---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [T]o know means to reach the reality of…"
description: "\"[T]o know means to reach the reality of existing things[.]\" — Josef Pieper"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png"
---

#  \[T\]o know means to reach the reality of existing things\[.\]

![“[T]o know means to reach the reality of existing things[.]” quote by Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png)

> “\[T\]o know means to reach the reality of existing things\[.\]”

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

## About This Quote

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

Understanding reality requires recognizing the essence of things beyond appearances.

**In simple terms:** Know the true nature of things.

Key Takeaway

Seek deeper insight.

Themes

philosophy ontology knowledge

Mood

contemplative inquisitive

Type

aphilosophical reflective

When to use this quote

- academic study
- personal reflection
- spiritual practice

Key Concepts

essentialism phenomenology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you differentiate appearance from essence?
- What methods help you uncover true nature?

A Different Perspective

May overlook practical aspects of everyday life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/)

## Related quotes

> [Never let go of your dream. just keep your eyes on the prize and never let go until you reach the very top. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-let-go-of-your-dream-just-keep-your-eyes-on-the-prize-and-never/)

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

> [“Dream big! But not so big that it becomes a mess, and you may never reach reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasil-paudyal/dream-big-but-not-so-big-that-it-becomes-a-mess-and-you-may-never/)

Hasil Paudyal

> [I considered the case and realized that if something can exist in opinion without existing in reality, or exist in reality without existing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/machado-de-assis/i-considered-the-case-and-realized-that-if-something-can-exist-in/)

[Machado de Assis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/machado-de-assis/)

> [The sole "property" of matter with whose recognition philosophical materialism is bound up is the property of being an objective reality, of existing outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/the-sole-property-of-matter-with-whose-recognition-philosophical/)

[Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/)

> [“The future is an unseen reality existing within a faithful heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-e-kinney/the-future-is-an-unseen-reality-existing-within-a-faithful-heart/)

D.E. Kinney

> [When you remember me, it means you have carried something of who I am with you, that I have left some mark of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/when-you-remember-me-it-means-you-have-carried-something-of-who-i-am/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [“If you never try, you will never know what it means to succeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-ami/if-you-never-try-you-will-never-know-what-it-means-to-succeed/)

Belle Ami

> [“I do not know what it means to be okay. I have never known and maybe I will never know. Okay is just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-do-not-know-what-it-means-to-be-okay-i-have-never-known-and-maybe-i/)

[Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/)

> [I know what "nothing" means, and keep on playing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/i-know-what-nothing-means-and-keep-on-playing/)

[Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/)

> [And I wonder if you know What it means, what it means And I wonder if you know What it means to find your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/and-i-wonder-if-you-know-what-it-means-what-it-means-and-i-wonder-if/)

[Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/)

> [Do you know what it means when I text you first thing after I wake up? It means you were on my mind all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-you-know-what-it-means-when-i-text-you-first-thing-after-i-wake-up/)

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

> [Enlightenment doesn't mean you know anything. It doesn't mean you don't know anything. It means that you've returned to the source, consciously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightenment-doesn-t-mean-you-know-anything-it-doesn-t-mean-you-don/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [Give up? I don't know what that means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-pogba/give-up-i-don-t-know-what-that-means/)

[Paul Pogba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-pogba/)

> [“Birdie, this is for adults to figure out.” Birdie planted her feet where she stood. “I am an adult.” Walter shook his head. “You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-lynn-anderson/birdie-this-is-for-adults-to-figure-out-birdie-planted-her-feet-where/)

[Jodi Lynn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-lynn-anderson/)

> [“I hope I can never trust my wife. If I trust her it means I know her. If I know her it means I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-mitchell/i-hope-i-can-never-trust-my-wife-if-i-trust-her-it-means-i-know-her/)

[Ben Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-mitchell/)

## More by Josef Pieper

> [The delight we take in our senses is an implicit desire to know the ultimate reason for things, the highest cause. The desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-delight-we-take-in-our-senses-is-an-implicit-desire-to-know-the/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [“The vacancy left by absence of worship is filled by mere killing of time and by boredom, which is directly related to inability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-vacancy-left-by-absence-of-worship-is-filled-by-mere-killing-of/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [“Patience is not the indiscriminate acceptance of any sort of evil: "It is not the one who does not flee from evil who is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/patience-is-not-the-indiscriminate-acceptance-of-any-sort-of-evil-it/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Contemplation does not ignore the 'historical Gethsemane', does not ignore the mystery of evil, guilt and its bloody atonement. The happiness of contemplation is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/contemplation-does-not-ignore-the-historical-gethsemane-does-not/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Justice is a habit (habitus), whereby a man renders to each one his due with constant and perpetual will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/justice-is-a-habit-habitus-whereby-a-man-renders-to-each-one-his-due/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [The happy life does not mean loving what we possess, but possessing what we love." Possession of the beloved, St. Thomas holds, takes place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-happy-life-does-not-mean-loving-what-we-possess-but-possessing/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [The brave man uses wrath for his own act, above all in attack, 'for it is peculiar to wrath to pounce upon evil. Thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-brave-man-uses-wrath-for-his-own-act-above-all-in-attack-for-it/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is inspired by love. "Without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-that-word-contemplation-is/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Beauty, however, must here be understood in its original meaning: as the glow of the true and the good irradiating from every ordered state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/beauty-however-must-here-be-understood-in-its-original-meaning-as-the/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Unless we regain the art of silence and insight, the ability for nonactivity, unless we substitute true leisure for our hectic amusements, we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/unless-we-regain-the-art-of-silence-and-insight-the-ability-for/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [To be conscious of gratitude is to acknowledge a gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/to-be-conscious-of-gratitude-is-to-acknowledge-a-gift/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [If God really became incarnate, and if His Incarnation can with justice compel man to change his life,then we have no alternative but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/if-god-really-became-incarnate-and-if-his-incarnation-can-with/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Surrender to sensuality paralyzes the powers of the moral person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/surrender-to-sensuality-paralyzes-the-powers-of-the-moral-person/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Only those are called liberal or free which are concerned with knowledge; those which are concerned with utilitarian ends... are called servile...The question is...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/only-those-are-called-liberal-or-free-which-are-concerned-with/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [To celebrate a festival means: to live out, for some special occasion and in an uncommon manner, the universal assent to the world as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/to-celebrate-a-festival-means-to-live-out-for-some-special-occasion/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

[Explore all 60 Josef Pieper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

## More Know quotes

> [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/)

[Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/)

> [“To know someone, to be known. That matters more than he'd ever thought it would.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianna-baggott/to-know-someone-to-be-known-that-matters-more-than-he-d-ever-thought/)

[Julianna Baggott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianna-baggott/)

> [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/)

[Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/)

> [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/)

[Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/)

> [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/)

[Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/)

> [Don't get too attached to someone you know you can't be together with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/don-t-get-too-attached-to-someone-you-know-you-can-t-be-together-with/)

[Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/)

> [I know what you're thinking... and you oughtta be ashamed of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-preston/i-know-what-you-re-thinking-and-you-oughtta-be-ashamed-of-yourself/)

Robert Preston

> [I would have done well as a gypsy child, I think. A circus baby. I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/i-would-have-done-well-as-a-gypsy-child-i-think-a-circus-baby-i/)

[Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/)

> [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/)

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

> [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/)

[Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/)

> [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/)

[Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/)

> [“Take your time to find and understand what you don’t know and in the end, you shall know that it is not all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-agyemang-yeboah/take-your-time-to-find-and-understand-what-you-don-t-know-and-in-the/)

[Ernest Agyemang Yeboah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-agyemang-yeboah/)

> [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/)

[Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/)

Browse all 22,299 Know quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "[T]o know means to reach the reality of existing things[.]",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Josef Pieper"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-existing-things/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Know"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-existing-things/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8a/josef-pieper-11414_know_t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-e_3179978.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“[T]o know means to reach the reality of existing things[.]” — Josef Pieper",
                "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": "Josef Pieper",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "[T]o know means to reach the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-existing-things/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/t-o-know-means-to-reach-the-reality-of-existing-things/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```