--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us…" description: "\"Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come; for if our sight could c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg" --- # Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth… ![“Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come; for if our sight could clearly distinguish the opposite bank, who would remain on this tempestuous coast of time?” quote by Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg) > “Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come; for if our sight could clearly distinguish the opposite bank, who would remain on this tempestuous coast of time?” [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human beings are shielded from the unknown future by ignorance, making life seem chaotic and uncertain. **In simple terms:** Ignorance hides the future, causing uncertainty. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty and seek deeper understanding. Themes philosophy existentialism uncertainty faith life death Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal reflection - spiritual practice - ethical decision making - coping with loss - planning for legacy Key Concepts Metaphysics epistemology theology Questions to Reflect On - How does uncertainty shape your daily choices? - What can you do to confront the unknown? A Different Perspective The veil may also limit curiosity and proactive preparation for the future. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afterlife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afterlife/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Divine wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine-wisdom/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Opposites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposites/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time on earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-on-earth/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) ## Related quotes > [Eternity doth wear upon her face the veil of time. They only see the veil, and thus they know not what they stand so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-smith/eternity-doth-wear-upon-her-face-the-veil-of-time-they-only-see-the/) [Alexander Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-smith/) > [ \[Turkish women\] had lived free of the veil for 5,000 years, and had been covered only in the last 600 years. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/turkish-women-had-lived-free-of-the-veil-for-5-000-years-and-had-been/) [Mustafa Kemal Ataturk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/) > [Take away, O Lord, the veil of my heart while I read the Scriptures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lancelot-andrewes/take-away-o-lord-the-veil-of-my-heart-while-i-read-the-scriptures/) [Lancelot Andrewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lancelot-andrewes/) > [No government can make me wear a veil, no government can force me not to wear it either](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirin-ebadi/no-government-can-make-me-wear-a-veil-no-government-can-force-me-not/) [Shirin Ebadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirin-ebadi/) > [I had a holiday job in a kitchen, but I think well draw a polite veil over that. There was nothing joyous or creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/i-had-a-holiday-job-in-a-kitchen-but-i-think-well-draw-a-polite-veil/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [Now I am nothing but a veil; all my body is a veil beneath which a child sleeps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriela-mistral/now-i-am-nothing-but-a-veil-all-my-body-is-a-veil-beneath-which-a/) [Gabriela Mistral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriela-mistral/) > [However we may conceal our passions under the veil ... there is always some place where they peep out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/however-we-may-conceal-our-passions-under-the-veil-there-is-always/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [Behind a veil, unseen yet present, I was the forceful soul that moved this mighty body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-racine/behind-a-veil-unseen-yet-present-i-was-the-forceful-soul-that-moved/) [Jean Racine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-racine/) > [If women had to promise to provide for a man for a lifetime before he removed his veil and showed her his smile, would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/if-women-had-to-promise-to-provide-for-a-man-for-a-lifetime-before-he/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [Like a saint's vision of beatitude. Like the veil of things as they seem drawn back by an unseen hand. For a second you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-o-neill/like-a-saint-s-vision-of-beatitude-like-the-veil-of-things-as-they/) [Eugene O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-o-neill/) > [The Quran says nothing about the veil, except for an injunction to veil the bosom, which is obvious. As for the face, Muhammad's wife…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-stanley-robinson/the-quran-says-nothing-about-the-veil-except-for-an-injunction-to/) [Kim Stanley Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-stanley-robinson/) > [For a privileged minority, Western democracy provides the leisure, the facilities, and the training to seek the truth lying hidden behind the veil of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/for-a-privileged-minority-western-democracy-provides-the-leisure-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Lift the veil that obscures the heart, and there you will find what you are looking for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/lift-the-veil-that-obscures-the-heart-and-there-you-will-find-what/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [I am whatever was, or is, or will be; and my veil no mortal ever took up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/i-am-whatever-was-or-is-or-will-be-and-my-veil-no-mortal-ever-took-up/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [The veil that clouds your eyes shall be lifted by the hands that wove it,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/the-veil-that-clouds-your-eyes-shall-be-lifted-by-the-hands-that-wove-2/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) ## More by Madame de Stael > [Good taste cannot supply the place of genius in literature, for the best proof of taste, when there is no genius, would be, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/good-taste-cannot-supply-the-place-of-genius-in-literature-for-the/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [There is no reality on this earth except religion and the power of love; all the rest is even more fugitive than life itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/there-is-no-reality-on-this-earth-except-religion-and-the-power-of/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [in Italy, almost at every step, history and poetry add to the graces of nature, sweeten the memory of the past, and seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/in-italy-almost-at-every-step-history-and-poetry-add-to-the-graces-of/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [ \[Ridicule\] laughs at all those who see the earnestness of life and who still believe in true feelings and in serious thought ... It… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/ridicule-laughs-at-all-those-who-see-the-earnestness-of-life-and-who/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Ought not every woman, like every man, to follow the bent of her own talents?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/ought-not-every-woman-like-every-man-to-follow-the-bent-of-her-own/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [The more we know the better we forgive. Whoever feels deeply, feels for all who live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-more-we-know-the-better-we-forgive-whoever-feels-deeply-feels-for/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Let us then blend everything: love, religion, genius, with sunshine, perfume, music, and poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/let-us-then-blend-everything-love-religion-genius-with-sunshine/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Man's most valuable faculty is his imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/man-s-most-valuable-faculty-is-his-imagination/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Taste is to literature what bon ton is in society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/taste-is-to-literature-what-bon-ton-is-in-society/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [A voyage without companionship, that is to say without conversation, is one of the saddest pleasures of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/a-voyage-without-companionship-that-is-to-say-without-conversation-is/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [However old a conjugal union, it still garners some sweetness. Winter has some cloudless days, and under the snow a few flowers still bloom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/however-old-a-conjugal-union-it-still-garners-some-sweetness-winter/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [The sight of such a monument is like continual and stationary music, which one hears for one's good as one approaches it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-sight-of-such-a-monument-is-like-continual-and-stationary-music/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [If we would succeed in works of the imagination, we must offer a mild morality in the midst of rigid manners; but where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/if-we-would-succeed-in-works-of-the-imagination-we-must-offer-a-mild/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Innocence in genius, and candor in power, are both noble qualities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/innocence-in-genius-and-candor-in-power-are-both-noble-qualities/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [“The human mind always makes progress, but it is a progress made in spirals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-human-mind-always-makes-progress-but-it-is-a-progress-made-in/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) [Explore all 187 Madame de Stael quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) ## More Afterlife quotes > [I don't believe in an afterlife. I don't believe in a single or multiple godhead. I respect people who do, but I don't believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/i-don-t-believe-in-an-afterlife-i-don-t-believe-in-a-single-or/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“There was no attack on religion because people were generally indifferent to religion. They were neither hot nor cold. They were the tepid, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-day/there-was-no-attack-on-religion-because-people-were-generally/) [Dorothy Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-day/) > [I guess on one hand I believe it doesn't matter if there is life after death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-morton/i-guess-on-one-hand-i-believe-it-doesn-t-matter-if-there-is-life/) [Joe Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-morton/) > [“And what if there are only spiders there, or something of that sort”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/and-what-if-there-are-only-spiders-there-or-something-of-that-sort/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“The obsession with the afterlife is born of a panic at not having memories of a before-life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-cavanagh/the-obsession-with-the-afterlife-is-born-of-a-panic-at-not-having/) [Dean Cavanagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-cavanagh/) > [... the man in the violent situation reveals those qualities least dispensable in his personality, those qualities which are all he will have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/the-man-in-the-violent-situation-reveals-those-qualities-least/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“Most people would probably call me a ghost. I am, after all, dead. But I don't think of myself that way. It wasn't so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/most-people-would-probably-call-me-a-ghost-i-am-after-all-dead-but-i/) [Christopher Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [If critics and fanboys weren't suckers for simplistic nihilism and high-pressure marketing, Afterlife would be universally acclaimed as a visionary feat, superior to Inception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/armond-white/if-critics-and-fanboys-weren-t-suckers-for-simplistic-nihilism-and/) [Armond White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/armond-white/) > [“People, I thought, wanted security. They couldn’t bare the idea of death being a big black nothing, couldn’t bear the thought of their loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/people-i-thought-wanted-security-they-couldn-t-bare-the-idea-of-death/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Some people are so stiff and inhumane as the dogma's they believe in”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/some-people-are-so-stiff-and-inhumane-as-the-dogma-s-they-believe-in/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [Sometimes I think the resurrection of the body, unless much improved in construction, a mistake!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-underhill/sometimes-i-think-the-resurrection-of-the-body-unless-much-improved/) [Evelyn Underhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-underhill/) > [It's my firm conclusion that human meaning comes from humans, not from a supernatural source. After we die, our hopes for an afterlife reside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-graffin/it-s-my-firm-conclusion-that-human-meaning-comes-from-humans-not-from/) [Greg Graffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-graffin/) > [“One's past can't be erased, it can only be learned from, the child taught her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-balcomb/one-s-past-can-t-be-erased-it-can-only-be-learned-from-the-child/) [H. L. Balcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-balcomb/) > [It was like I’d stepped out into an afterlife. Only there were no angels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-christopher/it-was-like-i-d-stepped-out-into-an-afterlife-only-there-were-no/) [Lucy Christopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-christopher/) > [“death is predestined for all mortals. Souls live forever, but the body does not. Unless you are immortal, both the soul and body are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yelle-hughes/death-is-predestined-for-all-mortals-souls-live-forever-but-the-body/) [Yelle Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yelle-hughes/) [Browse all 844 Afterlife quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afterlife/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come; for if our sight could clearly distinguish the opposite bank, who would remain on this tempestuous coast of time?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Madame de Stael" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-some-time-on-earth-has-done-well/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Afterlife" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-some-time-on-earth-has-done-well/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bc/madame-de-stael-2069_afterlife_divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-som_2013525.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of…” — Madame de Stael", "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": "Madame de Stael", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Divine Wisdom, intending to detain us...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-some-time-on-earth-has-done-well/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/divine-wisdom-intending-to-detain-us-some-time-on-earth-has-done-well/#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 } } ] } ```