--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If with open mind one reads and observes…" description: "\"If with open mind one reads and observes industriously and long; if in so doing one covers a wide field and so covering reflects in terms of realism, h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f4/louis-sullivan-21857_consciousness_if-with-open-mind-one-reads-and-observes_1358579.jpg" --- # If with open mind one reads and observes industriously and… ![“If with open mind one reads and observes industriously and long; if in so doing one covers a wide field and so covering reflects in terms of realism, he is likely, soon or late, to be brought to a sudden consciousness that Man is an unknown quantity and his existence unsuspected.” quote by Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f4/louis-sullivan-21857_consciousness_if-with-open-mind-one-reads-and-observes_1358579.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f4/louis-sullivan-21857_consciousness_if-with-open-mind-one-reads-and-observes_1358579.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f4/louis-sullivan-21857_consciousness_if-with-open-mind-one-reads-and-observes_1358579.jpg) > “If with open mind one reads and observes industriously and long; if in so doing one covers a wide field and so covering reflects in terms of realism, he is likely, soon or late, to be brought to a sudden consciousness that Man is an unknown quantity and his existence unsuspected.” [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intensive study and broad observation lead to sudden insight that humanity is mysterious and its purpose often unrecognized. **In simple terms:** Broad learning reveals humanity’s unknown nature. Key Takeaway Seek wide knowledge for deeper insight. Themes knowledge philosophy human nature Mood inquisitive thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - academic research - creative brainstorming - travel experiences - cross‑cultural exchange Key Concepts epistemology existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What unknown aspects of humanity intrigue you? - How can you balance curiosity with action? A Different Perspective Over‑analysis can lead to paralysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Open mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-mind/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Realism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realism/) [Unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unknown/) ## Related quotes > [“But just as the force of gravitation-in itself incomprehensible, though felt by every man- is only so far understood by us as we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/but-just-as-the-force-of-gravitation-in-itself-incomprehensible/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [...self-consciousness is a man's worst enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/self-consciousness-is-a-man-s-worst-enemy/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [The progressive growth of the finite consciousness of man towards this Self, towards the universal , the eternal, the infinite, in a word his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-progressive-growth-of-the-finite-consciousness-of-man-towards/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [The physical ego, the active consciousness in man, should uplift its body-identified self into unity with the soul, its true nature; it should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/the-physical-ego-the-active-consciousness-in-man-should-uplift-its/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Thus, as a result of heightened consciousness, a man feels as if it's all right if he's bad as long as he knows it-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/thus-as-a-result-of-heightened-consciousness-a-man-feels-as-if-it-s/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“And this parable represents man in the ordinary state of unconsciousness. 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Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-r-popper/) > [Death cannot touch the higher consciousness of man ... it can only separate those who love each other so far as their lower vehicles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/death-cannot-touch-the-higher-consciousness-of-man-it-can-only/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [“Consciousness is man's greatest misfortune, still I know that man loves it and will not exchange it for any satisfactions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dostoyevsky/consciousness-is-man-s-greatest-misfortune-still-i-know-that-man/) [Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dostoyevsky/) > [The consciousness in each man is a sliding scale, which identifies him now with the First Cause, and now with the flesh of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-consciousness-in-each-man-is-a-sliding-scale-which-identifies-him/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“If there were no eternal consciousness in a man, if at the foundation of all there lay only a wildly seething power which writhing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ren-kierkegaard/if-there-were-no-eternal-consciousness-in-a-man-if-at-the-foundation/) [Søren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ren-kierkegaard/) > [“Real consciousness is touch. Thought is getting out of touch. The crux of the whole problem lies here, in the duality of man's consciousness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/real-consciousness-is-touch-thought-is-getting-out-of-touch-the-crux/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [It's often frustrating when you're a war reporter and you're covering these places that far away. You're frustrated by making stories that people can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-rowley/it-s-often-frustrating-when-you-re-a-war-reporter-and-you-re-covering/) [Rick Rowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-rowley/) > [Women covering their heads is traditional, but now we're seeing more and more women covering themselves from head to toe. This is said to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/women-covering-their-heads-is-traditional-but-now-we-re-seeing-more/) [Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/) > [My favorite performance would definitely be "Toxic," which was my blind audition song. It was the start of it all and it was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/my-favorite-performance-would-definitely-be-toxic-which-was-my-blind/) [Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/) ## More by Louis Sullivan > [Happiness and depression cannot blossom on the same vine. Some people affirm their woes and beg for sympathy. Others, unfortunately, cast gloom wherever they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/happiness-and-depression-cannot-blossom-on-the-same-vine-some-people/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [It cannot for a moment be doubted that an art work to be alive, to awaken us to its life, to inspire us sooner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/it-cannot-for-a-moment-be-doubted-that-an-art-work-to-be-alive-to/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [It is the mass dream of inverted self, populous with fears overt and secret, that forms the continuous but gossamer thread upon which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/it-is-the-mass-dream-of-inverted-self-populous-with-fears-overt-and/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [How strange it seems that education, in practice, so often means suppression: that instead of leading the mind outward to the light of day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/how-strange-it-seems-that-education-in-practice-so-often-means/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [The architect who combines in his being the powers of vision, of imagination, of intellect, of sympathy with human need and the power to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/the-architect-who-combines-in-his-being-the-powers-of-vision-of/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [What are books but folly, and what is an education but an arrant hypocrisy, and what is art but a curse when they touch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/what-are-books-but-folly-and-what-is-an-education-but-an-arrant/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [Form follows function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/form-follows-function/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [National Health Insurance means combining the efficiency of the Postal Service with the compassion of the I.R.S. ... and the cost accounting of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/national-health-insurance-means-combining-the-efficiency-of-the/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [The chief characteristics of the tall building is that it is lofty. It must be every inch a proud and soaring thing, rising in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/the-chief-characteristics-of-the-tall-building-is-that-it-is-lofty-it/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [To teach is to touch the heart and impel it to action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/to-teach-is-to-touch-the-heart-and-impel-it-to-action/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [The feudal concept of self-preservation is poisoned at the core by the virulent assumption of master and man, of potentate and slave, of external…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/the-feudal-concept-of-self-preservation-is-poisoned-at-the-core-by/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [Implicit in true freedom of spirit lies a proud and virile will. Such glorious power of free will to choose, envisages beneficent social responsibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/implicit-in-true-freedom-of-spirit-lies-a-proud-and-virile-will-such/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [A proper building grows naturally, logically, and poetically out of all its conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/a-proper-building-grows-naturally-logically-and-poetically-out-of-all/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [The problem of the tall office building is one of the most stupendous, one of the most magnificent opportunities that the Lord of Nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/the-problem-of-the-tall-office-building-is-one-of-the-most-stupendous/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [What the people are within, the buildings express without.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/what-the-people-are-within-the-buildings-express-without/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) [Explore all 28 Louis Sullivan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) ## More Consciousness quotes > [“You're never alone if you're with your soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/you-re-never-alone-if-you-re-with-your-soul/) [Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/) > [“I now argue that entry into Upper Palaeolithic caves was probably seen as virtually indistinguishable from entry into the mental vortex that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-now-argue-that-entry-into-upper-palaeolithic-caves-was-probably/) [James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/) > [How wonderful it would be to scatter words as they rise to consciousness, to let them lie where they fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/how-wonderful-it-would-be-to-scatter-words-as-they-rise-to/) [Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/) > [“People and situations always show us what we need to see and learn about ourselves, and when we take responsibility for our own feelings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-mada-dalian/people-and-situations-always-show-us-what-we-need-to-see-and-learn/) [Eliza Mada Dalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-mada-dalian/) > [With the realization of God comes all power. 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To avoid this condition, people are naturally eager to fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/entropy-is-the-normal-state-of-consciousness-a-condition-that-is/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. 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Like Malala Yousafzai…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-gelulla/so-many-people-are-passive-participants-in-their-very-short-time-of/) Dylan Gelulla > [Floating in and out of consciousness...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/floating-in-and-out-of-consciousness/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [“The vision teller tells the vision to unguarded minds' of prey. The programmed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/the-vision-teller-tells-the-vision-to-unguarded-minds-of-prey-the/) [T.F. 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