--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Several hours or several years make no…" description: "\"Several hours or several years make no difference once you have lost eternity.\" — Jean-Paul Sartre" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png" --- # Several hours or several years make no difference once you… ![“Several hours or several years make no difference once you have lost eternity.” quote by Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png) > “Several hours or several years make no difference once you have lost eternity.” [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Loss of eternity renders the distinction between hours and years irrelevant. **In simple terms:** Without eternity, time feels the same. Key Takeaway Focus on present meaning. Themes existence time meaning Mood contemplative philosophical Type existential motivational When to use this quote - daily work - long‑term projects - personal goals Key Concepts existentialism philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing finitude change your priorities? - What gives your life lasting significance? A Different Perspective Eternal perspective may be unattainable for many. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difference Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difference-lost-428079/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternity/) [Hours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours/) [Hours Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours-years-535243/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Lost Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost-eternity-1972379/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-make-519042/) ## Related quotes > [I think there is a great deal to the idea of not doing a thing, but that when you do a thing, you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/i-think-there-is-a-great-deal-to-the-idea-of-not-doing-a-thing-but/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [The difference between lost love and lost money is that in lost money there is a possibility of getting back!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senora-roy/the-difference-between-lost-love-and-lost-money-is-that-in-lost-money/) [Senora Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senora-roy/) > [“This is all very wonderful,” said Fenchurch a few days later, “but I do need to know what has happened to me. You see,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-is-all-very-wonderful-said-fenchurch-a-few-days-later-but-i-do/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [There is little difference in being lost and exploring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-eldon/there-is-little-difference-in-being-lost-and-exploring/) [Dan Eldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-eldon/) > [How mankind defers from day to day the best it can do, and the most beautiful things it can enjoy, without thinking that every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-muller/how-mankind-defers-from-day-to-day-the-best-it-can-do-and-the-most/) [Max Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-muller/) > [“lost time is lost eternity”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-logan-brengle/lost-time-is-lost-eternity/) [Samuel Logan Brengle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-logan-brengle/) > [What love we've given, we'll have forever. What love we fail to give, will be lost for all eternity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-buscaglia/what-love-we-ve-given-we-ll-have-forever-what-love-we-fail-to-give/) [Leo Buscaglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-buscaglia/) > [“If then, if you have lived in despair, then whatever else you won or lost, for you everything is lost, eternity does not acknowledge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ren-kierkegaard/if-then-if-you-have-lived-in-despair-then-whatever-else-you-won-or/) [Søren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ren-kierkegaard/) > [She stood lost in eternity... watching the immense sky...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/she-stood-lost-in-eternity-watching-the-immense-sky/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [She stood lost in eternity wearing a crazy dress, watching the immense sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/she-stood-lost-in-eternity-wearing-a-crazy-dress-watching-the-immense/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [Athletes have their career for 15 years and you have to make the most of it because once it's over, it's over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-russell/athletes-have-their-career-for-15-years-and-you-have-to-make-the-most/) [George Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-russell/) > [We'll meet again. We'll meet when years have passed, and years make such a difference, don't they?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/we-ll-meet-again-we-ll-meet-when-years-have-passed-and-years-make/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [It takes years to make an overnight success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-cantor/it-takes-years-to-make-an-overnight-success/) [Eddie Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-cantor/) > [A director, I forget who, told me that it takes 30 years to make an actor. And I believe that. You have to learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cillian-murphy/a-director-i-forget-who-told-me-that-it-takes-30-years-to-make-an/) [Cillian Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cillian-murphy/) > [“Taking five or ten or fifteen years to make an album, like Guns N’ Roses did, is just f\*\*king ridiculous, end of story. By…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozzy-osbourne/taking-five-or-ten-or-fifteen-years-to-make-an-album-like-guns-n/) [Ozzy Osbourne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozzy-osbourne/) ## More by Jean-Paul Sartre > [There is no human nature, since there is no god to conceive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/there-is-no-human-nature-since-there-is-no-god-to-conceive-it/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“she has suddenly emptied herself of me, and all other consciousness in the world has also emptied itself of me. It seems funny. Yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/she-has-suddenly-emptied-herself-of-me-and-all-other-consciousness-in/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [ \[Stéphane Mallarmé\] theory of the hermetic is a mistake, but he can be only difficult to read when he has difficult things to say. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/st-phane-mallarm-theory-of-the-hermetic-is-a-mistake-but-he-can-be/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [I can always choose, but I ought to know that if I do not choose, I am still choosing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/i-can-always-choose-but-i-ought-to-know-that-if-i-do-not-choose-i-am/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [When the rich wage war, it's the poor who die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/when-the-rich-wage-war-it-s-the-poor-who-die/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“She smiled. First I lost the memory of her eyes, then the memory of her long body. I kept her smile as long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/she-smiled-first-i-lost-the-memory-of-her-eyes-then-the-memory-of-her/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [Life is a useless passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/life-is-a-useless-passion/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [The more one is absorbed in fighting evil, the less one is tempted to place the good in question.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/the-more-one-is-absorbed-in-fighting-evil-the-less-one-is-tempted-to/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [This is what I thought: for the most banal even to become an adventure, you must (and this is enough) begin to recount it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/this-is-what-i-thought-for-the-most-banal-even-to-become-an-adventure/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“I am free: there is absolutely no more reason for living, all the ones I have tried have given way and I can’t imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/i-am-free-there-is-absolutely-no-more-reason-for-living-all-the-ones/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“If I am not mistaken, if all the signs which have been amassed are precursors of a new overthrow in my life, well then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/if-i-am-not-mistaken-if-all-the-signs-which-have-been-amassed-are/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“I want to leave, go to some place where I will be really in my own niche, where I will fit in. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/i-want-to-leave-go-to-some-place-where-i-will-be-really-in-my-own/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [...Uncalled-for aggression arouses the hatred of the civilian population...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/uncalled-for-aggression-arouses-the-hatred-of-the-civilian-population/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [The best work is not what is most difficult for you; it is what you do best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/the-best-work-is-not-what-is-most-difficult-for-you-it-is-what-you-do/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) [Explore all 728 Jean-Paul Sartre quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) ## More Differences quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) [Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Shortly after I turned 50, both Ted Turner and the AARP came into my life. The only difference? With AARP, there were benefits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/shortly-after-i-turned-50-both-ted-turner-and-the-aarp-came-into-my/) [Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/) > [It must be assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/) [Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/) > [The only regret I have in my career, is my managers wanted a big payday, and I wanted four or five more fights before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-cooney/the-only-regret-i-have-in-my-career-is-my-managers-wanted-a-big/) [Gerry Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-cooney/) > [There are those who open their hearts to others...who never think twice about giving of themselves. They are the wonderful warmhearted people who make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilda-radner/there-are-those-who-open-their-hearts-to-others-who-never-think-twice/) [Gilda Radner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilda-radner/) > [People forget that there is a big difference between coercion and persuasion. The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [A human being can only absorb a small amount of the mystical kundalini, you can be exposed again and again to it, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-human-being-can-only-absorb-a-small-amount-of-the-mystical/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [One of the most basic principles for making and keeping peace within and between nations. . . is that in political, military, moral, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/one-of-the-most-basic-principles-for-making-and-keeping-peace-within/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [When the President starts talking about something, it makes a difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-schumer/when-the-president-starts-talking-about-something-it-makes-a/) [Charles Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-schumer/) > [In a world shaped and colored more and more by politicians, the nations meet politically, and hardly any other way to settle their differences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-b-priestley/in-a-world-shaped-and-colored-more-and-more-by-politicians-the/) [J. B. Priestley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-b-priestley/) [Browse all 8,110 Differences quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Several hours or several years make no difference once you have lost eternity.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jean-Paul Sartre" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-difference-once-you-have-lost/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Differences" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-difference-once-you-have-lost/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/jean-paul-sartre-220_differences_several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-d_3015324.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Several hours or several years make no difference once you have lost eternity.” — Jean-Paul Sartre", "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": "Jean-Paul Sartre", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Several hours or several years make...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-difference-once-you-have-lost/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/several-hours-or-several-years-make-no-difference-once-you-have-lost/#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 } } ] } ```