--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Existence is beyond the power of words To…" description: "\"“Existence is beyond the power of words To define: Terms may be used But are none of them absolute. In the beginning of heaven and earth there were no ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/765/lao-tzu-624_existence_existence-is-beyond-the-power-of-words-t_2339206.jpg" --- # Existence is beyond the power of words To define: Terms… ![“Existence is beyond the power of words To define: Terms may be used But are none of them absolute. In the beginning of heaven and earth there were no words, Words came out of the womb of matter; And whether a man dispassionately Sees to the core of life Or passionately Sees the surface, The core…” quote by Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/765/lao-tzu-624_existence_existence-is-beyond-the-power-of-words-t_2339206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/765/lao-tzu-624_existence_existence-is-beyond-the-power-of-words-t_2339206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/765/lao-tzu-624_existence_existence-is-beyond-the-power-of-words-t_2339206.jpg) > ““Existence is beyond the power of words To define: Terms may be used But are none of them absolute. In the beginning of heaven and earth there were no words, Words came out of the womb of matter; And whether a man dispassionately Sees to the core of life Or passionately Sees the surface, The core and the surface Are essentially the same, Words making them seem different Only to express appearance. If name be needed, wonder names them both: From wonder into wonder Existence opens.”” [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that language cannot fully capture reality; words are limited tools that create apparent distinctions between deeper unity and surface appearances. **In simple terms:** Words are limited in describing true existence. Key Takeaway Recognize the limits of language and seek direct experience. Themes philosophy language perception unity duality Mood contemplative reflective Type philosophical poetic When to use this quote - Meditation - artistic creation - scientific inquiry - spiritual practice Key Concepts Taoism semantic limitation ontological unity Questions to Reflect On - How do you experience reality beyond words? - When do words obscure rather than clarify? A Different Perspective Language may mislead by imposing false separations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Heaven and earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven-and-earth/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Power of words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-of-words/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [Existence is beyond the power of words to define: Terms may be used But are none of them absolute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/witter-bynner/existence-is-beyond-the-power-of-words-to-define-terms-may-be-used-2/) [Witter Bynner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/witter-bynner/) > [Magic is a sudden opening of the mind to the wonder of existence. It is a sense that there is much more to life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-welwood/magic-is-a-sudden-opening-of-the-mind-to-the-wonder-of-existence-it/) [John Welwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-welwood/) > [From wonder into wonder existence opens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/from-wonder-into-wonder-existence-opens/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Whether a man dispassionately sees to the core of life or passionately sees the surface, the core and the surface are essentially the same,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-prentiss/whether-a-man-dispassionately-sees-to-the-core-of-life-or/) [Chris Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-prentiss/) > [I'm always gratified when I check something I've made up and discover that I've gotten it right. How can we imagine something that turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/i-m-always-gratified-when-i-check-something-i-ve-made-up-and-discover/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [ Those with power are frequently least aware of -- or least willing to acknowledge -- its existence \[and\] those with less power are often… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-delpit/those-with-power-are-frequently-least-aware-of-or-least-willing-to/) [Lisa Delpit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-delpit/) > [What then do you call your soul? What idea have you of it? You cannot of yourselves, without revelation, admit the existence within you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/what-then-do-you-call-your-soul-what-idea-have-you-of-it-you-cannot/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Independently of its misdeeds, the mere power, - the bare existence of such a power, - is a thing irreconcilable with the nature and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-trist/independently-of-its-misdeeds-the-mere-power-the-bare-existence-of/) Nicholas Trist > [It is not the misuse of power that is evil; the very existence of power is an evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/it-is-not-the-misuse-of-power-that-is-evil-the-very-existence-of/) [Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/) > [Let's let out words define this situation every time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevinterribly/let-s-let-out-words-define-this-situation-every-time/) KevinTerribly > [The compensation of growing old ... was simply this; that the passion remains as strong as ever, but one has gained -- at last!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/the-compensation-of-growing-old-was-simply-this-that-the-passion/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [There is more than just words to define a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-zeldin/there-is-more-than-just-words-to-define-a-person/) [Lee Zeldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-zeldin/) > [“Words define us, they explain us, and, on occasion, they serve to control or isolate us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pip-williams/words-define-us-they-explain-us-and-on-occasion-they-serve-to-control/) Pip Williams > [Pictures rule, but words define, explain, express, direct, and hold together our thoughts and what we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-watson/pictures-rule-but-words-define-explain-express-direct-and-hold/) [Don Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-watson/) > [“The most satisfactory proof of intellectual strength is to be found in the existence of a power which enables the mind to conquer its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ayrton-paris/the-most-satisfactory-proof-of-intellectual-strength-is-to-be-found/) John Ayrton Paris ## More by Lao Tzu > [“This is how they are able to continue and endure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/this-is-how-they-are-able-to-continue-and-endure/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Gravity is the root of lightness;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/gravity-is-the-root-of-lightness/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Therefore the Tao is great;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/therefore-the-tao-is-great/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Not seeking, not expecting, she is present, and can welcome all things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/not-seeking-not-expecting-she-is-present-and-can-welcome-all-things/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“What all men fear is indeed to be feared;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/what-all-men-fear-is-indeed-to-be-feared/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Just remain in the center; watching. And then forget that you are there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/just-remain-in-the-center-watching-and-then-forget-that-you-are-there/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“This is what is called 'The mysterious Quality' (of the Tao).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/this-is-what-is-called-the-mysterious-quality-of-the-tao/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“If you show yourself, you will not be seen. If you affirm yourself, you will not shine. If you boast, you will have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/if-you-show-yourself-you-will-not-be-seen-if-you-affirm-yourself-you/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“The thirty spokes unite in the one nave; but it is on the empty space (for the axle), that the use of the wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/the-thirty-spokes-unite-in-the-one-nave-but-it-is-on-the-empty-space/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“To know and yet (think) we do not know is the highest (attainment); not to know (and yet think) we do know is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/to-know-and-yet-think-we-do-not-know-is-the-highest-attainment-not-to/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“He who knows other men is discerning; he who knows himself is intelligent. He who overcomes others is strong; he who overcomes himself is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/he-who-knows-other-men-is-discerning-he-who-knows-himself-is/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“If you are depressed, you are living in the past; if you are anxious, you are living in the present; if you are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/if-you-are-depressed-you-are-living-in-the-past-if-you-are-anxious/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Simplicity without a name Is free from all external aim. With no desire, at rest and still, All things go right as of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/simplicity-without-a-name-is-free-from-all-external-aim-with-no/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“When gold and jade fill the hall, their possessor cannot keep them safe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/when-gold-and-jade-fill-the-hall-their-possessor-cannot-keep-them-safe/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“We listen to it, and we do not hear it, and we name it 'the Inaudible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/we-listen-to-it-and-we-do-not-hear-it-and-we-name-it-the-inaudible/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) [Explore all 434 Lao Tzu quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) ## 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": "“Existence is beyond the power of words To define: Terms may be used But are none of them absolute. 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