---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think we're miserable partly because we…"
description: "\"I think we're miserable partly because we have only one god, and that's economics.\" — James Hillman"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png"
---

#  I think we're miserable partly because we have only one…

![“I think we're miserable partly because we have only one god, and that's economics.” quote by James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png)

> “I think we're miserable partly because we have only one god, and that's economics.”

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Human suffering stems from over‑reliance on economic values as the sole guiding principle.

**In simple terms:** We suffer because we worship economics alone.

Key Takeaway

Broaden values beyond money.

Themes

materialism spirituality human fulfillment

Mood

reflective critical

Type

philosophical analytical

When to use this quote

- personal finance decisions
- career choices
- community building
- policy debates

Key Concepts

Existentialism psychology economics

Questions to Reflect On

- What values could balance your life?
- How does economic focus limit happiness?

A Different Perspective

Economic focus can ignore emotional and relational needs.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [If we think happy thoughts, we will be happy. If we think miserable thoughts, we will be miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-we-think-happy-thoughts-we-will-be-happy-if-we-think-miserable/)

[Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/)

> [Happy music that is genuinely joyful is probably the hardest music to write. I think miserable stuff is more natural to the human condition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gabriel/happy-music-that-is-genuinely-joyful-is-probably-the-hardest-music-to/)

[Peter Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gabriel/)

> [“If you live your life scared of what other people think, then you will always be miserable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-goode/if-you-live-your-life-scared-of-what-other-people-think-then-you-will/)

[John Goode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-goode/)

> [“Anyone would think he was miserable to be here, but the truth is, he always looks this way. Only Cobar and I would know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lacey-carter-andersen/anyone-would-think-he-was-miserable-to-be-here-but-the-truth-is-he/)

Lacey Carter Andersen

> [“The hair was curled, and the maid sent away, and Emma sat down to think and be miserable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-hair-was-curled-and-the-maid-sent-away-and-emma-sat-down-to-think/)

[Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/)

> [People think I'm a miserable sod but it's only because I get asked such bloody miserable questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/people-think-i-m-a-miserable-sod-but-it-s-only-because-i-get-asked/)

[Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/)

> [I think it'd be miserable to play in a place like Jacksonville, where nobody cares.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-kelce/i-think-it-d-be-miserable-to-play-in-a-place-like-jacksonville-where/)

[Jason Kelce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-kelce/)

> [Think how miserable your sex life has to be to find the time to leave a comment on a porn video.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/think-how-miserable-your-sex-life-has-to-be-to-find-the-time-to-leave/)

[Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/)

> [I just read about John Le Carre, the great spy novelist. He had an absolutely miserable childhood. His mother deserted him when he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-just-read-about-john-le-carre-the-great-spy-novelist-he-had-an/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [It's a terrible cruelty of predatory capitalism: both parents now have to work. A family has to have two incomes in order to buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/it-s-a-terrible-cruelty-of-predatory-capitalism-both-parents-now-have/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Nobody ever wins by the cavalry coming to rescue you. It isn't a question of you're happy if you get married, or you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/nobody-ever-wins-by-the-cavalry-coming-to-rescue-you-it-isn-t-a/)

[Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/)

> [Life is such unutterable hell, solely because it is sometimes beautiful. If we could only be miserable all the time, if there could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-such-unutterable-hell-solely-because-it-is-sometimes/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Buddhism advises you not to implant feelings that you don’t really have or avoid feelings that you do have. If you are miserable you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/buddhism-advises-you-not-to-implant-feelings-that-you-don-t-really/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The more I read about feeding times, sleep times and waking-up times, the more inadequate and miserable I felt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-porter/the-more-i-read-about-feeding-times-sleep-times-and-waking-up-times/)

[Gail Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-porter/)

> [If it was making me miserable, I'd get out, but it doesn't! It fuels me! That's why I'm taking on more things, because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-morrissey/if-it-was-making-me-miserable-i-d-get-out-but-it-doesn-t-it-fuels-me/)

[David Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-morrissey/)

## More by James Hillman

> [“Each life is formed by its unique image, an image that is the essence of that life and calls it to a destiny. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/each-life-is-formed-by-its-unique-image-an-image-that-is-the-essence/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Fear is a huge thing for older people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/fear-is-a-huge-thing-for-older-people/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [It's a terrible cruelty of predatory capitalism: both parents now have to work. A family has to have two incomes in order to buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/it-s-a-terrible-cruelty-of-predatory-capitalism-both-parents-now-have/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [You know, people come to therapy really for a blessing. Not so much to fix what's broken, but to get what's broken blessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/you-know-people-come-to-therapy-really-for-a-blessing-not-so-much-to/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Until the culture recognizes the legitimacy of growing down, each person in the culture struggles blindly to make sense of the darkness that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/until-the-culture-recognizes-the-legitimacy-of-growing-down-each/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [ “The first way has been excellently presented by David Holt in his lecture on “Jung and Marx.” \[1\] There Holt shows that Jung imagined his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/the-first-way-has-been-excellently-presented-by-david-holt-in-his/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [I'm the result of upbringing, class, race, gender, social prejudices, and economics. So I'm a victim again. A result.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-m-the-result-of-upbringing-class-race-gender-social-prejudices-and/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [There is more in a human life than our theories of it allow. Sooner or later something seems to call us onto a particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/there-is-more-in-a-human-life-than-our-theories-of-it-allow-sooner-or/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Depression opens the door to beauty of some kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/depression-opens-the-door-to-beauty-of-some-kind/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [The idea of death robs inquiry of its passionate vitality and empties our efforts of their purpose by coming to one predestined conclusion, death.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/the-idea-of-death-robs-inquiry-of-its-passionate-vitality-and-empties/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [I'm in favor of destruction, aggression, hating things. Not bearing things anymore. We think the breakdown comes because our life is in bad shape.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-m-in-favor-of-destruction-aggression-hating-things-not-bearing/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [In the past, friendship was a huge thing. But it's hard for us to think of friendship as a calling, because it's not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/in-the-past-friendship-was-a-huge-thing-but-it-s-hard-for-us-to-think/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Psychotherapy theory turns it all on you: you are the one who is wrong. If a kid is having trouble or is discouraged, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/psychotherapy-theory-turns-it-all-on-you-you-are-the-one-who-is-wrong/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [The self divided is precisely where the self is authentically located. . . We all have identity crises because a single identity is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/the-self-divided-is-precisely-where-the-self-is-authentically-located/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

> [Love alone is not enough. Without imagination, love stales into sentiment, duty, boredom. Relationships fail not because we have stopped loving but because we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/love-alone-is-not-enough-without-imagination-love-stales-into/)

[James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

[Explore all 171 James Hillman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/)

## More Economic quotes

> [It makes no sense to talk of the social obligations of the corporation without reference to its economic obligations. The two are intertwined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-r-raymond/it-makes-no-sense-to-talk-of-the-social-obligations-of-the/)

[Lee R. Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-r-raymond/)

> [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/)

[Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/)

> [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/)

Brian Reade

> [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/)

[Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/)

> [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/)

Sheila Kamerman

> [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/)

[Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/)

> [The number of poor, and poorly prepared, students who succeed in college and beyond undercuts the simplistic notion that economic or educational disadvantage is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-merullo/the-number-of-poor-and-poorly-prepared-students-who-succeed-in/)

[Roland Merullo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-merullo/)

> [Right now, for many Americans, class is being foregrounded like never before because of the economic situation. It doesn't mean that race doesn't matter,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bell-hooks/right-now-for-many-americans-class-is-being-foregrounded-like-never/)

[Bell Hooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bell-hooks/)

> [The average well-being of our societies is not dependent any longer on national income and economic growth. ... But the differences between us and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-g-wilkinson/the-average-well-being-of-our-societies-is-not-dependent-any-longer/)

[Richard G. Wilkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-g-wilkinson/)

> [Fossil fuels, including oil, are running out and supplies are getting harder to find. If we do nothing, prices will continue to rise and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-powell/fossil-fuels-including-oil-are-running-out-and-supplies-are-getting/)

[Lucy Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-powell/)

> [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/)

F. A. Harper

> [Business school graduates from the best schools earn large salaries and frequently rise to positions of great power. It would be nice if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/business-school-graduates-from-the-best-schools-earn-large-salaries/)

[Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/)

> [In short, both experience and economic theory imply that the US could now t to a more competitive dollar without experiencing either increased inflation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-feldstein/in-short-both-experience-and-economic-theory-imply-that-the-us-could/)

[Martin Feldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-feldstein/)

> [Put plainly, China seems determined to steal its way up the economic ladder, at our expense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-a-wray/put-plainly-china-seems-determined-to-steal-its-way-up-the-economic/)

[Christopher A. Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-a-wray/)

> [There are no two countries with the same style of economic mechanism, with the same capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/there-are-no-two-countries-with-the-same-style-of-economic-mechanism/)

[Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/)

Browse all 6,235 Economic quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think we're miserable partly because we have only one god, and that's economics.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "James Hillman"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-we-have-only-one-god-and-that/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Economic"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-we-have-only-one-god-and-that/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8e/james-hillman-2336_economic_i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-w_1276042.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think we're miserable partly because we have only one god, and that's economics.” — James Hillman",
                "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": "James Hillman",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think we're miserable partly because...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-we-have-only-one-god-and-that/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-think-we-re-miserable-partly-because-we-have-only-one-god-and-that/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
