--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing is more false and more indiscreet…" description: "\"Nothing is more false and more indiscreet than always to want to choose what mortifies us in everything. By this rule a person would soon ruin his heal..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/francois-fenelon-2077_facts_nothing-is-more-false-and-more-indiscree_1712338.png" --- # Nothing is more false and more indiscreet than always to… ![“Nothing is more false and more indiscreet than always to want to choose what mortifies us in everything. By this rule a person would soon ruin his health, his business, his reputation, his relations with his relatives and friends, in fact every good work which Providence gives him.” quote by Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/francois-fenelon-2077_facts_nothing-is-more-false-and-more-indiscree_1712338.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/francois-fenelon-2077_facts_nothing-is-more-false-and-more-indiscree_1712338.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/francois-fenelon-2077_facts_nothing-is-more-false-and-more-indiscree_1712338.png) > “Nothing is more false and more indiscreet than always to want to choose what mortifies us in everything. By this rule a person would soon ruin his health, his business, his reputation, his relations with his relatives and friends, in fact every good work which Providence gives him.” [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing self‑inflicted suffering leads to ruin in health, work, and relationships; avoid self‑destructive choices. **In simple terms:** Avoid self‑destructive habits. Key Takeaway Prioritize well‑being. Themes self‑destruction health relationships Mood cautionary serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - decision making - habit formation - well‑being strategies Key Concepts moral philosophy personal responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What habits harm you? - How can you replace them with healthier options? A Different Perspective Temptation to self‑punish can be strong. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Providence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/providence/) [Relatives and friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relatives-and-friends/) [Reputation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reputation/) [Ruins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruins/) ## Related quotes > [Nature made every fop to plague his brother, Just as one beauty mortifies another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/nature-made-every-fop-to-plague-his-brother-just-as-one-beauty/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [If we see nature as pausing, immediately all mortifies and decays; but seen as progressing, she is beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-we-see-nature-as-pausing-immediately-all-mortifies-and-decays-but/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“If you want to become a chemist, you will have to ruin your health. 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O humble and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/let-me-follow-in-thy-footsteps-o-jesus-i-would-imitate-thee-but/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [O Lord, I do most cheerfully commit all unto Thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/o-lord-i-do-most-cheerfully-commit-all-unto-thee/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [Our piety must be weak and imperfect if it do not conquer our fear of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/our-piety-must-be-weak-and-imperfect-if-it-do-not-conquer-our-fear-of/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [Nothing is so costly as the pursuit of a cure for imaginary ills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/nothing-is-so-costly-as-the-pursuit-of-a-cure-for-imaginary-ills/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [I love my country better than my family; but I love humanity better than my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/i-love-my-country-better-than-my-family-but-i-love-humanity-better/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [Crosses are of no use to us but inasmuch as we yield ourselves up to them and forget ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/crosses-are-of-no-use-to-us-but-inasmuch-as-we-yield-ourselves-up-to/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) [Explore all 187 Francois Fenelon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) ## More Facts quotes > [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/) [Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/) > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [He bombarded me with words, of all things, apparently clueless to the fact that the predawn hours rendered me incapable of coherent thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/he-bombarded-me-with-words-of-all-things-apparently-clueless-to-the/) [Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [What is history after all? 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