometimes-i-think-the-resurrection-of-the-body-unless-much-improved/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [But so many Christians are like deaf people at a concert. They study the programme carefully, believe every statement make in it, speak respectfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/but-so-many-christians-are-like-deaf-people-at-a-concert-they-study/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [“Therefore it is to a practical mysticism that the practical man is here invited: to a training of his latent faculties, a bracing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/therefore-it-is-to-a-practical-mysticism-that-the-practical-man-is/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [When you let intution have its way with you, you open up new levels of the world. Such opening-up is the most practical of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/when-you-let-intution-have-its-way-with-you-you-open-up-new-levels-of/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [In mysticism that love of truth which we saw as the beginning of all philosophy leaves the merely intellectual sphere, and takes on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/in-mysticism-that-love-of-truth-which-we-saw-as-the-beginning-of-all/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [As the social self can only be developed by contact with society, so the spiritual self can only be developed by contact with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/as-the-social-self-can-only-be-developed-by-contact-with-society-so/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [No metaphysician has yet shaken the ordinary individual's belief in his own existence. The uncertainties only begin for most of us when we ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/no-metaphysician-has-yet-shaken-the-ordinary-individual-s-belief-in/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [Love makes the whole difference between an execution and a martyrdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/love-makes-the-whole-difference-between-an-execution-and-a-martyrdom/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [A simple rule, to be followed whether one is in the light or not, gives backbone to one's spiritual life, as nothing else can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/a-simple-rule-to-be-followed-whether-one-is-in-the-light-or-not-gives/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [Every minute you are thinking of evil, you might have been thinking of good instead. Refuse to pander to a morbid interest in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/every-minute-you-are-thinking-of-evil-you-might-have-been-thinking-of/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [It seems so much easier in these days to live morally than to live beautifully. Lots of us manage to exist for years without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/it-seems-so-much-easier-in-these-days-to-live-morally-than-to-live/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [It is far easier, though not very easy, to develop and preserve a spiritual outlook on life than it is to make our everyday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/it-is-far-easier-though-not-very-easy-to-develop-and-preserve-a/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [though humility and acknowledgement of one's real failings is good, the gratuitous eating of worms not put before us by God does not nourish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/though-humility-and-acknowledgement-of-one-s-real-failings-is-good/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [Delicate humor is the crowning virtue of the saints.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/delicate-humor-is-the-crowning-virtue-of-the-saints/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

> [All things are perceived in the light of charity, and hence under the aspect of beauty; for beauty is simply reality seen with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/all-things-are-perceived-in-the-light-of-charity-and-hence-under-the/)

[Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

[Explore all 116 Evelyn Underhill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/)

## More Built quotes

> [It's really fun and challenging to build things that have never been built before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mason/it-s-really-fun-and-challenging-to-build-things-that-have-never-been/)

[Hilary Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mason/)

> [Astronomers have built telescopes which can show myriads of stars unseen before; but when a man looks through a tear in his own eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/astronomers-have-built-telescopes-which-can-show-myriads-of-stars/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [So I concentrated on the rhythmic side of things, and therefore left a lot of holes. I didn't want to use big pad chords…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/midge-ure/so-i-concentrated-on-the-rhythmic-side-of-things-and-therefore-left-a/)

[Midge Ure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/midge-ure/)

> [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/)

[Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/)

> [Most startups are not just built for the person who is using them. When you do that, every now and then you get really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmett-shear/most-startups-are-not-just-built-for-the-person-who-is-using-them/)

[Emmett Shear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmett-shear/)

> [Call me the rap assassinator / rhymes rugged and built like Schwarzenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raekwon/call-me-the-rap-assassinator-rhymes-rugged-and-built-like/)

[Raekwon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raekwon/)

> [Do we make ourselves into what we become or is it built into our genes, into the fate spun for us by whatever shapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-bruchac/do-we-make-ourselves-into-what-we-become-or-is-it-built-into-our/)

[Joseph Bruchac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-bruchac/)

> [Democracy must be built through open societies that share information. When there is information, there is enlightenment. When there is debate, there are solutions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atifete-jahjaga/democracy-must-be-built-through-open-societies-that-share-information/)

[Atifete Jahjaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atifete-jahjaga/)

> [The dark ages still reign over all humanity, and the depth and persistence of this domination are only now becoming clear. This Dark Ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/the-dark-ages-still-reign-over-all-humanity-and-the-depth-and/)

[R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/)

> [God and I have built an immense fire together. We keep each other happy and warm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafez/god-and-i-have-built-an-immense-fire-together-we-keep-each-other/)

[Hafez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hafez/)

> [When we built Roomba, we explicitly designed it to not have a face. We didn't want to think it was cute; we wanted people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-angle/when-we-built-roomba-we-explicitly-designed-it-to-not-have-a-face-we/)

[Colin Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-angle/)

> [Winning a competition in architecture is a ticket to oblivion. It's just an idea. Ninety-nine per cent never get built](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-libeskind/winning-a-competition-in-architecture-is-a-ticket-to-oblivion-it-s/)

[Daniel Libeskind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-libeskind/)

> [Good churches are not built by bad men; at least, there must be probity and enthusiasm somewhere in the society. These minsters were neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/good-churches-are-not-built-by-bad-men-at-least-there-must-be-probity/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [Mostly what I'm focused on is finding people who are younger who haven't built companies before but have a good idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hughes/mostly-what-i-m-focused-on-is-finding-people-who-are-younger-who/)

[Chris Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hughes/)

> [“Imagine what I could have done in ten years. I could have learned to speak Japanese. I could have played every RPG video game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/imagine-what-i-could-have-done-in-ten-years-i-could-have-learned-to/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

Browse all 3,164 Built quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only when the conviction - not merely the idea - that the demand of the Spirit, however inconvenient, rules the whole of it, will those objectionable noises die down which have a way of penetrating into the nicely furnished little oratory and drowning all the quieter voices by their din.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Evelyn Underhill"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a-convenient-plan-there-are-few/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Built"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a-convenient-plan-there-are-few/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/evelyn-underhill-4102_built_the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a_1332862.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only…” — Evelyn Underhill",
                "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": "Evelyn Underhill",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The soul's house is not built...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a-convenient-plan-there-are-few/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/the-soul-s-house-is-not-built-on-such-a-convenient-plan-there-are-few/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
