---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge…"
description: "\"Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.\" — John Ruskin"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg"
---

#  Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us…

![“Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.” quote by John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg)

> “Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.”

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

## About This Quote

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

When knowledge becomes personal, it loses its novelty and excitement, turning into a familiar routine.

**In simple terms:** Personal knowledge loses its thrill.

Key Takeaway

Seek fresh perspectives to revive curiosity.

Themes

learning personal growth novelty

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- education
- self‑improvement
- career development
- creative projects

Key Concepts

knowledge saturation intellectual fatigue

Questions to Reflect On

- What new area could you explore?
- How can you make familiar knowledge exciting again?

A Different Perspective

Over‑familiarity can breed complacency.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/)

## Related quotes

> [Once thoroughly our own knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/once-thoroughly-our-own-knowledge-ceases-to-give-us-pleasure/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [Every new discovery is assumed at once into the sum total of knowledge, and with that ceases in a sense to be a discovery;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/every-new-discovery-is-assumed-at-once-into-the-sum-total-of/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [The pleasure that is granted to me from a sense of duty ceases to be a pleasure at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-pleasure-that-is-granted-to-me-from-a-sense-of-duty-ceases-to-be/)

[Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/)

> [Take from the philosopher the pleasure of being heard and his desire for knowledge ceases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/take-from-the-philosopher-the-pleasure-of-being-heard-and-his-desire/)

[Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/)

> [“When self-knowledge is realized, all worldly knowledge ceases to exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shiva-negi/when-self-knowledge-is-realized-all-worldly-knowledge-ceases-to-exist/)

[Shiva Negi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shiva-negi/)

> [“as George Eliot has wisely observed. Pleasure ceases to be pleasure when we attain to it; another sort of pleasure displays itself to tempt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/as-george-eliot-has-wisely-observed-pleasure-ceases-to-be-pleasure/)

[Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/)

> [Love ceases to be a pleasure, when it ceases to be a secret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aphra-behn/love-ceases-to-be-a-pleasure-when-it-ceases-to-be-a-secret/)

[Aphra Behn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aphra-behn/)

> [Man wants to know, and when he ceases to do so, he is no longer a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fridtjof-nansen/man-wants-to-know-and-when-he-ceases-to-do-so-he-is-no-longer-a-man/)

[Fridtjof Nansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fridtjof-nansen/)

> [Sometimes, quite out of the blue, sport will throw up a tender moment, when hostility ceases and an opponent is acknowledged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harsha-bhogle/sometimes-quite-out-of-the-blue-sport-will-throw-up-a-tender-moment/)

[Harsha Bhogle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harsha-bhogle/)

> [He who ceases to learn cannot adequately teach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-bachelard/he-who-ceases-to-learn-cannot-adequately-teach/)

[Gaston Bachelard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-bachelard/)

> [He who ceases to be better, ceases to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-cromwell/he-who-ceases-to-be-better-ceases-to-be-good/)

[Oliver Cromwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-cromwell/)

> [Verona is a very beautiful city, but Siena just never ceases to fascinate me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-fortier/verona-is-a-very-beautiful-city-but-siena-just-never-ceases-to/)

[Anne Fortier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-fortier/)

> [He who ceases to pray ceases to prosper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gurney-benham/he-who-ceases-to-pray-ceases-to-prosper/)

[William Gurney Benham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gurney-benham/)

> [I have cut four albums so far, and all of them have been trendsetters and commercially successful. I believe that once you start taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-kher/i-have-cut-four-albums-so-far-and-all-of-them-have-been-trendsetters/)

[Kailash Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-kher/)

> [Who ceases to be a friend never was one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greek-proverb/who-ceases-to-be-a-friend-never-was-one/)

Greek Proverb

## More by John Ruskin

> [“Occult Theft,--Theft which hides itself even from itself, and is legal, respectable, and cowardly,--corrupts the body and soul of man, to the last fibre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/occult-theft-theft-which-hides-itself-even-from-itself-and-is-legal/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [Mighty of heart, mighty of mind, magnanimous-to be this is indeed to be great in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/mighty-of-heart-mighty-of-mind-magnanimous-to-be-this-is-indeed-to-be/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [Life is a magic vase filled to the brim, so made that you cannot dip from it nor draw from it; but it overflows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/life-is-a-magic-vase-filled-to-the-brim-so-made-that-you-cannot-dip/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [As in the instances of alchemy, astrology, witchcraft, and other such popular creeds, political economy, has a plausible idea at the root of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/as-in-the-instances-of-alchemy-astrology-witchcraft-and-other-such/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [I am far more provoked at being thought foolish by foolish people, than pleased at being thought sensible by sensible people; and the average…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/i-am-far-more-provoked-at-being-thought-foolish-by-foolish-people/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [When we build ... let it not be for present delights nor for present use alone. Let it be such work as our descendants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/when-we-build-let-it-not-be-for-present-delights-nor-for-present-use/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [It is far more difficult to be simple than to be complicated; far more difficult to sacrifice skill and easy execution in the proper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/it-is-far-more-difficult-to-be-simple-than-to-be-complicated-far-more/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [It is a good and safe rule to sojourn in every place as if you meant to spend your life there, never omitting an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/it-is-a-good-and-safe-rule-to-sojourn-in-every-place-as-if-you-meant/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [“You may trust to the truth of my sympathy; but you must remember that I am engaged in the investigation of enormous religious and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/you-may-trust-to-the-truth-of-my-sympathy-but-you-must-remember-that/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [And remember, child, that nothing is ever done beautifully, which is done in rivalship; or nobly, which is done in pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/and-remember-child-that-nothing-is-ever-done-beautifully-which-is/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [It’s unwise to pay too much, but it’s worse to pay too little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/it-s-unwise-to-pay-too-much-but-it-s-worse-to-pay-too-little/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [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/)

> [Like other beautiful things in this world, its end (that of a shaft) is to be beautiful; and, in proportion to its beauty, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/like-other-beautiful-things-in-this-world-its-end-that-of-a-shaft-is/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [All are to be men of genius in their degree,--rivulets or rivers, it does not matter, so that the souls be clear and pure;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/all-are-to-be-men-of-genius-in-their-degree-rivulets-or-rivers-it/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [The art of drawing which is of more real importance to the human race than that of writing...should be taught to every child just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/the-art-of-drawing-which-is-of-more-real-importance-to-the-human-race/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

[Explore all 696 John Ruskin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

## More Cease quotes

> [So long as we fear the outside world, we must cease to think of Swaraj.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/so-long-as-we-fear-the-outside-world-we-must-cease-to-think-of-swaraj/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [In the name of Jerusalem. If I forget the extermination of the Jews, may my right hand wither, may my tongue stick to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/menachem-begin/in-the-name-of-jerusalem-if-i-forget-the-extermination-of-the-jews/)

[Menachem Begin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/menachem-begin/)

> [But if you will recall the history of our civil troubles, you will see half the nation bathe itself, out of piety, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/but-if-you-will-recall-the-history-of-our-civil-troubles-you-will-see/)

[Denis Diderot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-diderot/)

> [Metallica's the only band i've ever been in. I'm not sure that when it ends in five, ten years, I'm going to put an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/metallica-s-the-only-band-i-ve-ever-been-in-i-m-not-sure-that-when-it/)

[Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/)

> [Cease speaking of enemies when an achievement can kindle a great light. Solitude will transmit the message better than the murmurs of crowds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-roerich/cease-speaking-of-enemies-when-an-achievement-can-kindle-a-great/)

Nicholas Roerich

> [Without a function, we cease to be. So, I will write till I die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farley-mowat/without-a-function-we-cease-to-be-so-i-will-write-till-i-die/)

[Farley Mowat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farley-mowat/)

> [We have won an armistice on a single battlefield, not peace in our world. We may not now relax our guard nor cease our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/we-have-won-an-armistice-on-a-single-battlefield-not-peace-in-our/)

[Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/)

> [My child, seek those things which make for peace. Cease to stir up the King against the Church, and urge upon him a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-child-seek-those-things-which-make-for-peace-cease-to-stir-up-the/)

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

> [To write is to make oneself the echo of what cannot cease speaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/to-write-is-to-make-oneself-the-echo-of-what-cannot-cease-speaking/)

[Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/)

> [Were the life of man prolonged, he would become such a proficient in villainy, that it would become necessary again to drown or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/were-the-life-of-man-prolonged-he-would-become-such-a-proficient-in/)

[Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/)

> [When fear ceases to scare you, it cannot stay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/when-fear-ceases-to-scare-you-it-cannot-stay/)

[Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/)

> [We may argue eloquently that 'Honesty is the best Policy' - unfortunately, the moment honesty is adopted for the sake of policy it mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/we-may-argue-eloquently-that-honesty-is-the-best-policy-unfortunately/)

[Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/)

> [He who ceases to pray ceases to prosper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gurney-benham/he-who-ceases-to-pray-ceases-to-prosper/)

[William Gurney Benham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gurney-benham/)

> [For we must share, if we would keep, that blessing from above; ceasing to give, we cease to have; such is the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-chenevix-trench/for-we-must-share-if-we-would-keep-that-blessing-from-above-ceasing/)

[Richard Chenevix Trench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-chenevix-trench/)

> [When men are unhappy, they do not imagine they can ever cease to be so; and when some calamity has fallen on them, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/when-men-are-unhappy-they-do-not-imagine-they-can-ever-cease-to-be-so/)

[Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/)

Browse all 1,358 Cease quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Ruskin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ceases-to-give-us-pleasure/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cease"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ceases-to-give-us-pleasure/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/john-ruskin-314_cease_once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ce_3043407.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge ceases to give us pleasure.” — John Ruskin",
                "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": "John Ruskin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Once thoroughly our own, the knowledge...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ceases-to-give-us-pleasure/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/once-thoroughly-our-own-the-knowledge-ceases-to-give-us-pleasure/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
