--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Life is an operation which is done in a…" description: "\"Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. One lives toward the future, because to live consists inexorably in doing, in each individua..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg" --- # Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction… ![“Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. One lives toward the future, because to live consists inexorably in doing, in each individual life making itself.” quote by Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg) > “Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. One lives toward the future, because to live consists inexorably in doing, in each individual life making itself.” [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life moves forward through purposeful action; existence is defined by continual doing. **In simple terms:** Life is forward‑moving action. Key Takeaway Act purposefully toward future goals. Themes purpose action future Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career planning - creative projects - daily routines Key Concepts existentialism philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What actions define your life? - How do you ensure they align with your purpose? A Different Perspective Action without reflection can be aimless. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Direction Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/direction-lives-636150/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Individual life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Operation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-operation-1249555/) [Lives Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives-future-1249556/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. The past will not tell us what we ought to do, but what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-mamerto/life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a-forward-direction-the-past/) [Edwin Mamerto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-mamerto/) > [Small events and choices determine the direction of our lives just as small helms determine the directions of great ships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-russell-ballard/small-events-and-choices-determine-the-direction-of-our-lives-just-as/) [M. Russell Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-russell-ballard/) > [We carry within ourselves the direction our lives will take. Within ourselves burn the timeless, fateful stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antal-szerb/we-carry-within-ourselves-the-direction-our-lives-will-take-within/) [Antal Szerb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antal-szerb/) > [Our words set the direction for our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/our-words-set-the-direction-for-our-lives/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [“Like the sun in the heavens or the Prodigal Son in the Gospel, we must all at some point stop before we can reverse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brother-robert/like-the-sun-in-the-heavens-or-the-prodigal-son-in-the-gospel-we-must/) [Brother Robert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brother-robert/) > [If a man carefully examine his thoughts he will be surprised to find how much he lives in the future. His well-being is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-a-man-carefully-examine-his-thoughts-he-will-be-surprised-to-find/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Like the wild beasts, she lives without a future. She inhabits only the present tense, a fugue of the continuous, a world of sensual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/like-the-wild-beasts-she-lives-without-a-future-she-inhabits-only-the/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [“Our lives and the lives of future generations do not only depend on the conflicts that take place, but also on the solutions we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/widad-akreyi/our-lives-and-the-lives-of-future-generations-do-not-only-depend-on/) [Widad Akreyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/widad-akreyi/) > [Taurus looks only towards the future and lives only for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/taurus-looks-only-towards-the-future-and-lives-only-for-the-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The truly important people in our lives are always in our future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-baratono/the-truly-important-people-in-our-lives-are-always-in-our-future/) [Ron Baratono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-baratono/) > [No I'm nt SinGle I'm in a long DisTnce RealtnShip bcoz mY GF lives in FuTure!!!!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arkay/no-i-m-nt-single-i-m-in-a-long-distnce-realtnship-bcoz-my-gf-lives-in/) [Arkay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arkay/) > [“The oldest thing of all is the present, because there's never been anything else but present. No one has ever lived in the past,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mulisch/the-oldest-thing-of-all-is-the-present-because-there-s-never-been/) [Harry Mulisch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mulisch/) > [As youth lives in the future, so the adult lives in the past: No one rightly knows how to live in the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/as-youth-lives-in-the-future-so-the-adult-lives-in-the-past-no-one/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [Beliefs constitute the basic stratum, that which lies deepest, in the architecture of our life. By them we live, and by the same token…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/beliefs-constitute-the-basic-stratum-that-which-lies-deepest-in-the/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## More by Jose Ortega y Gasset > [It would be a piece of ingenuousness to accuse the man of today of his lack of moral code. The accusation would leave him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/it-would-be-a-piece-of-ingenuousness-to-accuse-the-man-of-today-of/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [In these years we are witnessing the gigantic spectacle of innumerable human lives wandering about lost in their own labyrinths, through not having anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/in-these-years-we-are-witnessing-the-gigantic-spectacle-of/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [In order to master the unruly torrent of life the learned man meditates, the poet quivers, and the political hero erects the fortress of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/in-order-to-master-the-unruly-torrent-of-life-the-learned-man/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [The common man, finding himself in a world so excellent, technically and socially, believes it has been produced by nature, and never thinks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-common-man-finding-himself-in-a-world-so-excellent-technically/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Barbarism is the absence of standards to which appeal can be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/barbarism-is-the-absence-of-standards-to-which-appeal-can-be-made/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [The form most contradictory to human life that can appear among the human species is the "self-sat-isfied man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-form-most-contradictory-to-human-life-that-can-appear-among-the/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [“For there is no doubt that the most radical division that is possible to make of humanity is that which splits into two classes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/for-there-is-no-doubt-that-the-most-radical-division-that-is-possible/) [José Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [What makes a nation great is not primarily its great men, but the stature of its innumerable mediocre ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/what-makes-a-nation-great-is-not-primarily-its-great-men-but-the/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [To be surprised, to wonder, is to begin to understand. This is the sport, the luxury, special to the intellectual man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/to-be-surprised-to-wonder-is-to-begin-to-understand-this-is-the-sport/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Romantic poses aside, let us recognize that "falling in love"...is an inferior state of mind, a form of transitory imbecility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/romantic-poses-aside-let-us-recognize-that-falling-in-love-is-an/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Law is born from despair of human nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/law-is-born-from-despair-of-human-nature/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [The masses think that is is easy to flee from reality, when it is the most difficult thing in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-masses-think-that-is-is-easy-to-flee-from-reality-when-it-is-the/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [The librarian's mission should be, not like up to now, a mere handling of the book as an object, but rather a know how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-librarian-s-mission-should-be-not-like-up-to-now-a-mere-handling/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Whether he be an original or a plagiarist, man is the novelist of himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/whether-he-be-an-original-or-a-plagiarist-man-is-the-novelist-of/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [Here, then, is the point at which I see the new mission of the librarian rise up incomparably higher than all those preceding. Up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/here-then-is-the-point-at-which-i-see-the-new-mission-of-the/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) [Explore all 204 Jose Ortega y Gasset quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) ## More Done quotes > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [Usually male directors have to use foul language to get the job done. But I never came down to that level as being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-khosla-kumar/usually-male-directors-have-to-use-foul-language-to-get-the-job-done/) [Divya Khosla Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-khosla-kumar/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Forcing modern speakers of English to not - whoops, not to split an infinitive because it isn't done in Latin makes about as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/forcing-modern-speakers-of-english-to-not-whoops-not-to-split-an/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [Against his own will, almost, Will felt himself understanding; he would have done anything, he thought, told any lie, taken any risk, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/against-his-own-will-almost-will-felt-himself-understanding-he-would/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/) [Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's just a chore, like any other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua/i-don-t-enjoy-killing-but-when-done-righteously-it-s-just-a-chore/) [Joshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua/) > [Of everything I have done, 'The Archers' always gets the most excitement; there's a sort of uncontrollable joy from fans of the program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/of-everything-i-have-done-the-archers-always-gets-the-most-excitement/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) [Browse all 25,653 Done quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. One lives toward the future, because to live consists inexorably in doing, in each individual life making itself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jose Ortega y Gasset" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a-forward-direction-one-lives/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Done" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a-forward-direction-one-lives/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/jose-ortega-y-gasset-1688_done_life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a_901935.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Life is an operation which is done in a forward direction. One lives toward the future, because to live…” — Jose Ortega y Gasset", "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": "Jose Ortega y Gasset", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Life is an operation which is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a-forward-direction-one-lives/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/life-is-an-operation-which-is-done-in-a-forward-direction-one-lives/#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 } } ] } ```