--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Accurate reading on a wide range of…" description: "\"Accurate reading on a wide range of subjects makes the scholar; careful selection of the better makes the saint.\" — John of Salisbury" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/776/john-of-salisbury-36405_accurate_accurate-reading-on-a-wide-range-of-subj_1381482.jpg" --- # Accurate reading on a wide range of subjects makes the… ![“Accurate reading on a wide range of subjects makes the scholar; careful selection of the better makes the saint.” quote by John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/776/john-of-salisbury-36405_accurate_accurate-reading-on-a-wide-range-of-subj_1381482.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/776/john-of-salisbury-36405_accurate_accurate-reading-on-a-wide-range-of-subj_1381482.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/776/john-of-salisbury-36405_accurate_accurate-reading-on-a-wide-range-of-subj_1381482.jpg) > “Accurate reading on a wide range of subjects makes the scholar; careful selection of the better makes the saint.” [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Scholars gain knowledge broadly; saints achieve virtue through selective wisdom. **In simple terms:** Broad learning vs. selective wisdom. Key Takeaway Balance wide learning with focused virtue. Themes education virtue scholarship Mood thoughtful balanced Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - academic study - spiritual practice - personal development Key Concepts knowledge acquisition ethical refinement Questions to Reflect On - How do you choose which knowledge to prioritize? - Can broad learning coexist with deep virtue? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on selectivity may limit growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accurate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accurate/) [Accurate Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accurate-reading-4787859/) [Careful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/careful/) [Careful Selection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/careful-selection-4787858/) [Makes Scholar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/makes-scholar-376478/) [Range](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/range/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint/) [Scholar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholar/) [Scholar Careful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholar-careful-4787857/) [Selection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selection/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Wide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wide/) ## Related quotes > [If anyone makes himself his own master in the spiritual life, he makes himself scholar to a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-of-clairvaux/if-anyone-makes-himself-his-own-master-in-the-spiritual-life-he-makes/) [Bernard of Clairvaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-of-clairvaux/) > [It is an interesting fact about model selection that the evidence at hand can indicate that a model known to be false will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-sober/it-is-an-interesting-fact-about-model-selection-that-the-evidence-at/) [Elliott Sober](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-sober/) > [I have called this principle, by which each slight variation, if useful, is preserved, by the term Natural Selection, in order to mark its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-have-called-this-principle-by-which-each-slight-variation-if-useful-2/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I got snubbed about eight times for the Mid-Summer Classic, and I know what type of career I had, and I know that I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-thomas/i-got-snubbed-about-eight-times-for-the-mid-summer-classic-and-i-know/) [Frank Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-thomas/) > [Succession planning often results in the selection of a weaker representation of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/succession-planning-often-results-in-the-selection-of-a-weaker/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [An interview is about mutual selection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-ghosn/an-interview-is-about-mutual-selection/) [Caroline Ghosn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-ghosn/) > [The world is full of vulgar Purists, who bring discredit on all selection by the silliness of their choice; and this the more, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/the-world-is-full-of-vulgar-purists-who-bring-discredit-on-all/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Ultimately, of course, you must decide for yourself whether the subjective psychological effects created by your evolved cognitive biases reflect an objective reality, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-bering/ultimately-of-course-you-must-decide-for-yourself-whether-the/) [Jesse Bering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-bering/) > [As Mayor, I will fully support my Arts Commission and its professional selection committees so that they can commission a full range of public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/as-mayor-i-will-fully-support-my-arts-commission-and-its-professional/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [Zoocentrism is the primary fallacy of human sociobiology, for this view of human behavior rests on the argument that if the actions of "lower"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/zoocentrism-is-the-primary-fallacy-of-human-sociobiology-for-this/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [I believe in the theory of evolution, but I believe as well in the allegorical truth of creation theory. In other words, I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-langan/i-believe-in-the-theory-of-evolution-but-i-believe-as-well-in-the/) [Christopher Langan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-langan/) > [. . . by natural selection our mind has adapted itself to the conditions of the external world. It has adopted the geometry most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/by-natural-selection-our-mind-has-adapted-itself-to-the-conditions-of/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [The right to live does not connote the right of each man to reproduce his kind ... As we lessen the stringency of natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pearson/the-right-to-live-does-not-connote-the-right-of-each-man-to-reproduce/) [Karl Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pearson/) > [Design is not making beauty, beauty emerges from selection, affinities, integration, love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-kahn/design-is-not-making-beauty-beauty-emerges-from-selection-affinities/) [Louis Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-kahn/) ## More by John of Salisbury > [“The only sure road to truth is humility.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/the-only-sure-road-to-truth-is-humility/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [We are like dwarfs sitting on the shoulders of giants. We see more, and things that are more distant, than they did, not because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/we-are-like-dwarfs-sitting-on-the-shoulders-of-giants-we-see-more-and/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [Between a tyrant and a prince there is this single or chief difference, that the latter obeys the law and rules the people by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/between-a-tyrant-and-a-prince-there-is-this-single-or-chief/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [He who will not when he may, may not when he will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/he-who-will-not-when-he-may-may-not-when-he-will/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [The common people say, that physicians are the class of people who kill other men in the most polite and courteous manner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/the-common-people-say-that-physicians-are-the-class-of-people-who/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [Verily if with mine own eyes I had seen a priest of God, or any of those who wear the monastic garb, sinning, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/verily-if-with-mine-own-eyes-i-had-seen-a-priest-of-god-or-any-of/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [Just as the soul animates the body, so, in a way, meaning breathes life into a word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/just-as-the-soul-animates-the-body-so-in-a-way-meaning-breathes-life/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [A man is free in proportion to the measure of his virtues, and the extent to which he is free determines what his virtues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/a-man-is-free-in-proportion-to-the-measure-of-his-virtues-and-the/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [ Among all the liberal arts, the first is logic, and specifically that part of logic which gives initial instruction about words. ... \[T\]he word… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/among-all-the-liberal-arts-the-first-is-logic-and-specifically-that/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [Let him who is not come to logic be plagued with continuous and everlasting filth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/let-him-who-is-not-come-to-logic-be-plagued-with-continuous-and/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [Seeking is a necessary preliminary to finding, and one who cannot endure the hardship of inquiry cannot expect to harvest the fruit of knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/seeking-is-a-necessary-preliminary-to-finding-and-one-who-cannot/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > [“One who comprehends truth is wise, one who loves it good, one who orders his life in accordance with it happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/one-who-comprehends-truth-is-wise-one-who-loves-it-good-one-who/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) [Explore all 13 John of Salisbury quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) ## More Accurate quotes > [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... Prearranged surprises are rare and difficult because in order to plan one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-henri-jomini/the-surprise-of-an-army-is-now-next-to-an-impossibility-prearranged/) [Antoine-Henri Jomini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-henri-jomini/) > [In essence, I see the value of journalism as resting in a twofold mission: informing the public of accurate and vital information, and its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/in-essence-i-see-the-value-of-journalism-as-resting-in-a-twofold/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [I never think of things rationally or intellectually. 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'I am sure that Wren here wouldn't mind taking Lady Nore's castle and lands for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/madoc-makes-a-snorting-sound-then-turns-to-me-i-am-sure-that-wren/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [ He \[Groucho's father\] had absolutely no training, and if you had ever seen one of his suits, you'd realize what an accurate statement that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/he-groucho-s-father-had-absolutely-no-training-and-if-you-had-ever/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [... the attempt to render visual intricacy makes words feel unwieldy, like sacks of meaning that must be lugged into place, dragged here and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-doty/the-attempt-to-render-visual-intricacy-makes-words-feel-unwieldy-like/) [Mark Doty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-doty/) > [Not forgiving prolongs hurt and anger and leads to smoldering resentment, which will make us miserable until it kills us. Resentment destroys the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-walters/not-forgiving-prolongs-hurt-and-anger-and-leads-to-smoldering/) [Richard Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-walters/) > [Selfish hedonism is not a pejorative. It is a description - an exactly accurate description of what is involved in homosexual relations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/selfish-hedonism-is-not-a-pejorative-it-is-a-description-an-exactly/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [The western mantra is that Israel seeks negotiations without preconditions, while the Palestinians refuse. The opposite is more accurate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-western-mantra-is-that-israel-seeks-negotiations-without/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Love women! I hate feminism. "Hate" may be an accurate word, but too strong to use. 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