--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The great sickness and the grievous evil…" description: "\"The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this: that all the things that man finds written in books, he presumes to think of as true-and all ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png" --- # The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this… ![“The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this: that all the things that man finds written in books, he presumes to think of as true-and all the more so if the books are old.” quote by Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png) > “The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this: that all the things that man finds written in books, he presumes to think of as true-and all the more so if the books are old.” [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Blind trust in ancient texts can hinder critical thinking. **In simple terms:** Question old sources. Key Takeaway Cultivate skeptical inquiry. Themes philosophy critical thinking tradition Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - Academic research - education - policy making - personal belief systems Key Concepts Epistemology authority bias Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify the truth of old writings? - When should tradition be challenged? A Different Perspective Old texts may contain valuable insights despite their age. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books and reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-and-reading/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Sickness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sickness/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [The Big L was cold crazy, A top-notch crook snatchin pocket books from old ladies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-l/the-big-l-was-cold-crazy-a-top-notch-crook-snatchin-pocket-books-from-2/) [Big L](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-l/) > [And how could anyone consent to give up the smell of open books, old or new?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/and-how-could-anyone-consent-to-give-up-the-smell-of-open-books-old/) [Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/) > [“There probably are, but you would need a thaumaturge for that. They have books upon books of old magic. We only have Google.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-escobar/there-probably-are-but-you-would-need-a-thaumaturge-for-that-they/) [Victoria Escobar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-escobar/) > [“It is not books you need, it's some of the things that once were in books...take it where you can find it, in old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/it-is-not-books-you-need-it-s-some-of-the-things-that-once-were-in/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Not as ours the books of old - Things that steam can stamp and fold; Not as ours the books of yore - Rows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-as-ours-the-books-of-old-things-that-steam-can-stamp-and-fold-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I know the names of the books - their old covers bleached to palest greens or pinks by the endless cycle of summers -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-lane/i-know-the-names-of-the-books-their-old-covers-bleached-to-palest/) [Harriet Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-lane/) > [Study from new books but from old teachers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/turkish-proverb/study-from-new-books-but-from-old-teachers/) Turkish Proverb > [“Some books you never get over, like a first love. Some books that made an enormous impression on you when you were young you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darryl-pinckney/some-books-you-never-get-over-like-a-first-love-some-books-that-made/) [Darryl Pinckney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darryl-pinckney/) > [Nothing new ever happens in the books. It's the same old theme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/nothing-new-ever-happens-in-the-books-it-s-the-same-old-theme/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“For six months, then, Emma, at fifteen years of age, made her hands dirty with books from old lending libraries.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/for-six-months-then-emma-at-fifteen-years-of-age-made-her-hands-dirty/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [In our day, computer technology and the proliferation of books on CD-ROM have not affected - as far as statistics show - the production…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/in-our-day-computer-technology-and-the-proliferation-of-books-on-cd/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [“The books of the Old Testament, as we know them, do not represent the language of Palestine as spoken at any one time or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-books-of-the-old-testament-as-we-know-them-do-not-represent-the/) [James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/) > [Nearly all literature, in one sense, is made up of guide-books. Old ones tell us the ways our fathers went, through the thoroughfares and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/nearly-all-literature-in-one-sense-is-made-up-of-guide-books-old-ones/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Reading a book is like re-writing it for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/reading-a-book-is-like-re-writing-it-for-yourself/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [Love of books is the best of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-kennedy/love-of-books-is-the-best-of-all/) [Jackie Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-kennedy/) ## More by Maimonides > [The so-called evils are evils only in relation to a certain thing, and that which is evil in relation to a certain existing thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-so-called-evils-are-evils-only-in-relation-to-a-certain-thing-and/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Hear the truth from whomever says it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/hear-the-truth-from-whomever-says-it/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/it-is-better-and-more-satisfactory-to-acquit-a-thousand-guilty/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [God cannot be compared to anything. Note this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/god-cannot-be-compared-to-anything-note-this/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Even the existence of this corporeal element, low as it in reality is, because it is the source of death and all evils, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/even-the-existence-of-this-corporeal-element-low-as-it-in-reality-is/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [WHEN reading my present treatise, bear in mind that by "faith" we do not understand merely that which is uttered with the lips, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/when-reading-my-present-treatise-bear-in-mind-that-by-faith-we-do-not/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [The philosophers likewise assume that in Nature there is nothing in vain, so that everything that is not the product of human industry serves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-philosophers-likewise-assume-that-in-nature-there-is-nothing-in/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [That which is produced with intention has passed over from non-existence to existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/that-which-is-produced-with-intention-has-passed-over-from-non/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [No form remains permanently in a substance; a constant change takes place, one form is taken off and another is put on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/no-form-remains-permanently-in-a-substance-a-constant-change-takes/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Further, there are things of which the mind understands one part, but remains ignorant of the other; and when man is able to comprehend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/further-there-are-things-of-which-the-mind-understands-one-part-but/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Now, we occupy a lowly position, both in space and rank in comparison with the heavenly sphere, and the Almighty is Most High not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/now-we-occupy-a-lowly-position-both-in-space-and-rank-in-comparison/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [If men possessed wisdom, which stands in the same relation to the form of man as the sight to the eye, they would not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/if-men-possessed-wisdom-which-stands-in-the-same-relation-to-the-form/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [If one avoids haughtiness to the utmost extent and is exceedingly humble, he is termed a saint, and this is the standard of saintliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/if-one-avoids-haughtiness-to-the-utmost-extent-and-is-exceedingly/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Know that the difficulties which lead to confusion in the question what is the purpose of the Universe or of any of its parts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/know-that-the-difficulties-which-lead-to-confusion-in-the-question/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [You will find that there is no other difference of opinion as regards any portions of the Universe, except that the philosophers believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/you-will-find-that-there-is-no-other-difference-of-opinion-as-regards/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) [Explore all 156 Maimonides quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this: that all the things that man finds written in books, he presumes to think of as true-and all the more so if the books are old.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maimonides" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil-consist-in-this-that-all-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil-consist-in-this-that-all-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cec/maimonides-2639_book_the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil_3114327.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The great sickness and the grievous evil consist in this: that all the things that man finds written in…” — Maimonides", "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": "Maimonides", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The great sickness and the grievous...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil-consist-in-this-that-all-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-great-sickness-and-the-grievous-evil-consist-in-this-that-all-the/#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 } } ] } ```