--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When everyone in the world sees beauty…" description: "\"When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists.\" — Laozi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg" --- # When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists. ![“When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists.” quote by Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg) > “When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists.” [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Beauty and ugliness are relational; recognizing one defines the other. **In simple terms:** Seeing beauty creates the concept of ugliness. Key Takeaway Balance perception by appreciating both. Themes perception duality beauty ugliness Mood contemplative neutral Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - art criticism - fashion design - personal self‑image - cultural commentary Key Concepts relativism subjective value Questions to Reflect On - What defines beauty for you? - Can ugliness be re‑imagined? A Different Perspective Ugliness can be socially constructed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Taoism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taoism/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [What's the difference between beautiful and ugly?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/what-s-the-difference-between-beautiful-and-ugly/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [“Beauty is ugly's greatest disguise. Look with your heart and not with your eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-w-allison/beauty-is-ugly-s-greatest-disguise-look-with-your-heart-and-not-with/) [Calvin W. Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-w-allison/) > [Ugly is attractive, ugly is exciting. Maybe because it is newer. The investigation of ugliness is, to me, more interesting than the bourgeois idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miuccia-prada/ugly-is-attractive-ugly-is-exciting-maybe-because-it-is-newer-the/) [Miuccia Prada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miuccia-prada/) > [Dont judge a person for their beauty there may be ugly thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-judge-a-person-for-their-beauty-there-may-be-ugly-thoughts/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I want to see beauty. In the ugly, in the sink, in the suffering, in the daily, in all the days before I die,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/i-want-to-see-beauty-in-the-ugly-in-the-sink-in-the-suffering-in-the/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“Comparisons are inevitable, her face resembles her, he is like him and this old man is like that old man. This is taking things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aporva-kala/comparisons-are-inevitable-her-face-resembles-her-he-is-like-him-and/) [Aporva Kala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aporva-kala/) > [We are not beautiful because we fit the popular ideal of beauty, and we are not ugly or unattractive because we don’t measure up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-mahaney/we-are-not-beautiful-because-we-fit-the-popular-ideal-of-beauty-and/) [Carolyn Mahaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-mahaney/) > [Gold lends a touch of beauty even to the ugly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-boileau-despreaux/gold-lends-a-touch-of-beauty-even-to-the-ugly/) [Nicolas Boileau-Despreaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-boileau-despreaux/) > [Poverty is the greatest teacher we all need to grow financially. Fake beauty desires artificial hairdo but unique and true beauty is ugly yet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seun-sanni/poverty-is-the-greatest-teacher-we-all-need-to-grow-financially-fake/) Seun Sanni > [I thought I'd stumbled on Sleeping Beauty and her ugly sister,' said another voice, 'waiting for the kiss of true love to wake them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/i-thought-i-d-stumbled-on-sleeping-beauty-and-her-ugly-sister-said/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [People say there is a Beauty in every Ugly... so does that mean there is a Ugly in every Beauty? what I think to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajunejean/people-say-there-is-a-beauty-in-every-ugly-so-does-that-mean-there-is/) [LaJuneJean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajunejean/) > [Grace makes beauty out of ugly things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/grace-makes-beauty-out-of-ugly-things/) U2 > [“A lily earns its beauty in ugly waters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/a-lily-earns-its-beauty-in-ugly-waters/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [“Everything has beauty. Even the ugly. Because without the ugly, there would be no beauty. Because without beauty, we would not survive our pain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-sheehan/everything-has-beauty-even-the-ugly-because-without-the-ugly-there/) [Madeline Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-sheehan/) > [“You’re gorgeous, Gabriel. You always were, you know.” “Nature’s cruelty— the fallen angel retains his beauty. But I’m ugly on the inside.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvain-reynard/you-re-gorgeous-gabriel-you-always-were-you-know-nature-s-cruelty-the/) [Sylvain Reynard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvain-reynard/) ## More by Laozi > [When you have accomplished your goal simply walk away. This is the path way to Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-you-have-accomplished-your-goal-simply-walk-away-this-is-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [In lightness the root is lost. In haste the ruler is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/in-lightness-the-root-is-lost-in-haste-the-ruler-is-lost/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [If the sage wants to stand above people, he must speak to them from below. If he wants to lead people, he must follow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/if-the-sage-wants-to-stand-above-people-he-must-speak-to-them-from/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Goodie-goodies are the thieves of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/goodie-goodies-are-the-thieves-of-virtue/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [He that humbles himself shall be preserved entire. He that bends shall be made straight. He that is empty shall be filled. He that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/he-that-humbles-himself-shall-be-preserved-entire-he-that-bends-shall/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [The Way of the Sage is to act but not to compete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-way-of-the-sage-is-to-act-but-not-to-compete/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Do nondoing, strive for nonstriving, savor the flavorless, regard the small as important, make much of little, repay enmity with virtue; plan for difficulty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/do-nondoing-strive-for-nonstriving-savor-the-flavorless-regard-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Without looking through the window, you can see Heaven's Way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/without-looking-through-the-window-you-can-see-heaven-s-way/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/can-you-dissolve-your-ego-can-you-abandon-the-idea-of-self-and-other/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [The Tao is the center of the universe, the good man's treasure, the bad man's refuge. Honors can be bought with fine words, respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-tao-is-the-center-of-the-universe-the-good-man-s-treasure-the-bad/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [What's the difference between beautiful and ugly?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/what-s-the-difference-between-beautiful-and-ugly/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [In stillness the muddied water returns to clarity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/in-stillness-the-muddied-water-returns-to-clarity/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [He (the sage) is good to those who are good. He is also good to those who are not good. That is the virtue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/he-the-sage-is-good-to-those-who-are-good-he-is-also-good-to-those/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [There is a thing inherent and natural which existed before heaven and earth. Motionless and fathomless, It stands alone and never changes; It pervades…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/there-is-a-thing-inherent-and-natural-which-existed-before-heaven-and/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [What is a good man but a bad man's teacher? What is a bad man but a good man's job? If you do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/what-is-a-good-man-but-a-bad-man-s-teacher-what-is-a-bad-man-but-a/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) [Explore all 1,140 Laozi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) ## More Beauty quotes > [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/) [Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/) [Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/) [Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laozi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-then-ugly-exists/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beauty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-then-ugly-exists/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c0/laozi-147_beauty_when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-t_1884136.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When everyone in the world sees beauty, then ugly exists.” — Laozi", "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": "Laozi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When everyone in the world sees...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-then-ugly-exists/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-everyone-in-the-world-sees-beauty-then-ugly-exists/#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 } } ] } ```