--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: An over examination of life can deter you…" description: "\"“An over examination of life can deter you from life itself”\" — Ilyas Kassam" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg" --- # An over examination of life can deter you from life itself ![“An over examination of life can deter you from life itself” quote by Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg) > ““An over examination of life can deter you from life itself”” [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Excessive analysis can paralyze action, preventing full engagement with life. **In simple terms:** Over‑analysis stops living. Key Takeaway Balance thought with action. Themes analysis action mindfulness Mood contemplative motivational Type philosophical self‑help When to use this quote - decision‑making - creative work - daily routines - stress management Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - When does reflection become a barrier? - How can we know when to act? A Different Perspective Some analysis is necessary for informed choices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Examined life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/examined-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-itself/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) ## Related quotes > [Be patient and sympathetic with the type of mind that cuts a poor figure in examinations. It may, in the long examination which life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/be-patient-and-sympathetic-with-the-type-of-mind-that-cuts-a-poor/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [It is necessary to do a very thorough examination of your life and to discover whether the people in your life, no matter how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/it-is-necessary-to-do-a-very-thorough-examination-of-your-life-and-to/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“If truth is what you seek, then the examined life will only take you on a long ride to the limits of solitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/if-truth-is-what-you-seek-then-the-examined-life-will-only-take-you/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [The ancient Greeks were the first ones to say an unexamined life is not worth living. They don't tell you of course what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-quinn/the-ancient-greeks-were-the-first-ones-to-say-an-unexamined-life-is/) [Colin Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-quinn/) > [“How, I wondered, can we wake up for this amazing journey that is so quickly ended? How can we experience the live performance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-gonzales/how-i-wondered-can-we-wake-up-for-this-amazing-journey-that-is-so/) [Laurence Gonzales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-gonzales/) > [“Thurough examination will do the healthy no harm, and it may bless the sick.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/thurough-examination-will-do-the-healthy-no-harm-and-it-may-bless-the/) [Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/) > [“When I examined my own life, I realized that I had been standing at the foot of my mother's casket for 35 years, grieving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-j-williams/when-i-examined-my-own-life-i-realized-that-i-had-been-standing-at/) Nathaniel J. Williams > [It's important to have an examined life - but it's a fine line between having an examined life and being hypercritical of oneself. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-nettles/it-s-important-to-have-an-examined-life-but-it-s-a-fine-line-between/) [Jennifer Nettles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-nettles/) > [I have a sneaking suspicion that leading an examined life and being really tan aren't consistent with one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/i-have-a-sneaking-suspicion-that-leading-an-examined-life-and-being/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-for-a-human-being/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Emerson, I am trying to live, as you said we must, the examined life. But there are days I wish there was less in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/emerson-i-am-trying-to-live-as-you-said-we-must-the-examined-life-but/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [It takes tremendous discipline, takes tremendous courage, to think for yourself, to examine yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/it-takes-tremendous-discipline-takes-tremendous-courage-to-think-for/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Contemporary philosophy illustrates Hegel's dictum that philosophy is its own time apprehended in thought, for in our age philosophy yields to the objectifying technical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/contemporary-philosophy-illustrates-hegel-s-dictum-that-philosophy-is/) [Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/) > [“Taking a lot of selfies doesn’t mean you live an examined life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-barreca/taking-a-lot-of-selfies-doesn-t-mean-you-live-an-examined-life/) [Gina Barreca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-barreca/) > [Courage is the enabling virtue for any philosopher - for any human being, I think, in the end. Courage to think, courage to love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/courage-is-the-enabling-virtue-for-any-philosopher-for-any-human/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) ## More by Ilyas Kassam > [“It is more Important to be of pure intention than of perfect action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/it-is-more-important-to-be-of-pure-intention-than-of-perfect-action/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“Be Kind. It is all that matters. Be kind through your own definition of kindness. Philosophy is merely a manner of defining kindness, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/be-kind-it-is-all-that-matters-be-kind-through-your-own-definition-of/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“The Purpose of Philosophy is to fall in Love. To strip the world of all its clothes, and fall in Love with it as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/the-purpose-of-philosophy-is-to-fall-in-love-to-strip-the-world-of/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“I think to think. Not to be thought-full, or to reach a point of wisdom or acquire a grace of knowledge. I think for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/i-think-to-think-not-to-be-thought-full-or-to-reach-a-point-of-wisdom/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“The only kind of universe that I can even begin to conceive is an inconceivable one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/the-only-kind-of-universe-that-i-can-even-begin-to-conceive-is-an/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“Freedom is not to defy, it is to co-exist. It is a challenge for the imagination”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/freedom-is-not-to-defy-it-is-to-co-exist-it-is-a-challenge-for-the/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [To seek contentment is to release the novelty that lies within monotony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/to-seek-contentment-is-to-release-the-novelty-that-lies-within/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“A truly free man is not free 'from' anything, nor free 'to' anything, he is just free. Free within himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/a-truly-free-man-is-not-free-from-anything-nor-free-to-anything-he-is/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [To want to tackle everything rationally is irrational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/to-want-to-tackle-everything-rationally-is-irrational/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“If nature has taught us anything it is that the impossible is probable”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/if-nature-has-taught-us-anything-it-is-that-the-impossible-is-probable/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“Logic in all its infinite potential, is the most dangerous of vices. For one can always find some form of logic to justify his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/logic-in-all-its-infinite-potential-is-the-most-dangerous-of-vices/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“We think to dance, and dance in thought. But to hibernate in the mind, is to bring upon us an apocalypse of the Soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/we-think-to-dance-and-dance-in-thought-but-to-hibernate-in-the-mind/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“we are finite, in that we are a product and source of the infinite.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/we-are-finite-in-that-we-are-a-product-and-source-of-the-infinite/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“To know yourself you must know the transience of your self.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/to-know-yourself-you-must-know-the-transience-of-your-self/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) > [“There is desire in the perfect, beauty in the imperfect. Thus I lust over the flawless, and fall amorously forceless to the flawed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/there-is-desire-in-the-perfect-beauty-in-the-imperfect-thus-i-lust/) [Ilyas Kassam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) [Explore all 23 Ilyas Kassam quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/) ## More Examination quotes > [“Remaining absolutely non-acquisitive (aparigrahi) amidst all possessions is the ultimate ‘test examination’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/remaining-absolutely-non-acquisitive-aparigrahi-amidst-all/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [The examining physician often hesitates to make the necessary examination because it involves soiling the finger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james-mayo/the-examining-physician-often-hesitates-to-make-the-necessary/) [William James Mayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james-mayo/) > [The criterion of true beauty is, that it increases in examination; of false, that it lessens. There is something, therefore, in true beauty that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-grenville/the-criterion-of-true-beauty-is-that-it-increases-in-examination-of/) George Grenville > [On examinations: Das Wissen ist der Tad der Forschung. Knowledge is the death of research. Nernst's motto.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walther-nernst/on-examinations-das-wissen-ist-der-tad-der-forschung-knowledge-is-the/) Walther Nernst > [EXams are there, at the paper u stare; the answer is nowhere, which makes u pull ur hair. The teachers make u glare, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azgraybebly-joslan/exams-are-there-at-the-paper-u-stare-the-answer-is-nowhere-which/) Azgraybebly Joslan > [Creativity requires introspection, self-examination, and a willingness to take risks. Because of this, artists are perhaps more susceptible to self-doubt and despair than those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/creativity-requires-introspection-self-examination-and-a-willingness/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [Wherever God erects a house of prayer the Devil always builds a chapel there; And 't will be found, upon examination, the latter has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/wherever-god-erects-a-house-of-prayer-the-devil-always-builds-a/) [Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/) > [The story revolved around this universal identifiable fear that we must all have, at some point, when you commit yourself to being with another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-treadaway/the-story-revolved-around-this-universal-identifiable-fear-that-we/) [Harry Treadaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-treadaway/) > [But since the Modernists (as they are commonly and rightly called) employ a very clever artifice, namely, to present their doctrines without order and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-x/but-since-the-modernists-as-they-are-commonly-and-rightly-called/) [Pope Pius X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-x/) > [Even when I'm writing in character I'm normally still writing about things I know or things that have happened to me or using that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-walker/even-when-i-m-writing-in-character-i-m-normally-still-writing-about/) [Karen Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-walker/) > [After taking my B.A. degree in 1939 I remained at the University for a further year to take an advanced course in Biochemistry, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-sanger/after-taking-my-b-a-degree-in-1939-i-remained-at-the-university-for-a/) [Frederick Sanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-sanger/) > [The duty of the grand jury is to separate fact from fiction, after a full and impartial examination of all the evidence involved, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-p-mcculloch/the-duty-of-the-grand-jury-is-to-separate-fact-from-fiction-after-a/) [Robert P. McCulloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-p-mcculloch/) > [Humor is the only test of gravity, and gravity of humor; for a subject which will not bear raillery is suspicious, and a jest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/humor-is-the-only-test-of-gravity-and-gravity-of-humor-for-a-subject/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Believe nothing, O monks, just because you have been told it, or it is commonly believed, or because it is traditional or because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/believe-nothing-o-monks-just-because-you-have-been-told-it-or-it-is/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [I made my mistakes, but in all of my years in public life, I have never profited, never profited from public serviceI have earned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/i-made-my-mistakes-but-in-all-of-my-years-in-public-life-i-have-never/) [Richard M. Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-nixon/) Browse all 483 Examination quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“An over examination of life can deter you from life itself”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ilyas Kassam" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-you-from-life-itself/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Examination" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-you-from-life-itself/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e9/ilyas-kassam-24947_examined-life_an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-yo_1075191.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“An over examination of life can deter you from life itself” — Ilyas Kassam", "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": "Ilyas Kassam", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilyas-kassam/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“An over examination of life can...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-you-from-life-itself/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilyas-kassam/an-over-examination-of-life-can-deter-you-from-life-itself/#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 } } ] } ```