--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is, therefore, a great source of…" description: "\"“It is, therefore, a great source of virtue for the practiced mind to learn, bit by bit, first to change about in visible and transitory things, so tha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/272/hugh-of-saint-victor-58497_character_it-is-therefore-a-great-source-of-virtue_569594.png" --- # It is, therefore, a great source of virtue for the… ![“It is, therefore, a great source of virtue for the practiced mind to learn, bit by bit, first to change about in visible and transitory things, so that afterwards it may be possible to leave them behind altogether. The man who finds his homeland sweet is still a tender beginner; he to whom every…” quote by Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/272/hugh-of-saint-victor-58497_character_it-is-therefore-a-great-source-of-virtue_569594.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/272/hugh-of-saint-victor-58497_character_it-is-therefore-a-great-source-of-virtue_569594.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/272/hugh-of-saint-victor-58497_character_it-is-therefore-a-great-source-of-virtue_569594.png) > ““It is, therefore, a great source of virtue for the practiced mind to learn, bit by bit, first to change about in visible and transitory things, so that afterwards it may be possible to leave them behind altogether. The man who finds his homeland sweet is still a tender beginner; he to whom every soil is as his native one is already strong; but he is perfect to whom the entire world is as a foreign land. The tender soul has fixed his love on one spot in the world; the strong man has extended his love to all places; the perfect man has extinguished his. From boyhood I have dwelt on foreign soil and I know with what grief sometimes the mind takes leave of the narrow hearth of a peasant's hut, and I know too how frankly it afterwards disdains marble firesides and panelled halls.”” [Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage contrasts stages of spiritual growth: from attachment to familiar places, to love for all, to detachment from worldly ties, urging progressive inner expansion. **In simple terms:** Growing love from narrow to universal, ending in detachment. Key Takeaway Cultivate broader compassion and let go of material attachments. Themes spiritual growth detachment universal love humility Mood reflective melancholic hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - migration - personal loss - career change - cultural adaptation - spiritual practice Key Concepts philosophy theology inner development Questions to Reflect On - How can you expand love beyond your immediate circle? - What does detachment mean for your daily responsibilities? A Different Perspective The ideal of complete detachment may be unrealistic for many who need stable roots. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Exceptionalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exceptionalism/) [Exile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exile/) [Perfect man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect-man/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Sentimentality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sentimentality/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Strong man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strong-man/) ## Related quotes > [I nodded, pretending I was relaxed. I watched the sunlight sparkling on the water and practiced mind-body integration for a few seconds by quietly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-nodded-pretending-i-was-relaxed-i-watched-the-sunlight-sparkling-on/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [ \[M\]ay you be more advanced in the school of solid virtue, which is practiced in an excellent way in the midst of suffering, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-de-paul/m-ay-you-be-more-advanced-in-the-school-of-solid-virtue-which-is/) [Vincent de Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-de-paul/) > [Economy I consider a virtue & should be practiced by all; there is certainly no way in which money can be laid out than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-taylor/economy-i-consider-a-virtue-should-be-practiced-by-all-there-is/) [Zachary Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-taylor/) > [“I can’t promise you it’ll always be sweet and tender because you and I fight hard. But I’m pretty sure it won’t be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-mchugh/i-can-t-promise-you-it-ll-always-be-sweet-and-tender-because-you-and/) [Gail McHugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-mchugh/) > [“Gavin leaned in closer, brushing his lips against hers. "I can't promise you it'll always be sweet and tender because you and I fight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-mchugh/gavin-leaned-in-closer-brushing-his-lips-against-hers-i-can-t-promise/) [Gail McHugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-mchugh/) > [“It can be sweet and tender sometimes, and then other times we’ll be coming like a freight train. Every mood means a different way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chessela-helm/it-can-be-sweet-and-tender-sometimes-and-then-other-times-we-ll-be/) [Chessela Helm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chessela-helm/) > [Not the rich viol, trump, cymbal, nor horn, Guitar, nor cittern, nor the pining flute, Are half so sweet as tender human words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-procter/not-the-rich-viol-trump-cymbal-nor-horn-guitar-nor-cittern-nor-the/) [Bryan Procter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-procter/) > [I love more and more, but actually I don't know why. You are so sweet, so tender, so careful with my soul, and me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-fulger/i-love-more-and-more-but-actually-i-don-t-know-why-you-are-so-sweet/) [Mariana Fulger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-fulger/) > [No doubt, the United States and the American people are a gear country and a great people. 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Eck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-l-eck/) > [The position of the Americans is quite exceptional, and it may be believed that no democratic people will ever be placed in a similar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/the-position-of-the-americans-is-quite-exceptional-and-it-may-be/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [American exceptionalism, in the broad sense, is not a bunch of braggadocious words people say, "Yeah, we're better people. We have a better country.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/american-exceptionalism-in-the-broad-sense-is-not-a-bunch-of/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The human condition for the vast majority of people on this planet for the entire time of what humanity has been here has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-human-condition-for-the-vast-majority-of-people-on-this-planet/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Our patriotic fervor was the result of the old and widespread belief in the idea of American exceptionalism, the idea that America was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/our-patriotic-fervor-was-the-result-of-the-old-and-widespread-belief/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) ## More by Hugh of Saint Victor > [“Therefore I beg you, reader, not to rejoice too greatly if you have read much, but if you have understood much. Nor that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-of-saint-victor/therefore-i-beg-you-reader-not-to-rejoice-too-greatly-if-you-have/) [Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) > [All Sacred Scriptures is but one book, and that one book is Christ, because all divine Scripture speaks of Christ, and all divine Scripture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-of-saint-victor/all-sacred-scriptures-is-but-one-book-and-that-one-book-is-christ/) [Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) > [Learn everything you possibly can, and you will discover later that none of it was superfluous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-of-saint-victor/learn-everything-you-possibly-can-and-you-will-discover-later-that/) [Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) > [“In the same way as some illiterate, if he saw an open book, would notice the figures, but would not comprehend the letters, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-of-saint-victor/in-the-same-way-as-some-illiterate-if-he-saw-an-open-book-would/) [Hugh of Saint Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) [Explore all 5 Hugh of Saint Victor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-of-saint-victor/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. 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