--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don’t know where the universe came from…" description: "\"I don’t know where the universe came from or what happens to creatures when they die. I don’t know if the whole thing’s an unravelling accident or an i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/glen-duncan-1307_accidents_i-don-t-know-where-the-universe-came-fro_50874.png" --- # I don’t know where the universe came from or what happens… ![“I don’t know where the universe came from or what happens to creatures when they die. I don’t know if the whole thing’s an unravelling accident or an inscrutable design. I don’t know how one should live—but I know that one should live, if one can possibly bear it.” quote by Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/glen-duncan-1307_accidents_i-don-t-know-where-the-universe-came-fro_50874.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/glen-duncan-1307_accidents_i-don-t-know-where-the-universe-came-fro_50874.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/glen-duncan-1307_accidents_i-don-t-know-where-the-universe-came-fro_50874.png) > “I don’t know where the universe came from or what happens to creatures when they die. I don’t know if the whole thing’s an unravelling accident or an inscrutable design. I don’t know how one should live—but I know that one should live, if one can possibly bear it.” [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker admits ignorance about cosmic origins, afterlife, and ultimate purpose, yet asserts that living is essential and must be endured as best as possible. **In simple terms:** Existential uncertainty, affirmation of life Key Takeaway Live despite not knowing Themes existentialism meaning of life human resilience philosophical humility mortality Mood thoughtful resolute reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - facing death - contemplating the universe - making daily choices - coping with uncertainty Key Concepts cosmic mystery death purpose survival Practical Applications - philosophical counseling - motivational writing Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to bear life? - How can one find purpose without certainty? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Bears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) ## Related quotes > [I put on the best live show, the absolute best live show I can possibly can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kesha/i-put-on-the-best-live-show-the-absolute-best-live-show-i-can/) [Kesha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kesha/) > [After a while, another voice said: One, two, three, four- And the universe came into being. It was wrong to call it a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/after-a-while-another-voice-said-one-two-three-four-and-the-universe/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“If the universe all came from nothing, imagine what you could do when you’re at your lowest point.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody-edward-lee-miller/if-the-universe-all-came-from-nothing-imagine-what-you-could-do-when/) [Cody Edward Lee Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cody-edward-lee-miller/) > [Your only purpose is to be yourself, otherwise you deprive the universe of who you came here to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-moorjani/your-only-purpose-is-to-be-yourself-otherwise-you-deprive-the/) [Anita Moorjani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-moorjani/) > [If the Universe came to an end every time there was some uncertainty about what had happened in it, it would never have got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/if-the-universe-came-to-an-end-every-time-there-was-some-uncertainty/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [There is no rational reason to doubt that the universe has existed indefinitely, for an infinite time. It is only myth that attempts to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannes-alfven/there-is-no-rational-reason-to-doubt-that-the-universe-has-existed/) [Hannes Alfven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannes-alfven/) > [“Science attempts to explain how the universe came to be, but not why it came to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/science-attempts-to-explain-how-the-universe-came-to-be-but-not-why/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You have to stop thinking logically to argue that the universe came into being by itself, out of nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/you-have-to-stop-thinking-logically-to-argue-that-the-universe-came/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [One theory is that the universe came from nothing. i.e. perhaps bubble-universes collided, as in a bubble bath, and gave birth to the universe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/one-theory-is-that-the-universe-came-from-nothing-i-e-perhaps-bubble/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [Assuming the universe came from nothing, it is empty to begin with... Only by the constant action of an agent outside the universe, such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-stenger/assuming-the-universe-came-from-nothing-it-is-empty-to-begin-with/) [Victor J. Stenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-j-stenger/) > [A universe that came from nothing in the big bang will disappear into nothing at the big crunch. Its glorious few zillion years of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/a-universe-that-came-from-nothing-in-the-big-bang-will-disappear-into/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [“In truth, Father said, at the first instant of the universe, all of time was present, all our yesterdays and today and all our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-truth-father-said-at-the-first-instant-of-the-universe-all-of-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is only myth that attempts to say how the universe came to be, either four thousand or twenty billion years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannes-alfven/it-is-only-myth-that-attempts-to-say-how-the-universe-came-to-be/) [Hannes Alfven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannes-alfven/) > [Maybe we'll understand more about how the universe came to be, and what forces drove it in the early days and which forces drive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/maybe-we-ll-understand-more-about-how-the-universe-came-to-be-and/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [ I was there when Abbe Georges Lemaître first proposed this \[Big Bang\] theory. ... There is no rational reason to doubt that the universe… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannes-alfven/i-was-there-when-abbe-georges-lema-tre-first-proposed-this-big-bang/) [Hannes Alfven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannes-alfven/) ## More by Glen Duncan > [Nineteenth-century English literature I know; 19th-century sewage systems, not so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/nineteenth-century-english-literature-i-know-19th-century-sewage/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“For the longest time the romantic explanation for low rates of female infection endured: Possession of a womb, it was supposed, conferred a gentleness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/for-the-longest-time-the-romantic-explanation-for-low-rates-of-female/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“The question 'What was there before creation?' is meaningless. Time is a property of creation, therefore before creation there was no before creation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/the-question-what-was-there-before-creation-is-meaningless-time-is-a/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“The beauty spot by her lip was one of a dozen or so scattered over her body. My new constellations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/the-beauty-spot-by-her-lip-was-one-of-a-dozen-or-so-scattered-over/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [Fairy tales read before bed tend to make me dream. They're all quite violent stories, as are my dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/fairy-tales-read-before-bed-tend-to-make-me-dream-they-re-all-quite/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [In a fit of pique, I said to my agent, 'I'm going to write something you can sell.' The idea was to write a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/in-a-fit-of-pique-i-said-to-my-agent-i-m-going-to-write-something-you/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“The Mortals are free, Lucifer. What they've done they've done from within themselves. - Raphael”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/the-mortals-are-free-lucifer-what-they-ve-done-they-ve-done-from/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [One day the ordinariness will be terminally punctuated by the extraordinary full stop of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/one-day-the-ordinariness-will-be-terminally-punctuated-by-the/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [When I see gurgling retarded children (that's God's doing, by the way, not mine) happily styling their hair with their own stinking mards, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/when-i-see-gurgling-retarded-children-that-s-god-s-doing-by-the-way/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“She understood the genre constraints, the decencies we were supposed to be observing. The morally cosy vision allows the embrace of monstrosity only as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/she-understood-the-genre-constraints-the-decencies-we-were-supposed/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“Show us the world's not the way we thought it was and part of us rejoices.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/show-us-the-world-s-not-the-way-we-thought-it-was-and-part-of-us/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“It’s just what you’re stuck with, the lousy furniture you can’t change. The educated me knows hell’s nothing, a fiction I happened to inherit.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/it-s-just-what-you-re-stuck-with-the-lousy-furniture-you-can-t-change/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“Afterwards, sitting on my bunk, I cried. I read somewhere that when you’re a kid it’s people’s cruelty that makes you cry, then when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/afterwards-sitting-on-my-bunk-i-cried-i-read-somewhere-that-when-you/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“The absurdity of it, she thought, this quest for the love of a man who was her equal. She loathed herself for it. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/the-absurdity-of-it-she-thought-this-quest-for-the-love-of-a-man-who/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“Hot tip: If you’re a human having a fling with a werewolf, break it off. Now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/hot-tip-if-you-re-a-human-having-a-fling-with-a-werewolf-break-it-off/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) [Explore all 259 Glen Duncan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) ## More Accidents quotes > [Almost all accidents take place because of human distraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-thrun/almost-all-accidents-take-place-because-of-human-distraction/) [Sebastian Thrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-thrun/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [No, I think most astronauts recognize that the space shuttle program is very high-risk, and are prepared for accidents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-ride/no-i-think-most-astronauts-recognize-that-the-space-shuttle-program/) [Sally Ride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-ride/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) > [The only way to have a funeral is to invite everyone who ever knew the person and just wait for the accident to happen-somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/the-only-way-to-have-a-funeral-is-to-invite-everyone-who-ever-knew/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Good films are not made by accident, nor is good photography. You can have good things happen, on occasion, by accident that can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-willis/good-films-are-not-made-by-accident-nor-is-good-photography-you-can/) [Gordon Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-willis/) > [By education I am an Englishman, by views an internationalist, by culture a Muslim and a Hindu only by accident of birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jawaharlal-nehru/by-education-i-am-an-englishman-by-views-an-internationalist-by/) [Jawaharlal Nehru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jawaharlal-nehru/) > [I made out with a homeless guy by accident. I had no idea -- he was really tan, he had no shoes on. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-schumer/i-made-out-with-a-homeless-guy-by-accident-i-had-no-idea-he-was/) [Amy Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-schumer/) > [Naturally I feel no shame in writing these things because of the time which separates the moment when they are written--when only I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-ernaux/naturally-i-feel-no-shame-in-writing-these-things-because-of-the-time/) [Annie Ernaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-ernaux/) > [In a city where you walk around, it's impossible to plan your day and your life as accidents will happen, you'll overhear things, bump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-schwartzman/in-a-city-where-you-walk-around-it-s-impossible-to-plan-your-day-and/) [Jason Schwartzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-schwartzman/) > [I don't think it's by accident that I was first attracted to translating two French women poets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-hacker/i-don-t-think-it-s-by-accident-that-i-was-first-attracted-to/) [Marilyn Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-hacker/) > [Despite my mentors advice that I would never go to heaven fishing with a weighted nymph and a float, I took it up. (As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-bishop/despite-my-mentors-advice-that-i-would-never-go-to-heaven-fishing/) [Tony Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-bishop/) > [Dont stand outside in a lightning shower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padraig/dont-stand-outside-in-a-lightning-shower/) [Padraig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padraig/) > [In the eyes of those lovers of perfection, a work is never finished a word that for them has no sense but abandoned; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/in-the-eyes-of-those-lovers-of-perfection-a-work-is-never-finished-a/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) [Browse all 1,971 Accidents quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don’t know where the universe came from or what happens to creatures when they die. 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