---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: 2. \"HOW COULD anything originate out of…"
description: "\"“2. \"HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will to deception? or the gener..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg"
---

#  2. "HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For…

![“2. &quot;HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will to deception? or the generous deed out of selfishness? or the pure sun-bright vision of the wise man out of covetousness? Such genesis is impossible; whoever dreams of it is…” quote by Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg)

> ““2. "HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will to deception? or the generous deed out of selfishness? or the pure sun-bright vision of the wise man out of covetousness? Such genesis is impossible; whoever dreams of it is a fool, nay, worse than a fool; things of the highest value must have a different origin, an origin of THEIR own—in this transitory, seductive, illusory, paltry world, in this turmoil of delusion and cupidity, they cannot have their source. But rather in the lap of Being, in the intransitory, in the concealed God, in the 'Thing-in-itself— THERE must be their source, and nowhere else!"—””

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

## About This Quote

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

It argues that true, high-value things cannot arise from their opposites; they must originate from a deeper, immutable reality beyond appearances.

**In simple terms:** Great things come from a deeper source, not from their opposite.

Key Takeaway

Seek origins beyond superficial opposites.

Themes

philosophy metaphysics truth origin illusion

Mood

contemplative serious

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- ethical decisionmaking
- spiritual reflection
- creative problem solving
- critical analysis

Key Concepts

dualism transcendence ontological inquiry

Questions to Reflect On

- What deeper source do you consider the source of your highest values?
- How do you distinguish between illusion and true origin?

A Different Perspective

It may overlook the role of synthesis where opposites interact to create new value.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Delusion Cupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delusion-cupidity-3662107/) [Opposite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposite/) [Opposite Example](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposite-example-3560277/) [Originate Opposite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originate-opposite-3560276/) [Truth Error](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-error-369697/) [Wise man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise-man/)

## Related quotes

> [“HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“2. "HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/null/2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth/)

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

> [“What surprises me most when surveying the great destinies of man is always seeing before me the opposite of what Darwin and his school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-surprises-me-most-when-surveying-the-great-destinies-of-man-is/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Extreme positions are not succeeded by moderate ones but by extreme positions of the opposite kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/extreme-positions-are-not-succeeded-by-moderate-ones-but-by-extreme/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Neither with those nor with the others, with all I agree and dissent; in all part of truth and part of error must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/neither-with-those-nor-with-the-others-with-all-i-agree-and-dissent/)

[Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/)

> [The world always makes the assumption that the exposure of an error is identical with the discovery of truth - that error and truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-world-always-makes-the-assumption-that-the-exposure-of-an-error/)

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

> [It is a human tendency "to measure truth and error by our capacity."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/it-is-a-human-tendency-to-measure-truth-and-error-by-our-capacity/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [It is much easier to meet with error than to find truth; error is on the surface, and can be more easily met with;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-much-easier-to-meet-with-error-than-to-find-truth-error-is-on/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [“An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does the truth become error because nobody will see it. ( Young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/an-error-does-not-become-truth-by-reason-of-multiplied-propagation/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [There is a soul of truth in error; there is a soul of good in evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-a-soul-of-truth-in-error-there-is-a-soul-of-good-in-evil/)

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

> [Error is a supposition that pleasure and pain, that intelligence, substance, life, are existent in matter. Error is neither Mind nor one of Mind's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-baker-eddy/error-is-a-supposition-that-pleasure-and-pain-that-intelligence/)

[Mary Baker Eddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-baker-eddy/)

> [We are cast as combatants in the war between truth and error. There is no middle ground. We must stand up for truth, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallin-h-oaks/we-are-cast-as-combatants-in-the-war-between-truth-and-error-there-is/)

[Dallin H. Oaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallin-h-oaks/)

> [“Never in the history of the world have we had easier access to more information - some of it true, some of it false,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/never-in-the-history-of-the-world-have-we-had-easier-access-to-more/)

[Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/)

> [“It was a matter of showing by what conjunctions a whole set of practices-- from the moment they became coordinated with a regime of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/it-was-a-matter-of-showing-by-what-conjunctions-a-whole-set-of/)

[Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/)

> [Truth is error burned up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-o-brown/truth-is-error-burned-up/)

[Norman O. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-o-brown/)

## More by Friedrich Nietzsche

> [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Every select man strives instinctively for a citadel and a privacy, where he is FREE from the crowd, the many, the majority-- where he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/every-select-man-strives-instinctively-for-a-citadel-and-a-privacy/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“It breaks my heart. Better than your words, your eye tells me all your peril. You are not yet free, you still search for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-breaks-my-heart-better-than-your-words-your-eye-tells-me-all-your/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“79. A soul which knows that it is loved, but does not itself love, betrays its sediment: its dregs come up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/79-a-soul-which-knows-that-it-is-loved-but-does-not-itself-love/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [We deceive ourselves when giving respect to the person for whom we have surrendered ourselves, when we respectively expect them to be as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/we-deceive-ourselves-when-giving-respect-to-the-person-for-whom-we/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“The great periods of our life occur when we gain the courage to rechristen what is bad about us as what is best.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-great-periods-of-our-life-occur-when-we-gain-the-courage-to/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“What is life? Life - that is: continually shedding something that wants to die. Life - that is: being cruel and inexorable against everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-is-life-life-that-is-continually-shedding-something-that-wants/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Writers whose thoughts are expressed with clarity and precision are assumed by readers to be superficial. Where the meaning is obscured, then readers give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/writers-whose-thoughts-are-expressed-with-clarity-and-precision-are/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“he does not wear a twitching, mobile, human face, but rather a mask, as it were, with its features in dignified equilibrium; he does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/he-does-not-wear-a-twitching-mobile-human-face-but-rather-a-mask-as/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Chastity is a virtue with some, but with many it is almost a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/chastity-is-a-virtue-with-some-but-with-many-it-is-almost-a-vice/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [The earth is like the breasts of a woman: useful as well as pleasing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-earth-is-like-the-breasts-of-a-woman-useful-as-well-as-pleasing/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Of all that is written I love only what a man has written in his own blood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/of-all-that-is-written-i-love-only-what-a-man-has-written-in-his-own/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [No shepherd and one herd! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/no-shepherd-and-one-herd-everybody-wants-the-same-everybody-is-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Pain makes hens and poets cackle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/pain-makes-hens-and-poets-cackle/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

[Explore all 3,486 Friedrich Nietzsche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

## More Opposite quotes

> [Dating someone on the opposite end of the happy spectrum teaches you an incredible amount of patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pine/dating-someone-on-the-opposite-end-of-the-happy-spectrum-teaches-you/)

[Chris Pine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pine/)

> [What is the opposite of two? A lonely me, a lonely you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-the-opposite-of-two-a-lonely-me-a-lonely-you/)

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

> [We began intercepting Japanese radio transmissions, which indicated the two forces were very close to each other. We found out later that we were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-adams/we-began-intercepting-japanese-radio-transmissions-which-indicated/)

[Jack Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-adams/)

> [Although I'd always wanted children, it was such an opposite thing to being a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwen-stefani/although-i-d-always-wanted-children-it-was-such-an-opposite-thing-to/)

[Gwen Stefani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwen-stefani/)

> [“Failure is not the opposite of success—it’s a part of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ritter/failure-is-not-the-opposite-of-success-it-s-a-part-of-it/)

[William Ritter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ritter/)

> [Love and hate, despite their polar opposites, are both feelings that are induced by passion. I can handle that. It's the indifference I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/love-and-hate-despite-their-polar-opposites-are-both-feelings-that/)

[Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/)

> [Take the course opposite to custom and you will almost always do well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/take-the-course-opposite-to-custom-and-you-will-almost-always-do-well/)

[Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/)

> [Although I'm perceived as very optimistic and upbeat, it comes out of being the opposite of that - feeling isolated or lonely, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mcgonigal/although-i-m-perceived-as-very-optimistic-and-upbeat-it-comes-out-of/)

[Jane McGonigal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mcgonigal/)

> [A Horcrux is the complete opposite of a human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-horcrux-is-the-complete-opposite-of-a-human-being/)

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

> [The western mantra is that Israel seeks negotiations without preconditions, while the Palestinians refuse. The opposite is more accurate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-western-mantra-is-that-israel-seeks-negotiations-without/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [“The vision of life is not a "discovery"; it's a "work" and whatever position you occupy demands work. Your life may not be built…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/the-vision-of-life-is-not-a-discovery-it-s-a-work-and-whatever/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [Pacifism as a mass movement aims to avoid suffering; pacifists often say that no cause is worth suffering or dying for. The ethos of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-michnik/pacifism-as-a-mass-movement-aims-to-avoid-suffering-pacifists-often/)

[Adam Michnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-michnik/)

> [The opposite of every great idea is another great idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niels-bohr/the-opposite-of-every-great-idea-is-another-great-idea/)

[Niels Bohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niels-bohr/)

> [Paternalism is everywhere in our lives. We have to immunise our children unless we are upset about it. In India, it is the opposite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-duflo/paternalism-is-everywhere-in-our-lives-we-have-to-immunise-our/)

[Esther Duflo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-duflo/)

> [Whether it's a blessing or a curse, I have always played someone like 10 years younger. When I was 23 or 24, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-harnois/whether-it-s-a-blessing-or-a-curse-i-have-always-played-someone-like/)

[Elisabeth Harnois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-harnois/)

[Browse all 894 Opposite quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposite/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“2. \"HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth out of the will to deception? or the generous deed out of selfishness? or the pure sun-bright vision of the wise man out of covetousness? Such genesis is impossible; whoever dreams of it is a fool, nay, worse than a fool; things of the highest value must have a different origin, an origin of THEIR own—in this transitory, seductive, illusory, paltry world, in this turmoil of delusion and cupidity, they cannot have their source. But rather in the lap of Being, in the intransitory, in the concealed God, in the 'Thing-in-itself— THERE must be their source, and nowhere else!\"—”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Friedrich Nietzsche"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Opposite"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0f/friedrich-nietzsche-15_wise-man_2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-it_2021257.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“2. \"HOW COULD anything originate out of its opposite? For example, truth out of error? or the Will to Truth…” — Friedrich Nietzsche",
                "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": "Friedrich Nietzsche",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“2. \"HOW COULD anything originate out...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/2-how-could-anything-originate-out-of-its-opposite-for-example-truth-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
