---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...for there is nothing mysterious to a…"
description: "\"...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence...\" — Joseph Conrad"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg"
---

#  ...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it…

![“...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence...” quote by Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg)

> “...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence...”

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

## About This Quote

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

A sailor’s only true mystery is the sea, which dominates his life.

**In simple terms:** The sea is the sailor’s ultimate unknown.

Key Takeaway

Respect nature’s power.

Themes

sea mystery human nature existence

Mood

contemplative poetic

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- sailing
- exploration
- storytelling
- philosophical reflection

Key Concepts

theism the unknown existentialism

Questions to Reflect On

- What does the sea symbolize for you?
- How do we confront the unknowable?

A Different Perspective

Human perception often projects mystery onto the unknown.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Mistress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistress/) [Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) [Mysterious Seaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious-seaman-1222156/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Sea Mistress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea-mistress-1222158/) [Seaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seaman/) [Seaman Unless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seaman-unless-1222157/)

## Related quotes

> [“there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence and as inscrutable as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea-itself/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [One ship is very much like another and the sea is always the same. In the immutability of their surroundings the foreign shores, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/one-ship-is-very-much-like-another-and-the-sea-is-always-the-same-in/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea-2/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“He was a seaman, but he was a wanderer, too, while most seamen lead, if one may so express it, a sedentary life. Their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/he-was-a-seaman-but-he-was-a-wanderer-too-while-most-seamen-lead-if/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“(about sailors) Their minds are of the stay-at-home order, and their home is always with them - the ship; and so is their country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/about-sailors-their-minds-are-of-the-stay-at-home-order-and-their/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“After all, for a seaman, to scrape the bottom of the thing that's supposed to float all the time under his care is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/after-all-for-a-seaman-to-scrape-the-bottom-of-the-thing-that-s/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [I do not know whether I have been a good seaman, but I know I have been a very faithful one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/i-do-not-know-whether-i-have-been-a-good-seaman-but-i-know-i-have/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [The humblest craft that floats makes its appeal to a seaman by the faithfulness of her life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-humblest-craft-that-floats-makes-its-appeal-to-a-seaman-by-the/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [Recollect that you must be a seaman to be an officer and also that you cannot be a good officer without being a gentleman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horatio-nelson/recollect-that-you-must-be-a-seaman-to-be-an-officer-and-also-that/)

[Horatio Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horatio-nelson/)

> [The seaman tells stories of winds, the ploughman of bulls; the soldier details his wounds, the shepherd his sheep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/the-seaman-tells-stories-of-winds-the-ploughman-of-bulls-the-soldier/)

[Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/)

> [“If ever a seaman wanted drugs, it’s me,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/if-ever-a-seaman-wanted-drugs-it-s-me/)

[Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/)

> [“The Seaman’s Practice,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-seaman-s-practice/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [“Darby, sir, but Janus they call me,” the seaman said, “on account of a surgeon we shipped in the Sophie , a learned bloke,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-novik/darby-sir-but-janus-they-call-me-the-seaman-said-on-account-of-a/)

[Naomi Novik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-novik/)

> [That Seaman is a handsome young man but he spends too much time looking in his mirror rather than at the ball. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-clough/that-seaman-is-a-handsome-young-man-but-he-spends-too-much-time/)

[Brian Clough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-clough/)

> [And Seaman, just like a falling oak, manages to change direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-motson/and-seaman-just-like-a-falling-oak-manages-to-change-direction/)

[John Motson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-motson/)

## More by Joseph Conrad

> [“Hunters for gold or pursuers of fame, they all had gone out on that stream, bearing the sword, and often the torch, messengers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/hunters-for-gold-or-pursuers-of-fame-they-all-had-gone-out-on-that/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [The good author is he who contemplates without marked joy or excessive sorrow the adventures of his soul amongst criticisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-good-author-is-he-who-contemplates-without-marked-joy-or/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“Let the earth and the sea each have its own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/let-the-earth-and-the-sea-each-have-its-own/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [He hated all this, and somehow he couldn't get away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/he-hated-all-this-and-somehow-he-couldn-t-get-away/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“A fool, what with sheer fright and fine sentiments, is always safe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/a-fool-what-with-sheer-fright-and-fine-sentiments-is-always-safe/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“The mind of man is capable of anything-because everything is in it, all the past as well as all the future. What was there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-mind-of-man-is-capable-of-anything-because-everything-is-in-it/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [Few men realize that their life, the very essence of their character, their capabilities and their audacities, are only the expression of their belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/few-men-realize-that-their-life-the-very-essence-of-their-character/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“Perhaps on some quiet night the tremor of far-off drums, sinking, swelling, a tremor vast, faint; a sound weird, appealing, suggestive and wild -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/perhaps-on-some-quiet-night-the-tremor-of-far-off-drums-sinking/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“All that mysterious life of the wilderness that stirs in the forest, in the jungles, in the hearts of wild men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/all-that-mysterious-life-of-the-wilderness-that-stirs-in-the-forest/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“The fascination of the abomination—you know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-fascination-of-the-abomination-you-know/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [It's only those who do nothing that make no mistakes, I suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/it-s-only-those-who-do-nothing-that-make-no-mistakes-i-suppose/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [“Thieving was not a sheer absurdity. It was a form of human industry, perverse indeed, but still an industry exercised in an industrious world;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/thieving-was-not-a-sheer-absurdity-it-was-a-form-of-human-industry/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [I found myself back in the sepulchral city resenting the sight of people hurrying through the streets to filch a little money from each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/i-found-myself-back-in-the-sepulchral-city-resenting-the-sight-of/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [Society was calling to its accomplished child to come, to be taken care of, to be instructed, to be judged, to be condemned; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/society-was-calling-to-its-accomplished-child-to-come-to-be-taken/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [I was constantly watching myself, my secret self, as dependent on my actions as my own personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/i-was-constantly-watching-myself-my-secret-self-as-dependent-on-my/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

[Explore all 645 Joseph Conrad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

## More Existence quotes

> [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/)

[John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/)

> [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

> [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/)

[Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/)

> [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/)

[Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/)

> [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/)

[Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/)

> [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/)

[Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/)

> [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/)

[L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/)

> [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [Universities are the cathedrals of the modern age. They shouldn't have to justify their existence by utilitarian criteria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lodge/universities-are-the-cathedrals-of-the-modern-age-they-shouldn-t-have/)

[David Lodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lodge/)

> [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/)

[Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/)

> [To divide one's life by years is of course to tumble into a trap set by our own arithmetic. The calendar consents to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-divide-one-s-life-by-years-is-of-course-to-tumble-into-a-trap-set/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

[Browse all 7,646 Existence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence...",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Joseph Conrad"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Existence"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/932/joseph-conrad-336_existence_for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-sea_898981.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his…” — Joseph Conrad",
                "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": "Joseph Conrad",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "...for there is nothing mysterious to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/for-there-is-nothing-mysterious-to-a-seaman-unless-it-be-the-sea/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
