--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's not what you do that matters. It's…" description: "\"It's not what you do that matters. It's not what you say. There's nothing that is not holy or spiritual. Be beyond definition, beyond categorization, b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/867/frederick-lenz-8_categorization_it-s-not-what-you-do-that-matters-it-s-n_2078264.jpg" --- # It's not what you do that matters. It's not what you say… ![“It's not what you do that matters. It's not what you say. There's nothing that is not holy or spiritual. Be beyond definition, beyond categorization, be absorbed.” quote by Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/867/frederick-lenz-8_categorization_it-s-not-what-you-do-that-matters-it-s-n_2078264.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/867/frederick-lenz-8_categorization_it-s-not-what-you-do-that-matters-it-s-n_2078264.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/867/frederick-lenz-8_categorization_it-s-not-what-you-do-that-matters-it-s-n_2078264.jpg) > “It's not what you do that matters. It's not what you say. There's nothing that is not holy or spiritual. Be beyond definition, beyond categorization, be absorbed.” [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True spirituality transcends labels; it is an all‑encompassing absorption beyond holy or unholy distinctions. **In simple terms:** Go beyond definitions. Key Takeaway Seek boundless experience. Themes spirituality transcendence identity Mood contemplative inspirational Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - meditation retreats - artistic creation - deep conversations Key Concepts non‑dualism absorptive consciousness holism Questions to Reflect On - How can one practice being beyond categories? - What daily habits foster this absorption? A Different Perspective Such abstraction can be vague, making practical application difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Holy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [In the classical spiritual definition, a soul mate is someone that you have reincarnated with many times. You find each other in many lifetimes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/in-the-classical-spiritual-definition-a-soul-mate-is-someone-that-you/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Whether any surfer wants to admit it or not, I think we've all had moments like looking at nice waves coming through the lineup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-lopez/whether-any-surfer-wants-to-admit-it-or-not-i-think-we-ve-all-had/) [Gerry Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-lopez/) > [A categorization implies a hierarchical way of seeing things. Life is really relational, not hierarchical. Hierarchical is a human way of looking at things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-categorization-implies-a-hierarchical-way-of-seeing-things-life-is/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Taoism has no rules. It's a suggestion for preceiving life in its wholeness, without unnessary categorization, yet enjoying the beauty of categorization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/taoism-has-no-rules-it-s-a-suggestion-for-preceiving-life-in-its/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“But I say that even as the holy and the righteous cannot rise beyond the highest which is in each one of you,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/but-i-say-that-even-as-the-holy-and-the-righteous-cannot-rise-beyond-2/) [Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/) > [I'm a politician. What I say is not holy writ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-k-javits/i-m-a-politician-what-i-say-is-not-holy-writ/) [Jacob K. Javits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-k-javits/) > [When you say "Holy Man", I immediately think of Eddie Murphy's finest hour. If it's anything comparable, I'm excited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gordon-green/when-you-say-holy-man-i-immediately-think-of-eddie-murphy-s-finest/) [David Gordon Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gordon-green/) > [Sanctuaries are magical places - dare I say holy?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-patrick-goudreau/sanctuaries-are-magical-places-dare-i-say-holy/) [Colleen Patrick-Goudreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-patrick-goudreau/) > [“But I say that even as the holy and the righteous cannot rise beyond the highest which is in each one of you, So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/but-i-say-that-even-as-the-holy-and-the-righteous-cannot-rise-beyond/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Im a politician. What I say is not holy writ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-k-javits/im-a-politician-what-i-say-is-not-holy-writ/) [Jacob K. Javits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-k-javits/) > [“A Call to Holy Living 13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-call-to-holy-living-13-so-think-clearly-and-exercise-self-control/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What are we saying when we say now, something is holy? That means you should take a different attitude to what you are doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/what-are-we-saying-when-we-say-now-something-is-holy-that-means-you/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [“You do not say someone is holy because he puts forth great ideas concerning the knowledge of God and the attributes of God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-molinos/you-do-not-say-someone-is-holy-because-he-puts-forth-great-ideas/) [Michael Molinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-molinos/) > [Maturity is having the ability to escape categorization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-rexroth/maturity-is-having-the-ability-to-escape-categorization/) [Kenneth Rexroth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-rexroth/) > [“I don't categorize things merely to simplify my understanding. I'd rather delve into the process of unlearning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-sharda/i-don-t-categorize-things-merely-to-simplify-my-understanding-i-d/) [Nikhil Sharda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-sharda/) ## More by Frederick Lenz > [There are places that are very draining. There are places where there is another dimensional crossover but to a dimension that is not powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/there-are-places-that-are-very-draining-there-are-places-where-there/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [You can draw power from everything in your life. In order to do that, everything has to be set up in a proper way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-can-draw-power-from-everything-in-your-life-in-order-to-do-that/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Everyone will admire you when you do well. What a horrible thing to do to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-will-admire-you-when-you-do-well-what-a-horrible-thing-to-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Nirvana is a word that means enlightenment, being beyond the illusion of birth and death, the illusion of pain, the illusion of love, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/nirvana-is-a-word-that-means-enlightenment-being-beyond-the-illusion/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I think the most miraculous thing is learning. I get out of the way and let the students learn. Then you get to watch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/i-think-the-most-miraculous-thing-is-learning-i-get-out-of-the-way/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [A human being can only absorb a small amount of the mystical kundalini, you can be exposed again and again to it, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-human-being-can-only-absorb-a-small-amount-of-the-mystical/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Only alone can you go into eternity. Only alone can you feel the transcendental light. It is not a shared experience because if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/only-alone-can-you-go-into-eternity-only-alone-can-you-feel-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The sound man, immune as to a sacrifice of straw dogs, faces the passing human generations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-sound-man-immune-as-to-a-sacrifice-of-straw-dogs-faces-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Karma means changing planes of reality or changing fields of attention. There will be perhaps a resulting physical action stemming from the change of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/karma-means-changing-planes-of-reality-or-changing-fields-of/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [You and I are both life. There's just the experience of every moment. We like to call them moments. There isn't really such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-and-i-are-both-life-there-s-just-the-experience-of-every-moment/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Why waste your time being around people who drag you down? You don't live forever, at least in this life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/why-waste-your-time-being-around-people-who-drag-you-down-you-don-t/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Everybody here is so caught up in the game of life they don't see death. They don't see beyond their deaths. They are on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everybody-here-is-so-caught-up-in-the-game-of-life-they-don-t-see/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) [Explore all 4,399 Frederick Lenz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) ## More Categorization quotes > [“I don't categorize things merely to simplify my understanding. I'd rather delve into the process of unlearning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-sharda/i-don-t-categorize-things-merely-to-simplify-my-understanding-i-d/) [Nikhil Sharda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-sharda/) > [Maturity is having the ability to escape categorization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-rexroth/maturity-is-having-the-ability-to-escape-categorization/) [Kenneth Rexroth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-rexroth/) > [I have worked really hard to defy categorization, to break down a taxonomy whenever it comes my way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-have-worked-really-hard-to-defy-categorization-to-break-down-a/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [A categorization implies a hierarchical way of seeing things. Life is really relational, not hierarchical. Hierarchical is a human way of looking at things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-categorization-implies-a-hierarchical-way-of-seeing-things-life-is/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“The human compulsion to group people and objects together was ingrained in our being since we evolved. We need to group things, group the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-caruso/the-human-compulsion-to-group-people-and-objects-together-was/) [Charlie Caruso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-caruso/) > [“There are underwater cables that seem to emerge and interweave the various objects drifting and rotating in space. I can imagine their intersections and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashim-shanker/there-are-underwater-cables-that-seem-to-emerge-and-interweave-the/) [Ashim Shanker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashim-shanker/) > [“Humans like nothing more than to pigeonhole the events & phenomena that punctuate their lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/humans-like-nothing-more-than-to-pigeonhole-the-events-phenomena-that/) [China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/) > [As far as this categorization of books, the way I see it is there are really a hundred-odd categories of books plus one, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/as-far-as-this-categorization-of-books-the-way-i-see-it-is-there-are/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [The best hope for peace in the world lies in the simple but far-reaching recognition that we all have many different associations and affiliations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/the-best-hope-for-peace-in-the-world-lies-in-the-simple-but-far/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [“Recommendations and categorization are both useful features to seek out when trying to make a difficult decision, because they can benefit our choices in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheena-iyengar/recommendations-and-categorization-are-both-useful-features-to-seek/) [Sheena Iyengar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheena-iyengar/) > [I believe that the development of language - of naming, categorization, conceptualization - destroys our ability to see as we age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/i-believe-that-the-development-of-language-of-naming-categorization/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [Taoism has no rules. It's a suggestion for preceiving life in its wholeness, without unnessary categorization, yet enjoying the beauty of categorization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/taoism-has-no-rules-it-s-a-suggestion-for-preceiving-life-in-its/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I have been putting words like 'abnormal' and 'deviant' in quotes because those categorizations are under fire now, the boundary between normal and abnormal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-truett-anderson/i-have-been-putting-words-like-abnormal-and-deviant-in-quotes-because/) [Walter Truett Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-truett-anderson/) > [“Our categories are important. We cannot organize a social life, a political movement, or our individual identities and desires without them. The fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-rubin/our-categories-are-important-we-cannot-organize-a-social-life-a/) [Gayle Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-rubin/) > [There's something to me with categorization - it stops you from thinking about the thing that is actually happening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-lily-amirpour/there-s-something-to-me-with-categorization-it-stops-you-from/) [Ana Lily Amirpour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-lily-amirpour/) Browse all 43 Categorization quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's not what you do that matters. It's not what you say. There's nothing that is not holy or spiritual. 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