--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As we go through life we gradually…" description: "\"As we go through life we gradually discover who we are, but the more we discover, the more we lose ourselves.\" — Haruki Murakami" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg" --- # As we go through life we gradually discover who we are… ![“As we go through life we gradually discover who we are, but the more we discover, the more we lose ourselves.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg) > “As we go through life we gradually discover who we are, but the more we discover, the more we lose ourselves.” [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. Self‑discovery often leads to losing parts of oneself. **In simple terms:** Finding self can cause loss. Key Takeaway Balance introspection with external connections. Themes identity growth loss self‑discovery life journey Mood introspective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal development - creative writing - mental health Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How to retain core values while evolving? - What supports healthy self‑exploration? A Different Perspective Loss can be painful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [Life gradually becomes a surrender to situations conditioned by technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/life-gradually-becomes-a-surrender-to-situations-conditioned-by/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Rest assured that if you work every day at your art, using the materials nearest at hand, you will gradually discover such beauty in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-carlson/rest-assured-that-if-you-work-every-day-at-your-art-using-the/) [John F. Carlson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-carlson/) > [Everything in life gradually disappears until memories disappear with time.to become just things has passed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shrouk/everything-in-life-gradually-disappears-until-memories-disappear-with/) [Shrouk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shrouk/) > [“You must understand, owing to my loss of faith in life, I had gradually, inevitably embarked upon a small world of my creation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-g-taylor/you-must-understand-owing-to-my-loss-of-faith-in-life-i-had-gradually/) Lawrence G. Taylor > [Time plays a tune, and we all have a note, as a crescendo life gradually progresses, into a chorus filled with many a hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-harris/time-plays-a-tune-and-we-all-have-a-note-as-a-crescendo-life/) Crystal Harris > [But it is possible, it is possible: the old grief, by a great mystery of human life, gradually passes into quiet, tender joy; instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/but-it-is-possible-it-is-possible-the-old-grief-by-a-great-mystery-of/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Do your best every day and your life will gradually expand into satisfying fullness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horatio-dresser/do-your-best-every-day-and-your-life-will-gradually-expand-into/) [Horatio Dresser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horatio-dresser/) > [Sometimes, counter-intuitively, it's easier to make a major change than a minor change. When a habit is changing very gradually, we may lose interest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/sometimes-counter-intuitively-it-s-easier-to-make-a-major-change-than/) [Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/) > [Is this what it means to go back to square one? Most likely. He had nothing left to lose, other than his life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/is-this-what-it-means-to-go-back-to-square-one-most-likely-he-had/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Once you pass a certain age, life becomes nothing more than a process of continual loss. Things that are important to your life begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/once-you-pass-a-certain-age-life-becomes-nothing-more-than-a-process/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The thing that is cool about my come up is that I dealt with fame and having money gradually. It didn't happen overnight. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trey-songz/the-thing-that-is-cool-about-my-come-up-is-that-i-dealt-with-fame-and/) [Trey Songz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trey-songz/) > [God works powerfully, but for the most part gently and gradually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/god-works-powerfully-but-for-the-most-part-gently-and-gradually/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [I don't think Cheney started off in 2000 with a burning desire to become vice-president. I think the prospect gradually became more appealing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-don-t-think-cheney-started-off-in-2000-with-a-burning-desire-to/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [“came upon me so gradually, so very pleasantly, that I considered myself especially blessed. You see, I was put in charge of brewing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-j-parker/came-upon-me-so-gradually-so-very-pleasantly-that-i-considered-myself/) I.J. Parker > [I'm what is known as gradually disintegrating. I don't fear the next world, or anything. I don't fear hell, and I don't look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/i-m-what-is-known-as-gradually-disintegrating-i-don-t-fear-the-next/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) ## 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 Gradually quotes > [I'm what is known as gradually disintegrating. I don't fear the next world, or anything. I don't fear hell, and I don't look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/i-m-what-is-known-as-gradually-disintegrating-i-don-t-fear-the-next/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [“came upon me so gradually, so very pleasantly, that I considered myself especially blessed. You see, I was put in charge of brewing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-j-parker/came-upon-me-so-gradually-so-very-pleasantly-that-i-considered-myself/) I.J. Parker > [I don't think Cheney started off in 2000 with a burning desire to become vice-president. I think the prospect gradually became more appealing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-don-t-think-cheney-started-off-in-2000-with-a-burning-desire-to/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [God works powerfully, but for the most part gently and gradually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/god-works-powerfully-but-for-the-most-part-gently-and-gradually/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [The thing that is cool about my come up is that I dealt with fame and having money gradually. It didn't happen overnight. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trey-songz/the-thing-that-is-cool-about-my-come-up-is-that-i-dealt-with-fame-and/) [Trey Songz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trey-songz/) > [When you get a typical injury, you're given a time frame; you're gradually working towards getting back. With concussions, there is not generally a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-crosby/when-you-get-a-typical-injury-you-re-given-a-time-frame-you-re/) [Sidney Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-crosby/) > [You think you have some stable talent that will show no matter what you're writing, and if it doesn't seem to be getting across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/you-think-you-have-some-stable-talent-that-will-show-no-matter-what/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“The fact that my sexual awakening peripherally involves Steve Guttenberg I have gradually accepted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/the-fact-that-my-sexual-awakening-peripherally-involves-steve/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [Politics has come to resemble a cynical team game played by politicians, while the public has been pushed aside as if sitting on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edi-rama/politics-has-come-to-resemble-a-cynical-team-game-played-by/) [Edi Rama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edi-rama/) > [China and India's relationship is gradually developing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushil-koirala/china-and-india-s-relationship-is-gradually-developing/) [Sushil Koirala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushil-koirala/) > [The man who bears my name, and who claims to be me, was born on July 15, 1865, the sixth in a family of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-housman/the-man-who-bears-my-name-and-who-claims-to-be-me-was-born-on-july-15/) [Laurence Housman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-housman/) > [Which is why, in my lieder concerts, I always strove, when possible, to sing only the works of a single composer, so that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-fischer-dieskau/which-is-why-in-my-lieder-concerts-i-always-strove-when-possible-to/) [Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-fischer-dieskau/) > [Revolution is not a dinner party, not an essay, nor a painting, nor a piece of embroidery; it cannot be advanced softly, gradually, carefully,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/revolution-is-not-a-dinner-party-not-an-essay-nor-a-painting-nor-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes, counter-intuitively, it's easier to make a major change than a minor change. When a habit is changing very gradually, we may lose interest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/sometimes-counter-intuitively-it-s-easier-to-make-a-major-change-than/) [Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/) > [Gradually it occurred to me that we spend a great deal of life asleep and that dreams are little narratives, little stories. I thought,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/gradually-it-occurred-to-me-that-we-spend-a-great-deal-of-life-asleep/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) Browse all 162 Gradually quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As we go through life we gradually discover who we are, but the more we discover, the more we lose ourselves.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Haruki Murakami" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-discover-who-we-are-but-the-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Gradually" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-discover-who-we-are-but-the-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8dc/haruki-murakami-21_gradually_as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-disco_2833667.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As we go through life we gradually discover who we are, but the more we discover, the more we lose ourselves.” — 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 we go through life we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-discover-who-we-are-but-the-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/as-we-go-through-life-we-gradually-discover-who-we-are-but-the-more/#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 } } ] } ```