--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What is bad? What is good? What should…" description: "\"What is bad? What is good? What should one love, what hate? Why live, and what am I? What is lie,what is death? What power rules over everything?\" he a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/leo-tolstoy-55_answers_what-is-bad-what-is-good-what-should-one_1452853.jpg" --- # What is bad? What is good? What should one love, what… ![“What is bad? What is good? What should one love, what hate? Why live, and what am I? What is lie,what is death? What power rules over everything?" he asked himself. And there was no answer to any of these questions except one, which was not logical and was not at all an answer to these questions…” quote by Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/leo-tolstoy-55_answers_what-is-bad-what-is-good-what-should-one_1452853.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/leo-tolstoy-55_answers_what-is-bad-what-is-good-what-should-one_1452853.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/leo-tolstoy-55_answers_what-is-bad-what-is-good-what-should-one_1452853.jpg) > “What is bad? What is good? What should one love, what hate? Why live, and what am I? What is lie,what is death? What power rules over everything?" he asked himself. And there was no answer to any of these questions except one, which was not logical and was not at all an answer to these questions. This answer was: "You will die--and everything will end. You will die and learn everything--or stop asking.” [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects existential questioning and the futility of seeking absolute answers, concluding that death ends all and that endless questioning may be futile. **In simple terms:** Death ends everything; endless questioning may be futile. Key Takeaway Accept mortality and focus on living. Themes existentialism philosophy mortality meaning search for truth Mood contemplative somber Type philosophical existential When to use this quote - personal reflection - philosophical inquiry - spiritual contemplation Key Concepts nihilism absurdism determinism Questions to Reflect On - What does accepting death change how you live? - Is there value in questioning without answers? A Different Perspective The answer offers no practical guidance, only a bleak resignation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [One love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-love/) [Questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questions/) ## Related quotes > [“There was no answer, except the general answer life gives to all the most complex and insoluble questions. That answer is: one must live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/there-was-no-answer-except-the-general-answer-life-gives-to-all-the/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“And if you can’t say yes, answer anyway. Because I’d rather live with the answer than die with the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ellis/and-if-you-can-t-say-yes-answer-anyway-because-i-d-rather-live-with/) Jon Ellis > [“Why do people kill themselves? I think they do it when they can no longer find a reason to keep going. When nothing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-miller/why-do-people-kill-themselves-i-think-they-do-it-when-they-can-no/) [Mary Beth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beth-miller/) > [“Usually, the answer is, “You can die.” Then I answer back, “I’d rather die doing something I feel is great and amazing rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-ferriss/usually-the-answer-is-you-can-die-then-i-answer-back-i-d-rather-die/) [Timothy Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-ferriss/) > [“I'd rather live with the answer than die with the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pleasefindthis/i-d-rather-live-with-the-answer-than-die-with-the-question/) pleasefindthis > [“There was no question to answer. He would rather die with er than live a single day more without her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-williams/there-was-no-question-to-answer-he-would-rather-die-with-er-than-live/) [Jackie Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-williams/) > [for some reason, dying men always ask the question they know the answer to. perhaps it's so they can die being right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/for-some-reason-dying-men-always-ask-the-question-they-know-the/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [Loving with human love, one may pass from love to hatred; but divine love cannot change. Nothing, not even death, can shatter it. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/loving-with-human-love-one-may-pass-from-love-to-hatred-but-divine/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [I always loved you, and if one loves anyone, one loves the whole person, just as they are and not as one would like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-always-loved-you-and-if-one-loves-anyone-one-loves-the-whole-person/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Writers always sound insufferably smug when they sit back and assert that their job is only to ask questions and not to answer them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/writers-always-sound-insufferably-smug-when-they-sit-back-and-assert/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [Many questions in life are posed as either, or questions and most often the answer is both!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/many-questions-in-life-are-posed-as-either-or-questions-and-most/) Senoraroy > [We shouldn't get hung up on the questions we can't answer because life, by definition, is confusing. We're never going to have all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-williams/we-shouldn-t-get-hung-up-on-the-questions-we-can-t-answer-because/) [Nicole Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-williams/) > [What was it to love someone, what was love exactly, and why did it end or not end? Those were the real questions, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-highsmith/what-was-it-to-love-someone-what-was-love-exactly-and-why-did-it-end/) [Patricia Highsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-highsmith/) > [Its not that questions are made to answer, its answers which existed even before we knew how to question.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/its-not-that-questions-are-made-to-answer-its-answers-which-existed/) Senoraroy > [There are many questions, but I cannot answer because I'm not a businessman, I am a climber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoli-boukreev/there-are-many-questions-but-i-cannot-answer-because-i-m-not-a/) [Anatoli Boukreev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoli-boukreev/) ## More by Leo Tolstoy > [These joys were so trifling as to be as imperceptible as grains of gold among the sand, and in moments of depression she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/these-joys-were-so-trifling-as-to-be-as-imperceptible-as-grains-of/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The only significance of life consists in helping to establish the kingdom of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/the-only-significance-of-life-consists-in-helping-to-establish-the/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“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/) > [Energy rests upon love; and come as it will, there's no forcing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/energy-rests-upon-love-and-come-as-it-will-there-s-no-forcing-it/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“If you only knew what those society women are, and women in general! My father is right. Selfish, vain, stupid, trivial in everything—that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/if-you-only-knew-what-those-society-women-are-and-women-in-general-my/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [To speak of it would be giving importance to that which has none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-speak-of-it-would-be-giving-importance-to-that-which-has-none/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Once we're thrown off our habitual paths, we think all is lost, but it's only here that the new and the good begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/once-we-re-thrown-off-our-habitual-paths-we-think-all-is-lost-but-it/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“He knew she was there by the rapture and the terror that seized on his heart. She was standing talking to a lady at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/he-knew-she-was-there-by-the-rapture-and-the-terror-that-seized-on/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Rest, nature, books, music...such is my idea of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/rest-nature-books-music-such-is-my-idea-of-happiness/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“He was not to blame for being born with an irrepressible charachter and a mind some how constrained.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/he-was-not-to-blame-for-being-born-with-an-irrepressible-charachter/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [I ask one thing only: I ask for the right to hope, to suffer as I do. But if even that cannot be, command…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-ask-one-thing-only-i-ask-for-the-right-to-hope-to-suffer-as-i-do/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The idea shared by many that life is a vale of tears is just as false as the idea shared by the great majority,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/the-idea-shared-by-many-that-life-is-a-vale-of-tears-is-just-as-false/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [To say that a work of art is good, but incomprehensible to the majority of men, is the same as saying of some kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-say-that-a-work-of-art-is-good-but-incomprehensible-to-the/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [True life is lived when tiny changes occur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/true-life-is-lived-when-tiny-changes-occur/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) [Explore all 1,754 Leo Tolstoy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) ## More Answers quotes > [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/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“As long as you keep searching,the answers will come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-kynock/as-long-as-you-keep-searching-the-answers-will-come/) [Mitch Kynock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-kynock/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) Browse all 7,843 Answers quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What is bad? 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