--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As long as I stared at the clock, at…" description: "\"As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world remained in motion. Not a very consequential world, but in motion nonetheless. And as long as I kn..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg" --- # As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world… ![“As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world remained in motion. Not a very consequential world, but in motion nonetheless. And as long as I knew the world was still in motion, I knew I existed. Not a very consequential existence, but an existence nonetheless. It struck me as wanting that…” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg) > “As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world remained in motion. Not a very consequential world, but in motion nonetheless. And as long as I knew the world was still in motion, I knew I existed. Not a very consequential existence, but an existence nonetheless. It struck me as wanting that someone should confirm his own existence only by the hands of an electric wall clock. There had to be a more cognitive means of confirmation. But try as I might, nothing less facile came to mind.” [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Clock watching gives a sense of existence, but true self‑validation requires deeper cognition. **In simple terms:** Clocks confirm existence. Key Takeaway Seek deeper self‑awareness. Themes existence consciousness validation Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - daily routines - mindfulness practices - creative work Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you affirm your existence beyond routine? - What internal measures define self‑worth? A Different Perspective Relying on external cues can be unreliable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Confirmation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confirmation/) [Electric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/electric/) [Existed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existed/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Existence Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence-existence-762837/) [Existence Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence-hands-5687313/) [Existence Nonetheless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence-nonetheless-5687312/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We were determined by public opinions of us. Would we think we existed without outside confirmation? And how long would we live apart from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-grumbach/we-were-determined-by-public-opinions-of-us-would-we-think-we-existed/) [Doris Grumbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-grumbach/) > [“I was living for one thing only, and that was to confirm my own lack of feeling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-was-living-for-one-thing-only-and-that-was-to-confirm-my-own-lack/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [And when great souls die, after a period peace blooms, slowly and always irregularly. Spaces fill with a kind of soothing electric vibration. Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/and-when-great-souls-die-after-a-period-peace-blooms-slowly-and/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [You must realize first of all that you are the proof of everything, including yourself. None can prove your existence, because his existence must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/you-must-realize-first-of-all-that-you-are-the-proof-of-everything/) [Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/) > [My eyes are constantly wide open to the extraordinary fact of existence. Not just human existence, but the existence of life and how this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/my-eyes-are-constantly-wide-open-to-the-extraordinary-fact-of/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [There is also purpose in life which is almost barren of both creation and enjoyment and which admits of but one possibility of high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/there-is-also-purpose-in-life-which-is-almost-barren-of-both-creation/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [Co-existence or no existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piet-pieterszoon-hein/co-existence-or-no-existence/) [Piet Pieterszoon Hein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piet-pieterszoon-hein/) > [When you are silent, nobody notices your existence. When you speak so loud, people hate your existence. But when you are yourself, your existence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/when-you-are-silent-nobody-notices-your-existence-when-you-speak-so/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [While all the things you believe and know exist in their own right, they're ways of looking at existence, but existence is infinite -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/while-all-the-things-you-believe-and-know-exist-in-their-own-right/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The being which has absolute existence, which has never been and will never be without existence, is not in need of an agent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-being-which-has-absolute-existence-which-has-never-been-and-will/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [That which is produced with intention has passed over from non-existence to existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/that-which-is-produced-with-intention-has-passed-over-from-non/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Time is only an idea. There is only the Reality. Whatever you think it is, it looks like that. If you call it time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/time-is-only-an-idea-there-is-only-the-reality-whatever-you-think-it-2/) [Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/) > [“Time is only an idea. There is only the Reality Whatever you think it is, it looks like that. If you call it time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/time-is-only-an-idea-there-is-only-the-reality-whatever-you-think-it/) [Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/) > [Dharma is another name for existence. It is existence in its purest form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/dharma-is-another-name-for-existence-it-is-existence-in-its-purest/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“We know Existence, because we are existence. We know Truth, because we are truth. We know Life, because we are life itself. The mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cosmar/we-know-existence-because-we-are-existence-we-know-truth-because-we/) [Robert Cosmar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cosmar/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“The sad truth is that what I could recall in five seconds all too soon needed ten, then thirty, thena full minute...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sad-truth-is-that-what-i-could-recall-in-five-seconds-all-too/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Intelligent teenage girls were often instinctively theatrical, purposely eccentric, mouthing highly suggestive words to confuse people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/intelligent-teenage-girls-were-often-instinctively-theatrical/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“that one of our problems was our inability to recognize and accept our own deformities”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-one-of-our-problems-was-our-inability-to-recognize-and-accept/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More Clock quotes > [Even Einstein had to rely for his time on his clock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/even-einstein-had-to-rely-for-his-time-on-his-clock/) [Stanislaw Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/) > [“Time was never neutral and often felt dangerous. We either think we have all the time in the world or time moves too fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-reay/time-was-never-neutral-and-often-felt-dangerous-we-either-think-we/) [Katherine Reay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-reay/) > [Before a clock was in the tower, Or e'er a watch was worn; I knew of night the passing hour, And prophesied the morn;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/before-a-clock-was-in-the-tower-or-e-er-a-watch-was-worn-i-knew-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/) [Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/) > [“Time is, to put it in its most impressive and some might say poncy-sounding form, my domain. I can see things that once happened,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-rayner/time-is-to-put-it-in-its-most-impressive-and-some-might-say-poncy/) [Jacqueline Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-rayner/) > [Time travel offends our sense of cause and effect - but maybe the universe doesn't insist on cause and effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-m-lerner/time-travel-offends-our-sense-of-cause-and-effect-but-maybe-the/) [Edward M. Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-m-lerner/) > [My only aim is to clock a time that everyone remembers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hima-das/my-only-aim-is-to-clock-a-time-that-everyone-remembers/) [Hima Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hima-das/) > [Time.The greatest creator, and the worst destroyer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/levi-keely/time-the-greatest-creator-and-the-worst-destroyer/) [Levi Keely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/levi-keely/) > [Steven Spielberg seems to have wanted to be a director from 13. He put his dog in a certain position and made him eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-brooks/steven-spielberg-seems-to-have-wanted-to-be-a-director-from-13-he-put/) [Albert Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-brooks/) > [No life goes past so swiftly as an eventless one, no clock spins like a clock whose days are all alike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/no-life-goes-past-so-swiftly-as-an-eventless-one-no-clock-spins-like/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Those who stop marketing to save money are like those who stop a clock to save time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/those-who-stop-marketing-to-save-money-are-like-those-who-stop-a/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Time is the nervous system of narration, whether factual or fictive. If it gets confused some of the minutiae of human nature are certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenway-wescott/time-is-the-nervous-system-of-narration-whether-factual-or-fictive-if/) [Glenway Wescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenway-wescott/) > [I don't know if it's just me or everyone, but the whole vibe with skiing is not so much thriving on competition against others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/picabo-street/i-don-t-know-if-it-s-just-me-or-everyone-but-the-whole-vibe-with/) [Picabo Street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/picabo-street/) > [Time goes on, even when yer not looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/time-goes-on-even-when-yer-not-looking/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [CLOCK, n. A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/clock-n-a-machine-of-great-moral-value-to-man-allaying-his-concern/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) [Browse all 2,738 Clock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world remained in motion. Not a very consequential world, but in motion nonetheless. And as long as I knew the world was still in motion, I knew I existed. Not a very consequential existence, but an existence nonetheless. It struck me as wanting that someone should confirm his own existence only by the hands of an electric wall clock. There had to be a more cognitive means of confirmation. But try as I might, nothing less facile came to mind.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Haruki Murakami" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-least-the-world-remained-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Clock" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-least-the-world-remained-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc2/haruki-murakami-21_clock_as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-leas_3156295.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As long as I stared at the clock, at least the world remained in motion. Not a very consequential world, but…” — Haruki Murakami", "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": "Haruki Murakami", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As long as I stared at...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-least-the-world-remained-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-long-as-i-stared-at-the-clock-at-least-the-world-remained-in/#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 } } ] } ```