--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The human being is a surprisingly…" description: "\"The human being is a surprisingly resilient organism. We are impelled toward health not sickness. Your spirit, as surely as your body, will try to heal..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kent-nerburn-10008_body_the-human-being-is-a-surprisingly-resili_2473520.jpg" --- # The human being is a surprisingly resilient organism. We… ![“The human being is a surprisingly resilient organism. We are impelled toward health not sickness. Your spirit, as surely as your body, will try to heal…So you should not fear tragedy and suffering. Like love, they make you more a part of the human family. From them can come your greatest…” quote by Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kent-nerburn-10008_body_the-human-being-is-a-surprisingly-resili_2473520.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kent-nerburn-10008_body_the-human-being-is-a-surprisingly-resili_2473520.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kent-nerburn-10008_body_the-human-being-is-a-surprisingly-resili_2473520.jpg) > “The human being is a surprisingly resilient organism. We are impelled toward health not sickness. Your spirit, as surely as your body, will try to heal…So you should not fear tragedy and suffering. Like love, they make you more a part of the human family. From them can come your greatest creativity. They are the fire that burns you pure.” [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human resilience drives us toward health; tragedy and love deepen our humanity and spark creativity, purifying us like fire. **In simple terms:** Resilience and suffering fuel growth and creativity. Key Takeaway Allow hardship to inspire creative expression. Themes resilience creativity healing Mood hopeful introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - artistic work - personal recovery - community building Key Concepts human nature psychology spirituality Questions to Reflect On - How can you transform pain into art? - What practices support healing after loss? A Different Perspective Suffering can also cause lasting trauma. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Fire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fire/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Human family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-family/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Resilient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resilient/) [Sickness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sickness/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Tragedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragedy/) ## Related quotes > [Addiction is perhaps a sickness of the spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osamu-dazai/addiction-is-perhaps-a-sickness-of-the-spirit/) [Osamu Dazai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osamu-dazai/) > [“Just as a physician might say that there very likely is not one single living human being who is completely healthy, so anyone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ren-kierkegaard/just-as-a-physician-might-say-that-there-very-likely-is-not-one/) [Søren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ren-kierkegaard/) > [Mystery has great power. In the many years I have worked with people with cancer, I have seen Mystery comfort people when nothing else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/mystery-has-great-power-in-the-many-years-i-have-worked-with-people/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [Crawling in my skin, these wounds, they will not heal. Fear is how I fall; confusing what is real. There's something inside me that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linkin-park/crawling-in-my-skin-these-wounds-they-will-not-heal-fear-is-how-i/) [Linkin Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linkin-park/) > [It's been a very strong force for me over the years. I don't know exactly why. For some people, fear can be a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-harding/it-s-been-a-very-strong-force-for-me-over-the-years-i-don-t-know/) [Aldous Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-harding/) > [World Refugee Day is a reminder that there is no 'us' and 'them.' There is only us, one human family, connected in ways we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-curry/world-refugee-day-is-a-reminder-that-there-is-no-us-and-them-there-is/) [Ann Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-curry/) > [When the state executes a member of the human family, it declares that person worthless, without possibility of redemption. As Christians, we believe this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-davidson/when-the-state-executes-a-member-of-the-human-family-it-declares-that/) [Doug Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-davidson/) > [Sometimes I think that idlers seem to be a special class for whom nothing can be planned, plead as one will with them -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/sometimes-i-think-that-idlers-seem-to-be-a-special-class-for-whom/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [Nuclear weapons are the scourge of the earth; to mine for them, manufacture them, deploy them, use them, is a curse against God, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-berrigan/nuclear-weapons-are-the-scourge-of-the-earth-to-mine-for-them/) [Philip Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-berrigan/) > [All my family, my blood, is mixed up now. They don't even all know each other. I just hope they don't never hate or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-california-cooper/all-my-family-my-blood-is-mixed-up-now-they-don-t-even-all-know-each/) [J. California Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-california-cooper/) > [I am neither Jew nor Gentile, Mahomedan nor Theist; I am but a member of the human family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-wright/i-am-neither-jew-nor-gentile-mahomedan-nor-theist-i-am-but-a-member/) [Frances Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-wright/) > [We as a human family are on this train that is taking us into more and more war and more and more abuse of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mairead-corrigan/we-as-a-human-family-are-on-this-train-that-is-taking-us-into-more/) [Mairead Corrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mairead-corrigan/) > [One's own self-worth is tied to the worth of the community to which one belongs, which is intimately connected to humanity in general. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/one-s-own-self-worth-is-tied-to-the-worth-of-the-community-to-which/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [“It can be helpful to think of humanity like a pearl necklace. Each human being is a pearl with distinct characteristics, but underneath there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gudjon-bergmann/it-can-be-helpful-to-think-of-humanity-like-a-pearl-necklace-each/) [Gudjon Bergmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gudjon-bergmann/) > [But whatever be their degree of talent it is no measure of their rights. Because Sir Isaac Newton was superior to others in understanding,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/but-whatever-be-their-degree-of-talent-it-is-no-measure-of-their/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More by Kent Nerburn > [We may not all live holy lives, but we live in a world alive with holy moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/we-may-not-all-live-holy-lives-but-we-live-in-a-world-alive-with-holy/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/remember-to-be-gentle-with-yourself-and-others-we-are-all-children-of/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [“In some corner of your life, you know more about something than anyone else on earth. The true measure of your education is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/in-some-corner-of-your-life-you-know-more-about-something-than-anyone/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [We live in a world alive with holy moments. We need only take the time to bring these moments into the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/we-live-in-a-world-alive-with-holy-moments-we-need-only-take-the-time/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance, and none can say while some fields will blossom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/remember-to-be-gentle-with-yourself-and-others-we-are-all-children-of-2/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [...Good leaders wait to be called and they give up their power when they are no longer needed. Selfish men and fools put themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/good-leaders-wait-to-be-called-and-they-give-up-their-power-when-they/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [We wake up one day and find we have lost our dreams in order to protect our days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/we-wake-up-one-day-and-find-we-have-lost-our-dreams-in-order-to/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [“What is needed is only a pausing of the heart so the spirit can take wing and be lifted toward the infinite.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/what-is-needed-is-only-a-pausing-of-the-heart-so-the-spirit-can-take/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [It is not our task to judge the worthiness of our path; it is our task to walk our path with worthiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/it-is-not-our-task-to-judge-the-worthiness-of-our-path-it-is-our-task/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [“You destroyed it with crosses and diseases and whiskey and guns.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/you-destroyed-it-with-crosses-and-diseases-and-whiskey-and-guns/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [When you are here, you are here. When you are gone, you are gone. It isn't a problem to be gone, so long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/when-you-are-here-you-are-here-when-you-are-gone-you-are-gone-it-isn/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [We measure our presence in generations; we cannot dig down ten thousand years and find our bones. Our arrival is scribed upon the line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/we-measure-our-presence-in-generations-we-cannot-dig-down-ten/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [“Now is the moment when I must pause and lift my heart — now, before the day fragments and my consciousness shatters into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/now-is-the-moment-when-i-must-pause-and-lift-my-heart-now-before-the/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [When all the words have been written, and all the phrases have been spoken, the great mystery of life will still remain. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/when-all-the-words-have-been-written-and-all-the-phrases-have-been/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [“Loneliness is like sitting in an empty room and being aware of the space around you. It is a condition of separateness. Solitude is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/loneliness-is-like-sitting-in-an-empty-room-and-being-aware-of-the/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) [Explore all 68 Kent Nerburn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [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/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. 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My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The human being is a surprisingly resilient organism. We are impelled toward health not sickness. Your spirit, as surely as your body, will try to heal…So you should not fear tragedy and suffering. Like love, they make you more a part of the human family. 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