--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To know nothing about yourself is to…" description: "\"To know nothing about yourself is to live. To know yourself badly is to think.\" — Fernando Pessoa" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/fernando-pessoa-177_about-yourself_to-know-nothing-about-yourself-is-to-liv_336338.jpg" --- # To know nothing about yourself is to live. To know… ![“To know nothing about yourself is to live. To know yourself badly is to think.” quote by Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/fernando-pessoa-177_about-yourself_to-know-nothing-about-yourself-is-to-liv_336338.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/fernando-pessoa-177_about-yourself_to-know-nothing-about-yourself-is-to-liv_336338.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/fernando-pessoa-177_about-yourself_to-know-nothing-about-yourself-is-to-liv_336338.jpg) > “To know nothing about yourself is to live. To know yourself badly is to think.” [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ignorance of self leads to empty existence; self‑knowledge, even flawed, creates thought. **In simple terms:** Knowing yourself matters; ignorance is living. Key Takeaway Seek self‑knowledge, even imperfect. Themes self‑knowledge existence philosophy identity reflection Mood introspective philosophical Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - journaling - therapy - meditation - creative writing Key Concepts existentialism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of yourself are you avoiding? - How can flawed self‑knowledge still guide you? A Different Perspective Self‑knowledge can be painful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about-yourself/) [Know yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-yourself/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [We hate to have some people give us advice because we know how badly they need it themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/we-hate-to-have-some-people-give-us-advice-because-we-know-how-badly/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) > [Sometimes even when ppl hurt you badly, Its only about them that you can think..!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farah-mustafa/sometimes-even-when-ppl-hurt-you-badly-its-only-about-them-that-you/) [Farah Mustafa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farah-mustafa/) > [I feel badly for them, not sorry, but badly, because I think they've been given poor breaks and difficult, not sufficient opportunity to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-tiwari/i-feel-badly-for-them-not-sorry-but-badly-because-i-think-they-ve/) [Maya Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-tiwari/) > [I'm such an incredibly, stupidly sensitive person that everything that happens to me, I experience it really intensely. I feel everything very deeply. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-apple/i-m-such-an-incredibly-stupidly-sensitive-person-that-everything-that/) [Fiona Apple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-apple/) > [Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/give-him-a-mask-and-he-will-tell-you-the-truth/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I now know I can live without basketball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-taurasi/i-now-know-i-can-live-without-basketball/) [Diana Taurasi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-taurasi/) > [I love those who do not know how to live for today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/i-love-those-who-do-not-know-how-to-live-for-today/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Wisdom isn't what you know.It's how you live!.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wisdom-isn-t-what-you-know-it-s-how-you-live/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If we know how to pray, we know how to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/if-we-know-how-to-pray-we-know-how-to-live/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [When you know how to die, you know how to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/movie/when-you-know-how-to-die-you-know-how-to-live/) [Movie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/movie/) > [As Soon As You Trust On Yourself, You Will Know How To Live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/as-soon-as-you-trust-on-yourself-you-will-know-how-to-live/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [Everythink happens for our own good, know it and live in dat way..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myself/everythink-happens-for-our-own-good-know-it-and-live-in-dat-way/) Myself > [“Now those dogs know where we live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/now-those-dogs-know-where-we-live/) [Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/) > [As long as you know you have enough to live on, take some risks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-taylor/as-long-as-you-know-you-have-enough-to-live-on-take-some-risks/) [Diana Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-taylor/) > [The only way to know is to Live, Learn, and Grow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauryn-hill/the-only-way-to-know-is-to-live-learn-and-grow/) [Lauryn Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauryn-hill/) ## More by Fernando Pessoa > [Everything interests me, but nothing holds me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/everything-interests-me-but-nothing-holds-me/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“If only, I feel now, if only I could be someone able to see all this as if he had no other relation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/if-only-i-feel-now-if-only-i-could-be-someone-able-to-see-all-this-as/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [What's given, in fact, always depends on the person or thing it's given to. A minor incident in the street brings the cook to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/what-s-given-in-fact-always-depends-on-the-person-or-thing-it-s-given/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [Smell is a strange sight. It evokes sentimental landscapes through a sudden sketching of the subconscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/smell-is-a-strange-sight-it-evokes-sentimental-landscapes-through-a/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“Tudo vale a pena quando a alma não é pequena”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/tudo-vale-a-pena-quando-a-alma-n-o-pequena/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“no nostalgia hurts as much as nostalgia for things that never existed!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/no-nostalgia-hurts-as-much-as-nostalgia-for-things-that-never-existed/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [pg.9 "In my heart there's a peaceful anguish, and my calm is made of resignation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/pg-9-in-my-heart-there-s-a-peaceful-anguish-and-my-calm-is-made-of/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“The feelings that hurt most, the motions that sting most, are those that are absurd; the longing for impossible things, precisely because they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/the-feelings-that-hurt-most-the-motions-that-sting-most-are-those/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“I try to say what I feel Without thinking about what I feel. I try to place words right next to my idea So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/i-try-to-say-what-i-feel-without-thinking-about-what-i-feel-i-try-to/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [Have you ever considered, beloved other, how invisible we are to each other? We look at each other without seeing. We listen to each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/have-you-ever-considered-beloved-other-how-invisible-we-are-to-each/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“To associate is to die. Only my consciousness of myself is real for me; other people are hazy phenomena in this consciousness, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/to-associate-is-to-die-only-my-consciousness-of-myself-is-real-for-me/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“When it comes to dreams, I’m no different from the errand boy and the seamstress. The only thing that distinguishes me from them is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/when-it-comes-to-dreams-i-m-no-different-from-the-errand-boy-and-the/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“No intelligent idea can gain general acceptance unless some stupidity is mixed in with it. Collective thought is stupid because it’s collective. Nothing passes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/no-intelligent-idea-can-gain-general-acceptance-unless-some-stupidity/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [God gave the sea the danger and the abyss, but it was in it that He mirrored the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/god-gave-the-sea-the-danger-and-the-abyss-but-it-was-in-it-that-he/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“Everything that surrounds us becomes part of us, it seeps into us with every experience of the flesh and of life and, like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/everything-that-surrounds-us-becomes-part-of-us-it-seeps-into-us-with/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) [Explore all 781 Fernando Pessoa quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) ## More About yourself quotes > [“they all have always loved you Will Herondale, for you cannot hide what is good about yourself, however har you try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/they-all-have-always-loved-you-will-herondale-for-you-cannot-hide/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupaul/if-you-can-t-love-yourself-how-in-the-hell-you-gonna-love-somebody/) [RuPaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupaul/) > [People are in denial all the time, hiding things. If I tell you a racist or dirty joke and you laugh, you're telling me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/people-are-in-denial-all-the-time-hiding-things-if-i-tell-you-a/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [Change your thoughts, change your life. —LAO TZU When I was fighting depression, I remember hearing this expression and not understanding it at first.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/change-your-thoughts-change-your-life-lao-tzu-when-i-was-fighting/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [Dreams really tell you about yourself more than anything else in this world could ever tell you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-browne/dreams-really-tell-you-about-yourself-more-than-anything-else-in-this/) [Sylvia Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-browne/) > [Celebrate all the things you don't like about yourself. love yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/celebrate-all-the-things-you-don-t-like-about-yourself-love-yourself/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [Start enjoying the things you like about yourself, and if there are things you want to change, either get to work on it or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benji-madden/start-enjoying-the-things-you-like-about-yourself-and-if-there-are/) [Benji Madden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benji-madden/) > [Always be yourself. There's only one you. You should embrace anything that you don't like about yourself because that's individual and that's you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesy-nelson/always-be-yourself-there-s-only-one-you-you-should-embrace-anything/) [Jesy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesy-nelson/) > [It's too distracting to read about yourself. You want to be perfect and you want everyone to love you, and that's never going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/it-s-too-distracting-to-read-about-yourself-you-want-to-be-perfect/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [If you want to know how to make people shun you and laugh at you behind your back and even despise you, here is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-you-want-to-know-how-to-make-people-shun-you-and-laugh-at-you/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [The only thing a master can teach is how to learn about yourself. There are no secrets. They are only techniques to waken yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-jodorowsky/the-only-thing-a-master-can-teach-is-how-to-learn-about-yourself/) [Alejandro Jodorowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-jodorowsky/) > [I don't want to sell myself short. You hurt your spouse, not so much by the infidelity, but by the negative feelings about yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-zaslow/i-don-t-want-to-sell-myself-short-you-hurt-your-spouse-not-so-much-by/) [Michael Zaslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-zaslow/) > [A stranger can see in an instant something in you that you might spend years learning about yourself. How awful we all are when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-elliott/a-stranger-can-see-in-an-instant-something-in-you-that-you-might/) [Stephen Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-elliott/) > [Knowing is the most profound kind of love, giving someone the gift of knowledge about yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsha-norman/knowing-is-the-most-profound-kind-of-love-giving-someone-the-gift-of/) [Marsha Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsha-norman/) > [Start telling the truth now and never stop. Begin by telling the truth to yourself about yourself. Then tell the truth to yourself about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/start-telling-the-truth-now-and-never-stop-begin-by-telling-the-truth/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) [Browse all 770 About yourself quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about-yourself/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To know nothing about yourself is to live. 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