--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And, as I have said, it's made me think…" description: "\"And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo sa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg" --- # And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the… ![“And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo said of his voices that they were like his own mental powers multiplied by five.” quote by James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg) > “And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo said of his voices that they were like his own mental powers multiplied by five.” [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on the idea that imagination is internal, and that the mind’s creative power can amplify one’s inner voice dramatically. **In simple terms:** Imagination is internal and can amplify mental power. Key Takeaway Cultivate inner imagination to expand creative capacity. Themes creativity imagination mind inner voice self‑reflection Mood inspired contemplative introspective Type creative philosophical When to use this quote - writing - visual arts - problem solving - personal growth - meditation Key Concepts psychology philosophy artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - How does your inner voice influence your work? - What practices help you balance imagination with reality? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on internal imagination may ignore external realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astonishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishing/) [Astonishing Mediums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishing-mediums-4788925/) [Five](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Imagination Spirits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination-spirits-4788924/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Mediums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediums/) [Mediums Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediums-victor-4788927/) [Mental power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-power/) [Mental Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-powers-277490/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Twice Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twice-imagination-4788926/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) ## Related quotes > [Successful investment may become substantially a matter of techniques and criteria that are learnable, rather than the product of unique and incommunicable mental powers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/successful-investment-may-become-substantially-a-matter-of-techniques/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [We don’t constrain our mental powers when we store new long-term memories. We strengthen them. With each expansion of our memory comes an enlargement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/we-don-t-constrain-our-mental-powers-when-we-store-new-long-term/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [I tried to will them with my super mental powers so he’d put them around my waist, but apparently I had no super mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-redmerski/i-tried-to-will-them-with-my-super-mental-powers-so-he-d-put-them/) [J.A. Redmerski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-redmerski/) > [This is peculiarly an age in which each of us may, if he do but search diligently, find the literature suited to his mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-peculiarly-an-age-in-which-each-of-us-may-if-he-do-but-search/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am not much of a mathematician," said the cigarette, "but I can add to a man's nervous troubles, I can subtract from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-starr-jordan/i-am-not-much-of-a-mathematician-said-the-cigarette-but-i-can-add-to/) [David Starr Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-starr-jordan/) > [The teacher has nothing to do with people who use their mental powers to block the enlightenment of others. These people lack control. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-teacher-has-nothing-to-do-with-people-who-use-their-mental-powers/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The mental powers acquire their full robustness when the cheek loses its ruddy hue, and the limbs their elastic step; and pale thought sits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-guthrie/the-mental-powers-acquire-their-full-robustness-when-the-cheek-loses/) [Thomas Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-guthrie/) > [Anyone who tells you that they know, they just know what happens when you die, I promise you, you dont. How can I be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/anyone-who-tells-you-that-they-know-they-just-know-what-happens-when/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [I'm the beacon of hope, and I have mental powers you never dreamed of. Now be quiet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-klass/i-m-the-beacon-of-hope-and-i-have-mental-powers-you-never-dreamed-of/) [David Klass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-klass/) > [“it’s only by not taking the human race seriously that I retain what fragments of my once considerable mental powers I still possess!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/it-s-only-by-not-taking-the-human-race-seriously-that-i-retain-what/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [ “Consequently, they who cleave with all their mental powers to God … \[they have lost their\] existence like a drop which has fallen into… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-kushner/consequently-they-who-cleave-with-all-their-mental-powers-to-god-they/) [Lawrence Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-kushner/) > [“In sum, Patanjali suggests that we channel our curiosity and our mental powers into areas of fruitful interest as a means of calming the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-k-v-desikachar-2/in-sum-patanjali-suggests-that-we-channel-our-curiosity-and-our/) [T.K.V. Desikachar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-k-v-desikachar-2/) > [“Knowledge cannot be passed, like some material substance, from one person to another. Thoughts are not things which may be held and handled. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-m-gregory/knowledge-cannot-be-passed-like-some-material-substance-from-one/) [John M Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-m-gregory/) > [Nothing was ever in any man that is not in you; no man ever had more spiritual or mental power than you can attain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-d-wattles/nothing-was-ever-in-any-man-that-is-not-in-you-no-man-ever-had-more/) [Wallace D. Wattles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-d-wattles/) > [A social group can, indeed must, already exercise 'leadership' before winning governmental power (this is indeed one of the principal conditions for the winning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-gramsci/a-social-group-can-indeed-must-already-exercise-leadership-before/) [Antonio Gramsci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-gramsci/) ## More by James Merrill > [The day is breaking someone else's heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/the-day-is-breaking-someone-else-s-heart/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [I'd like to think the scientists need us - but do they? Did Newton need Blake?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/i-d-like-to-think-the-scientists-need-us-but-do-they-did-newton-need/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [At college I'd seen my dead frog's limbs twitch under some applied stimulus or other - seen, but hadn't believed. Didn't dream of thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/at-college-i-d-seen-my-dead-frog-s-limbs-twitch-under-some-applied/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [“Lost, is it, buried? One more missing piece? But nothing's lost. Or else: all is translation And every bit of us is lost in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/lost-is-it-buried-one-more-missing-piece-but-nothing-s-lost-or-else/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [I see those two hearts, I'm afraid, Still. Cool here in the graveyard of good and evil, They are even so to be honored…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/i-see-those-two-hearts-i-m-afraid-still-cool-here-in-the-graveyard-of/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [“Freedom to be oneself is all very well; the greater freedom is not to be oneself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/freedom-to-be-oneself-is-all-very-well-the-greater-freedom-is-not-to/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [Arthur Young's Reflexive Universe - fascinating but too schematic to fit into my scheme. The most I could hope for was a sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/arthur-young-s-reflexive-universe-fascinating-but-too-schematic-to/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [Strange about parents. We have such easy access to them and such daunting problems of communication.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/strange-about-parents-we-have-such-easy-access-to-them-and-such/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [“The eggshell of appearance split.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/the-eggshell-of-appearance-split/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [Before trying a novel I wrote a couple of plays.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/before-trying-a-novel-i-wrote-a-couple-of-plays/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [Knowing some Greek helped defuse forbidding words - not that I counted much on using them. You'll find only trace elements of this language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/knowing-some-greek-helped-defuse-forbidding-words-not-that-i-counted/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [In life, there are no perfect affections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/in-life-there-are-no-perfect-affections/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [But those two plays left me on fresh terms with language. I didn't always have to speak in my own voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/but-those-two-plays-left-me-on-fresh-terms-with-language-i-didn-t/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [Class is classlessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/class-is-classlessness/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [“Nor do I try to keep a garden, only An avocado in a glass of water -- Roots pallid, gemmed with air. And later,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/nor-do-i-try-to-keep-a-garden-only-an-avocado-in-a-glass-of-water/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) [Explore all 19 James Merrill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) ## More Astonishing quotes > [It's astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way. That's why a reporter's job, as you know, is such a joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/it-s-astonishing-what-you-learn-and-feel-and-see-along-the-way-that-s/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [A man may perform astonishing feats and comprehend a vast amount of knowledge, and yet have no understanding of himself. But suffering directs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-man-may-perform-astonishing-feats-and-comprehend-a-vast-amount-of/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [A first novel of astonishing force, craft and beauty, The Headmaster's Wager conjures up a dizzyingly evocative wartime Saigon in the story of Percival…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-y-k-lee-2/a-first-novel-of-astonishing-force-craft-and-beauty-the-headmaster-s/) [Janice Y. K. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-y-k-lee-2/) > [“What is astonishing is that we, who had no idea how anything was going to turn out, now know exactly what happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/what-is-astonishing-is-that-we-who-had-no-idea-how-anything-was-going/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [It's a great historical joke that when the Spanish met the Aztecs, it was a blind date made in serve-you-right heaven. At the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill/it-s-a-great-historical-joke-that-when-the-spanish-met-the-aztecs-it/) [A. A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill/) > [It was astonishing when at one point, I got the idea of how to make artifical clouds with a collaborator, we had pictures made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/it-was-astonishing-when-at-one-point-i-got-the-idea-of-how-to-make/) [Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/) > [Although there may be nothing new under the sun, what is old is new to us and so rich and astonishing that we never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/although-there-may-be-nothing-new-under-the-sun-what-is-old-is-new-to/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [The astonishing thing for me is that I had a career before politics and I never thought about my colour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-gyimah/the-astonishing-thing-for-me-is-that-i-had-a-career-before-politics/) [Sam Gyimah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-gyimah/) > [“There is no denying it; one must admit that there is something astonishing about Christianity. 'It is because you were born in it,' they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-is-no-denying-it-one-must-admit-that-there-is-something/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [It's Twitter's combination of simplicity and complexity that is astonishing in the same way that minimalist sculpture was inspiring and enlightening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-goldsmith/it-s-twitter-s-combination-of-simplicity-and-complexity-that-is/) [Kenneth Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-goldsmith/) > [All that we don't know is astonishing. Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/all-that-we-don-t-know-is-astonishing-even-more-astonishing-is-what/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Still more astonishing is that world of rigorous fantasy which we call mathematics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-bateson/still-more-astonishing-is-that-world-of-rigorous-fantasy-which-we/) [Gregory Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-bateson/) > [“No one ever said aloud any of the kinds of things he was so constantly thinking, because no one in the parish, not Alice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-von-arnim/no-one-ever-said-aloud-any-of-the-kinds-of-things-he-was-so/) [Elizabeth von Arnim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-von-arnim/) > [If you worry less about what people think of you, you can pick up an astonishing amount of information about them. You no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/if-you-worry-less-about-what-people-think-of-you-you-can-pick-up-an/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) > [The Bureau of Justice reports that one in three black male babies born this century will go to jail or prison - that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/the-bureau-of-justice-reports-that-one-in-three-black-male-babies/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) [Browse all 410 Astonishing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo said of his voices that they were like his own mental powers multiplied by five.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Merrill" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-twice-about-the-imagination-if/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Astonishing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-twice-about-the-imagination-if/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf1/james-merrill-28188_astonishing_and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-tw_2193742.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how…” — James Merrill", "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 Merrill", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "And, as I have said, it's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-twice-about-the-imagination-if/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/and-as-i-have-said-it-s-made-me-think-twice-about-the-imagination-if/#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 } } ] } ```