---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To become wise you have to want to…"
description: "\"To become wise you have to want to experience certain experiences, and so to run into their open jaws. This is very dangerous, tobe sure; many a \"wise ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg"
---

#  To become wise you have to want to experience certain…

![“To become wise you have to want to experience certain experiences, and so to run into their open jaws. This is very dangerous, tobe sure; many a &quot;wise man&quot; has been eaten up in doing so.” quote by Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg)

> “To become wise you have to want to experience certain experiences, and so to run into their open jaws. This is very dangerous, tobe sure; many a "wise man" has been eaten up in doing so.”

[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.

Wisdom requires confronting risky, challenging experiences, though such pursuits can be perilous.

**In simple terms:** Gain wisdom by facing dangerous experiences.

Key Takeaway

Embrace risk to grow, but beware of danger.

Themes

wisdom risk growth

Mood

cautious reflective

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- adventure travel
- entrepreneurial ventures
- personal crises
- learning new skills

Key Concepts

existentialism self‑actualization

Questions to Reflect On

- What risks are you avoiding that could teach you?
- How do you balance curiosity with safety?

A Different Perspective

Danger can lead to harm if not managed wisely.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise/) [Wise man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise-man/)

## Related quotes

> [“Are you sure that’s wise?” she asked. “I mean, the last time you opened this gate, you let a killer stroll right in to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christa-faust/are-you-sure-that-s-wise-she-asked-i-mean-the-last-time-you-opened/)

[Christa Faust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christa-faust/)

> [“No matter how strong you are, you cannot hold open the jaws of a great-white shark with your bare hands... that can do your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-stoikov/no-matter-how-strong-you-are-you-cannot-hold-open-the-jaws-of-a-great/)

Ivan Stoikov

> [Be beautiful if you can, wise if you want to, but be respected - that is essential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-gould/be-beautiful-if-you-can-wise-if-you-want-to-but-be-respected-that-is/)

Anna Gould

> [When we are foolish, we want to conquer the world. When we are wise, we want to conquer ourselves. That begins when we do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/when-we-are-foolish-we-want-to-conquer-the-world-when-we-are-wise-we/)

[John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/)

> [“The wise want nothing but accept whatever comes their way, letting it pass when it is time to part ways. Ram is”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devdutt-pattanaik/the-wise-want-nothing-but-accept-whatever-comes-their-way-letting-it/)

[Devdutt Pattanaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devdutt-pattanaik/)

> [The good want power, but to weep barren tears. The powerful goodness want: worse need for them. The wise want love; and those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-good-want-power-but-to-weep-barren-tears-the-powerful-goodness/)

[Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/)

> [The wise want love; and those who love want wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-wise-want-love-and-those-who-love-want-wisdom/)

[Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/)

> [“Yesterday, I was clever, I wanted to be rich. Today, I am wise, I want to be happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/yesterday-i-was-clever-i-wanted-to-be-rich-today-i-am-wise-i-want-to/)

[Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/)

> [“If that is wisdom, then I will never be wise. I do not want a life that has no place for you in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-hunter/if-that-is-wisdom-then-i-will-never-be-wise-i-do-not-want-a-life-that/)

[Madeline Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-hunter/)

> [The wise man does not permit himself to set up even in his own mind any comparisons of his friends. His friendship is capable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dudley-warner/the-wise-man-does-not-permit-himself-to-set-up-even-in-his-own-mind/)

[Charles Dudley Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dudley-warner/)

> [A wise man listens no matter how stupidly someone is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-wise-man-listens-no-matter-how-stupidly-someone-is/)

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

> [“You are what you believe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/you-are-what-you-believe/)

[Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/)

> [“He was a wise man who invented God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-was-a-wise-man-who-invented-god/)

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

> [“A wise man once said nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-wise-man-once-said-nothing/)

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

> [When Eudæmonidas heard a philosopher arguing that only a wise man can be a good general, "This is a wonderful speech," said he; "but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/when-eud-monidas-heard-a-philosopher-arguing-that-only-a-wise-man-can/)

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

## 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 Certain quotes

> [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/)

[Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/)

> [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/)

[Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/)

> [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/people-don-t-always-realize-that-a-record-is-forever-it-ll-always-be/)

[Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/)

> [Faith gives you a certain structure and meaning to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riffat-hassan/faith-gives-you-a-certain-structure-and-meaning-to-your-life/)

Riffat Hassan

> [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/)

[Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/)

> [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/)

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

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/)

[Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/)

> [Why do we love certain homes, and why do they seem to love us? It is the warmth of our individual hearts reflected in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/why-do-we-love-certain-homes-and-why-do-they-seem-to-love-us-it-is/)

T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings

> [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/)

[Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/)

> [We've all seen talented young players who get to a certain level but there comes a point where that talent will only take you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-gatland/we-ve-all-seen-talented-young-players-who-get-to-a-certain-level-but/)

[Warren Gatland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-gatland/)

> [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/)

[Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/)

> [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/)

[Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/)

> [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/)

[Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/)

Browse all 13,673 Certain quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To become wise you have to want to experience certain experiences, and so to run into their open jaws. This is very dangerous, tobe sure; many a \"wise man\" has been eaten up in doing so.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Friedrich Nietzsche"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-experience-certain-experiences-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Certain"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-experience-certain-experiences-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/friedrich-nietzsche-15_certain_to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-exper_1253163.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To become wise you have to want to experience certain experiences, and so to run into their open jaws. This…” — 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": "To become wise you have to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-experience-certain-experiences-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-become-wise-you-have-to-want-to-experience-certain-experiences-and/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
