--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Virtue consists, not in abstaining from…" description: "\"Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png" --- # Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not… ![“Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png) > “Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Virtue is not just avoiding vice, but not craving it. **In simple terms:** Goodness means not wanting bad things. Key Takeaway Cultivate desire for good. Themes morality self‑control desire Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - personal development - spiritual practice - habit formation Key Concepts philosophy ethics Questions to Reflect On - What cravings hinder your virtue? - How can you shift desire toward good? A Different Perspective May overlook external influences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstaining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstaining/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) ## Related quotes > [“Virtue consists not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.” She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-wiltz/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it-she/) Christine Wiltz > [The height and value of true virtue consists in the facility, utility, and pleasure of its exercise; so far from difficulty, that boys, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-height-and-value-of-true-virtue-consists-in-the-facility-utility/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [Economy is a distributive virtue, and consists not in saving but in selection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/economy-is-a-distributive-virtue-and-consists-not-in-saving-but-in/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Virtue consists in fleeing vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/virtue-consists-in-fleeing-vice/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [The whole of virtue consists in its practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/the-whole-of-virtue-consists-in-its-practice/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [Virtue consists in doing our duty in the several relations we sustain, in respect to ourselves, to our fellowmen, and to God, as known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-alexander/virtue-consists-in-doing-our-duty-in-the-several-relations-we-sustain/) [Archibald Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-alexander/) > [ Virtue consists in avoiding vice, and is the highest wisdom. \[Lat., Virtus est vitium fugere, et sapientia prima.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/virtue-consists-in-avoiding-vice-and-is-the-highest-wisdom-lat-virtus/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [To many people virtue consists chiefly in repenting faults, not in avoiding them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/to-many-people-virtue-consists-chiefly-in-repenting-faults-not-in/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [Virtue consists in avoiding scandal and venereal disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cecil-1st-earl-of-salisbury/virtue-consists-in-avoiding-scandal-and-venereal-disease/) Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury > [Many people think that virtue consists of severity towards others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonse-karr/many-people-think-that-virtue-consists-of-severity-towards-others/) [Alphonse Karr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonse-karr/) > [This is not what anyone wants to hear, just like somebody who wants to lose weight doesn't want to hear 'diet and exercise,' but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-klausner/this-is-not-what-anyone-wants-to-hear-just-like-somebody-who-wants-to/) [Julie Klausner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-klausner/) > [It was palpable, all that wanting: Mother wanting something more, Dad wanting something more, everyone wanting something more. This wasn't going to do for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-taylor-fleming/it-was-palpable-all-that-wanting-mother-wanting-something-more-dad/) [Anne Taylor Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-taylor-fleming/) > [If there were only some way of contriving that a state or an army should be made up of lovers and their beloved, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-there-were-only-some-way-of-contriving-that-a-state-or-an-army/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Give a child the habit of sacredly regarding the truth - of carefully respecting the property of others - of scrupulously abstaining from all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-brougham-1st-baron-brougham-and-vaux/give-a-child-the-habit-of-sacredly-regarding-the-truth-of-carefully/) [Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-brougham-1st-baron-brougham-and-vaux/) > [Paraphrased: The way of al-Junayd includes among other things abstaining constantly from resisting God Most High in whatever happens to one, whether good or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-ata-allah/paraphrased-the-way-of-al-junayd-includes-among-other-things/) [Ibn Ata Allah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-ata-allah/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Abstaining quotes > [Paraphrased: The way of al-Junayd includes among other things abstaining constantly from resisting God Most High in whatever happens to one, whether good or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-ata-allah/paraphrased-the-way-of-al-junayd-includes-among-other-things/) [Ibn Ata Allah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-ata-allah/) > [Give a child the habit of sacredly regarding the truth - of carefully respecting the property of others - of scrupulously abstaining from all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-brougham-1st-baron-brougham-and-vaux/give-a-child-the-habit-of-sacredly-regarding-the-truth-of-carefully/) [Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-brougham-1st-baron-brougham-and-vaux/) > [If there were only some way of contriving that a state or an army should be made up of lovers and their beloved, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-there-were-only-some-way-of-contriving-that-a-state-or-an-army/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [It was palpable, all that wanting: Mother wanting something more, Dad wanting something more, everyone wanting something more. This wasn't going to do for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-taylor-fleming/it-was-palpable-all-that-wanting-mother-wanting-something-more-dad/) [Anne Taylor Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-taylor-fleming/) > [This is not what anyone wants to hear, just like somebody who wants to lose weight doesn't want to hear 'diet and exercise,' but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-klausner/this-is-not-what-anyone-wants-to-hear-just-like-somebody-who-wants-to/) [Julie Klausner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-klausner/) > [Abstaining so as really to enjoy, is the epicurism, the very perfection, of reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/abstaining-so-as-really-to-enjoy-is-the-epicurism-the-very-perfection/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [“Freedom from activity is never achieved by abstaining from action. Nobody can become perfect by merely ceasing to act. In fact, nobody can ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/freedom-from-activity-is-never-achieved-by-abstaining-from-action/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Virtue consists not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.” She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-wiltz/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it-she/) Christine Wiltz > [I'm the worst ad anyone could possibly be for abstaining from anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-roper/i-m-the-worst-ad-anyone-could-possibly-be-for-abstaining-from-anything/) [Matt Roper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-roper/) > [“Abstaining from speech marks him who is obeying the spontaneity of his nature.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/abstaining-from-speech-marks-him-who-is-obeying-the-spontaneity-of/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [Jesus isn't coming for a church that's gritting her teeth, struggling to stay free from sin, secretly wishing she could indulge in a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-bickle/jesus-isn-t-coming-for-a-church-that-s-gritting-her-teeth-struggling/) [Mike Bickle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-bickle/) > [To be disciplined does not mean being silent, abstaining, or doing only what one thinks one may undertake without risk; it is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/to-be-disciplined-does-not-mean-being-silent-abstaining-or-doing-only/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [Peace, if it ever exists, will not be based on the fear of war, but on the love of peace. It will not be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-wouk/peace-if-it-ever-exists-will-not-be-based-on-the-fear-of-war-but-on/) [Herman Wouk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-wouk/) > [Temperance referred not abstaining, but going the right length and no further...of course it may be the duty of a particular Christian, or any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/temperance-referred-not-abstaining-but-going-the-right-length-and-no/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [My definition of sobriety is to be in full control and not feel drunk, but it's not abstaining for religious reasons or any other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-matthews/my-definition-of-sobriety-is-to-be-in-full-control-and-not-feel-drunk/) [Spencer Matthews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-matthews/) [Browse all 30 Abstaining quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstaining/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abstaining" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/george-bernard-shaw-68_abstaining_virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-v_2399291.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it.” — George Bernard Shaw", "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": "George Bernard Shaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Virtue consists, not in abstaining from...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/virtue-consists-not-in-abstaining-from-vice-but-in-not-desiring-it/#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 } } ] } ```