--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Try not to have idols: they are…" description: "\"Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead to a wantonness that is easily mistaken for love.\" — Hildegard Knef" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg" --- # Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead… ![“Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead to a wantonness that is easily mistaken for love.” quote by Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg) > “Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead to a wantonness that is easily mistaken for love.” [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Idols are interchangeable and can be mistaken for love, leading to reckless behavior. **In simple terms:** Idols can be confused with love, causing recklessness. Key Takeaway Beware of confusing admiration with genuine affection. Themes love idolatry recklessness Mood cautious inquisitive Type philosophical advisory When to use this quote - relationships - spiritual practice - personal growth Key Concepts psychology attachment theory Questions to Reflect On - What distinguishes love from idolization? - When does admiration become dangerous? A Different Perspective Not all attachments are harmful; context matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Idols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idols/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Mistaken love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistaken-love/) ## Related quotes > [I was mistaken love you like you are the key to my paradise; Actually it's not, will never ever, and always never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-mistaken-love-you-like-you-are-the-key-to-my-paradise-actually/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I realize I didn't like you. I just wanted to meet someone that understood me. I didn't know that you were speaking from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-yoon-hee/i-realize-i-didn-t-like-you-i-just-wanted-to-meet-someone-that/) Jo Yoon-hee > [Habit: Often mistaken for love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlene-dietrich/habit-often-mistaken-for-love/) [Marlene Dietrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlene-dietrich/) > [“A relationship is often mistaken for love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tapan-ghosh/a-relationship-is-often-mistaken-for-love/) [Tapan Ghosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tapan-ghosh/) > [Opinions may be mistaken; love never is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/opinions-may-be-mistaken-love-never-is/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [Set fire to The Rain And SkyFall But Flaws Is All I see](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mya/set-fire-to-the-rain-and-skyfall-but-flaws-is-all-i-see/) [Mya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mya/) > [“What restless woman can resist a man with a shovel in one hand and a glowing rose bush in the other, and a moderately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/what-restless-woman-can-resist-a-man-with-a-shovel-in-one-hand-and-a/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“If a girl wasn't loved a little bit, without the depth of affection that might at least be mistaken for love, she was being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/if-a-girl-wasn-t-loved-a-little-bit-without-the-depth-of-affection/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [You Love Me U Hate Me You Want Me You Need Me But I'm Bot Seeing The clues that you do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mya/you-love-me-u-hate-me-you-want-me-you-need-me-but-i-m-bot-seeing-the/) [Mya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mya/) > [“It is neutral if you go under spell in your first love; but if it happens for a second time you have mistaken love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/it-is-neutral-if-you-go-under-spell-in-your-first-love-but-if-it/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [“Just another case of sometimes. Sometimes fates plans are different from your own. Sometimes the beautiful things are right in your reach but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/everance-caiser/just-another-case-of-sometimes-sometimes-fates-plans-are-different/) [Everance Caiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/everance-caiser/) > [The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-books-or-the-music-in-which-we-thought-the-beauty-was-located/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God puts you where God needs you. You are where you are supposed to be. The job you are doing may not be any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-kushner/god-puts-you-where-god-needs-you-you-are-where-you-are-supposed-to-be/) [Lawrence Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-kushner/) > [In opening we can see how many times we have mistaken small identities and fearful beliefs for our true nature and how limiting this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/in-opening-we-can-see-how-many-times-we-have-mistaken-small/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [A lost love. Deny it who will, ridicule it, treat it as mere imagination and sentiment, the thing is and will be; and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/a-lost-love-deny-it-who-will-ridicule-it-treat-it-as-mere-imagination/) [Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/) ## More by Hildegard Knef > [If one sits down and concentrates on imagining the worst possible surroundings for rehearsing a musical show, it's never as bad as the rehearsal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/if-one-sits-down-and-concentrates-on-imagining-the-worst-possible/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [... lapses of memory are only attractive when you've encouraged them, not when they take you unawares.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/lapses-of-memory-are-only-attractive-when-you-ve-encouraged-them-not/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [I believe that the only possible reason for our being here is to serve in some form or another but that the form is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/i-believe-that-the-only-possible-reason-for-our-being-here-is-to/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [If you have to make mistakes, make them good and big, don't be middling if you can help it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/if-you-have-to-make-mistakes-make-them-good-and-big-don-t-be-middling/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [My stage fright gets worse at every performance. During the overture I hope for a theater fire, typhoon, revolution in the Pentagon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/my-stage-fright-gets-worse-at-every-performance-during-the-overture-i/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [Prosperity's disciples build careful bastions against age and change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/prosperity-s-disciples-build-careful-bastions-against-age-and-change/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [Success and failure are greatly overrated. But failure gives you a whole lot more to talk about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/success-and-failure-are-greatly-overrated-but-failure-gives-you-a/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [Am I incapable of living with the one sole guarantee, that I'm still here? Am I afraid of living because I fear death?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/am-i-incapable-of-living-with-the-one-sole-guarantee-that-i-m-still/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) > [The so-called film star's lot is an infantile and precarious one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/the-so-called-film-star-s-lot-is-an-infantile-and-precarious-one/) [Hildegard Knef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) [Explore all 10 Hildegard Knef quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/) ## More Idols quotes > [That's one of my idols, I really look up to Pacquiao. This guy is everything I would want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-garcia/that-s-one-of-my-idols-i-really-look-up-to-pacquiao-this-guy-is/) [Ryan Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-garcia/) > [Tis easy to break an idol, very easy: to regard the self as easy to subdue is folly, folly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/tis-easy-to-break-an-idol-very-easy-to-regard-the-self-as-easy-to/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [ The fact that an Englishman has an Argentinian as an idol is very rare. I keep watching my \[title-winning\] goal against QPR and every… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aguero/the-fact-that-an-englishman-has-an-argentinian-as-an-idol-is-very/) [Sergio Aguero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aguero/) > [Proof is an idol before which the mathematician tortures himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/proof-is-an-idol-before-which-the-mathematician-tortures-himself/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [“‎A careful reading of the Old and New Testaments shows that idolatry is nothing like the crude picture that springs to mind of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-keyes/a-careful-reading-of-the-old-and-new-testaments-shows-that-idolatry/) Richard Keyes > [I'm cute - and God I hate that. Because that's not cool. I'm like your niece, and nobody wants to date their niece. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-clarkson/i-m-cute-and-god-i-hate-that-because-that-s-not-cool-i-m-like-your/) [Kelly Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-clarkson/) > [The idols of one's adolescence tend to endure - you never forget how you worshipped them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-idols-of-one-s-adolescence-tend-to-endure-you-never-forget-how/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [“We must not touch our idols; the gilt sticks to our fingers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/we-must-not-touch-our-idols-the-gilt-sticks-to-our-fingers/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [My idol was Sandino, and also Christ. I was brought up a Christian, but I regarded Christ as a rebel, a revolutionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-ortega/my-idol-was-sandino-and-also-christ-i-was-brought-up-a-christian-but/) [Daniel Ortega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-ortega/) > [My idols have always stuck to their guns and said what they want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-patrick/my-idols-have-always-stuck-to-their-guns-and-said-what-they-want-to-do/) [Richard Patrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-patrick/) > [A lot of the former Idols were voting for me, and that makes me feel really good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/la-porsha-renae/a-lot-of-the-former-idols-were-voting-for-me-and-that-makes-me-feel/) [La'Porsha Renae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/la-porsha-renae/) > [And one fine day the goddess of the wind kisses the foot of man, that mistreated, scorned foot, and from that kiss the soccer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/and-one-fine-day-the-goddess-of-the-wind-kisses-the-foot-of-man-that/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [First Moloch, horrid king, besmirched in blood, Of Human sacrifice, and parent's tears, Though, for the noise of drums and timbrels loud, Their childrens'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/first-moloch-horrid-king-besmirched-in-blood-of-human-sacrifice-and/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [You're killing yourself with cynicism. Your idols got taken away from you one by one and now you have nothing to give your love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/you-re-killing-yourself-with-cynicism-your-idols-got-taken-away-from/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [We think that idols are bad things, but that is almost never the case. The greater the good, the more likely we are to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/we-think-that-idols-are-bad-things-but-that-is-almost-never-the-case/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) [Browse all 856 Idols quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idols/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead to a wantonness that is easily mistaken for love.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hildegard Knef" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchangeable-and-lead-to-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Idols" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchangeable-and-lead-to-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d47/hildegard-knef-41449_idols_try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchan_2945189.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Try not to have idols: they are interchangeable and lead to a wantonness that is easily mistaken for love.” — Hildegard Knef", "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": "Hildegard Knef", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-knef/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Try not to have idols: they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchangeable-and-lead-to-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-knef/try-not-to-have-idols-they-are-interchangeable-and-lead-to-a/#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 } } ] } ```