--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But when I was twelve years old I caught…" description: "\"But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of existence, whose votary I was destined to be for l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg" --- # But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong… ![“But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of existence, whose votary I was destined to be for life - namely, Beauty.” quote by Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg) > “But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of existence, whose votary I was destined to be for life - namely, Beauty.” [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A youthful encounter with beauty revealed a profound, guiding principle that shapes one's purpose and worldview. **In simple terms:** Beauty as a lifelong calling Key Takeaway Beauty can define destiny Themes Aesthetics Purpose Discovery Youth Existence Mood wonder reverence aspiration Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - first encounter with art - realizing a personal mission - recognizing beauty in nature - seeing beauty in literature - identifying a guiding principle Key Concepts Fundamental forces Votary Vision Inspiration Practical Applications - creative inspiration - career direction Questions to Reflect On - How does beauty influence your choices? - Can you identify a moment that defined your purpose? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Destined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destined/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumblebee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thequotewell/life-is-full-of-beauty-notice-it-notice-the-bumblebee-the-small-child/) TheQuoteWell > [Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. Life is beauty, admire it. Life is a dream, realize it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/life-is-an-opportunity-benefit-from-it-life-is-beauty-admire-it-life-4/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hackett/life-is-full-of-beauty-notice-it-notice-the-bumble-bee-the-small/) Tom Hackett > [The life, beauty and meaning of the whole created order, from the tomtit to the Milky Way, refers back to the Absolute Life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/the-life-beauty-and-meaning-of-the-whole-created-order-from-the/) [Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/) > [Love the road of your life... There is so much beauty to see, so much music to hear, so many flowers to smell, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-muller/love-the-road-of-your-life-there-is-so-much-beauty-to-see-so-much/) [Robert Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-muller/) > [“This is The matter was of love,that's why I spent my life on you Otherwise this beauty becomes easily available in the market also”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sachin-sawariya/this-is-the-matter-was-of-love-that-s-why-i-spent-my-life-on-you/) [Sachin sawariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sachin-sawariya/) > [Life is a beauty, notice it.notice the bumblebee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain and feel the wind. Live your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonirose/life-is-a-beauty-notice-it-notice-the-bumblebee-the-small-child-and/) Tonirose > [Life is beauty admire it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-beauty-admire-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“At ten, she was moreover noisy and wild, hated confinement and cleanliness and loved nothing so well in the world as rolling down the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/at-ten-she-was-moreover-noisy-and-wild-hated-confinement-and/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [A life of success comes from seeking a life of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/a-life-of-success-comes-from-seeking-a-life-of-beauty/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Despite everything, life is full of beauty and meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etty-hillesum/despite-everything-life-is-full-of-beauty-and-meaning/) [Etty Hillesum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etty-hillesum/) > [“What is true about music is true about life: that beauty reveals everything because it expresses nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-slade/what-is-true-about-music-is-true-about-life-that-beauty-reveals/) Mandy Slade > [I am a hunter of beauty and I move slow and I keep the eyes wide, every fiber of every muscle sensing all wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/i-am-a-hunter-of-beauty-and-i-move-slow-and-i-keep-the-eyes-wide/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Building a wardrobe is like building a circle of friends your whole life… Your own beauty is to be yourself, but of course we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-von-furstenberg/building-a-wardrobe-is-like-building-a-circle-of-friends-your-whole/) [Diane von Furstenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-von-furstenberg/) > [Birth is the start of life, Beauty is the art of life, Love is part of life, Death is the last of life but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/birth-is-the-start-of-life-beauty-is-the-art-of-life-love-is-part-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Georg Brandes > [We need only think of the number of talented men who sooner or later make their apologies and concessions to philistinism, so as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/we-need-only-think-of-the-number-of-talented-men-who-sooner-or-later/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [The society of the Culture-Philistines makes life a burden to exceptional men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/the-society-of-the-culture-philistines-makes-life-a-burden-to/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [My father, though, could run very much faster. It was impossible to compete with him on the grass. But it was astonishing how slow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/my-father-though-could-run-very-much-faster-it-was-impossible-to/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [School is a foretaste of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/school-is-a-foretaste-of-life/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [It gradually dawned upon me that there was no one more difficult to please than my mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/it-gradually-dawned-upon-me-that-there-was-no-one-more-difficult-to/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [When I was a little boy I did not, of course, trouble much about my appearance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/when-i-was-a-little-boy-i-did-not-of-course-trouble-much-about-my/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [The historian is looked upon as objective when he measures the past by the popular opinions of his own time, as subjective when he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/the-historian-is-looked-upon-as-objective-when-he-measures-the-past/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [I became an ardent, but never a specially good, dancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/i-became-an-ardent-but-never-a-specially-good-dancer/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [It appears to Nietzsche that the modern age has produced for imitation three types of man ... First, Rousseau's man, the Titan who raises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/it-appears-to-nietzsche-that-the-modern-age-has-produced-for/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [Dostoevsky preaches the morality of the pariah, the morality of the slave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/dostoevsky-preaches-the-morality-of-the-pariah-the-morality-of-the/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [Among the delights of Summer were picnics to the woods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/among-the-delights-of-summer-were-picnics-to-the-woods/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [What has here happened is that the instinct of cruelty, which has turned inwards, has become self-torture, and all man's animal instincts have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/what-has-here-happened-is-that-the-instinct-of-cruelty-which-has/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [I was not given to looking at life in a rosy light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/i-was-not-given-to-looking-at-life-in-a-rosy-light/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [Being gifted needs courage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/being-gifted-needs-courage/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) > [But I did not find any positive inspiration in my studies until I approached my nineteenth year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/but-i-did-not-find-any-positive-inspiration-in-my-studies-until-i/) [Georg Brandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) [Explore all 64 Georg Brandes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/) ## More Beauty quotes > [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/) [Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/) [Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/) [Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of existence, whose votary I was destined to be for life - namely, Beauty.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Georg Brandes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught-my-first-strong-glimpse-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beauty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught-my-first-strong-glimpse-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/734/georg-brandes-10610_beauty_but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught_82785.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of…” — Georg Brandes", "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": "Georg Brandes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-brandes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "But when I was twelve years...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught-my-first-strong-glimpse-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandes/but-when-i-was-twelve-years-old-i-caught-my-first-strong-glimpse-of/#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 } } ] } ```