--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If souls survive death for all eternity…" description: "\"If souls survive death for all eternity, how can the heavens hold them all? Or for that matter, how can the earth hold all the bodies that have been bu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/marcus-aurelius-139_answers_if-souls-survive-death-for-all-eternity_911396.jpg" --- # If souls survive death for all eternity, how can the… ![“If souls survive death for all eternity, how can the heavens hold them all? Or for that matter, how can the earth hold all the bodies that have been buried in it? The answers are the same. Just as on earth, with the passage of time, decaying and transmogrified corpses make way for the newly dead…” quote by Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/marcus-aurelius-139_answers_if-souls-survive-death-for-all-eternity_911396.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/marcus-aurelius-139_answers_if-souls-survive-death-for-all-eternity_911396.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4db/marcus-aurelius-139_answers_if-souls-survive-death-for-all-eternity_911396.jpg) > “If souls survive death for all eternity, how can the heavens hold them all? Or for that matter, how can the earth hold all the bodies that have been buried in it? The answers are the same. Just as on earth, with the passage of time, decaying and transmogrified corpses make way for the newly dead, so souls released into the heavens, after a season of flight, begin to break up, burn, and be absorbed back into the womb of reason, leaving room for souls just beginning to fly. This is the answer for those who believe that souls survive death.” [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It argues that if souls are immortal, both heaven and earth must make space for endless souls, suggesting a cyclical renewal. **In simple terms:** Endless souls require continual renewal in heaven and earth. Key Takeaway Consider the limits of infinite existence. Themes philosophy afterlife eternity Mood reflective speculative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - theological debate - personal belief - literary analysis - spiritual contemplation Key Concepts cosmology metaphysics transformation Questions to Reflect On - Do you believe in an afterlife? - How does this view affect your view of mortality? A Different Perspective Assumes souls exist and are immortal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternity/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Passage of time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passage-of-time/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Seasons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seasons/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Souls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/souls/) [Womb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/womb/) ## Related quotes > [“We climbed, he first and I behind, until though a small round opening ahead of us, I saw the lovely things the heavens hold,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/we-climbed-he-first-and-i-behind-until-though-a-small-round-opening/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) > [Same with souls. They can't survive without a body for long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-chiu/same-with-souls-they-can-t-survive-without-a-body-for-long/) [Alex Chiu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-chiu/) > [If it is true that men have souls that do survive them, he went on, ignoring me, and if those souls are born again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-kearsley/if-it-is-true-that-men-have-souls-that-do-survive-them-he-went-on/) [Susanna Kearsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-kearsley/) > [“If we do survive death, then the next world is veiled from us for a purpose. Regardless of our endless conjecture, each of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-l-bryan/if-we-do-survive-death-then-the-next-world-is-veiled-from-us-for-a/) [J.L. Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-l-bryan/) > [“The body is transmuted into other forms, worms batten on it, it helps to feed the grass, and some animal consumes the grass. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/the-body-is-transmuted-into-other-forms-worms-batten-on-it-it-helps/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [If I can survive death, I can probably survive anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashleigh-brilliant/if-i-can-survive-death-i-can-probably-survive-anything/) [Ashleigh Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashleigh-brilliant/) > [“The only thing you can not survive is death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-only-thing-you-can-not-survive-is-death/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [The study of consciousness that can extend beyond the body is extremely important for the issue of survival, since it is this part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislav-grof/the-study-of-consciousness-that-can-extend-beyond-the-body-is/) [Stanislav Grof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislav-grof/) > [“I guess a case of nerves could survive even death”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-hudson/i-guess-a-case-of-nerves-could-survive-even-death/) [Tara Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-hudson/) > [You are a little soul bearing about a corpse, as Epictetus used to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/you-are-a-little-soul-bearing-about-a-corpse-as-epictetus-used-to-say/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Thou art a little soul bearing about a corpse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/thou-art-a-little-soul-bearing-about-a-corpse/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“If I believe, truly believe our souls are meant to cross paths, in each and every life, traversing millennia and repeating this sweet interaction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-rosmarin/if-i-believe-truly-believe-our-souls-are-meant-to-cross-paths-in-each/) [Abby Rosmarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-rosmarin/) > [I believe one of our souls' major purposes is to know, love, and express our authentic selves. To live the life and be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-thoele/i-believe-one-of-our-souls-major-purposes-is-to-know-love-and-express/) [Sue Thoele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-thoele/) > [I believe that the souls of women flatten and anchor themselves in times of adversity, lay in for the stay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-believe-that-the-souls-of-women-flatten-and-anchor-themselves-in/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“I’m convinced that people come across others in life whose souls are completely compatible with their own. Some refer to them as soul mates.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/i-m-convinced-that-people-come-across-others-in-life-whose-souls-are/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) ## More by Marcus Aurelius > [A man should be upright, not kept upright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/a-man-should-be-upright-not-kept-upright/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Everything is mere opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/everything-is-mere-opinion/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [If any man has done wrong, the harm is his own. But perhaps he has not done wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/if-any-man-has-done-wrong-the-harm-is-his-own-but-perhaps-he-has-not/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“We should remark the grace and fascination that there is even in the incidentals of Nature's processes.. When a loaf of bread,. for instance,.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/we-should-remark-the-grace-and-fascination-that-there-is-even-in-the/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [My true Self is free. I cannot be contained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/my-true-self-is-free-i-cannot-be-contained/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/the-best-revenge-is-to-be-unlike-him-who-performed-the-injury/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Nothing befalls any man which he is not fitted to endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/nothing-befalls-any-man-which-he-is-not-fitted-to-endure/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Adorn thyself with simplicity and with indifference towards the things which lie between virtue and vice. Love mankind. Follow God. The poet says that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/adorn-thyself-with-simplicity-and-with-indifference-towards-the/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Let it be your constant method to look into the design of people's actions, and see what they would be at, as often as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/let-it-be-your-constant-method-to-look-into-the-design-of-people-s/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“Our life is a warfare, and a mere pilgrimage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/our-life-is-a-warfare-and-a-mere-pilgrimage/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“If therefore it be a thing external that causes thy grief, know, that it is not that properly that doth cause it, but thine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/if-therefore-it-be-a-thing-external-that-causes-thy-grief-know-that/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Frightened of change? But what can exist without it? What's closer to nature's heart? Can you take a hot bath and leave the firewood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/frightened-of-change-but-what-can-exist-without-it-what-s-closer-to/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [We are too much accustomed to attribute to a single cause that which is the product of several, and the majority of our controversies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/we-are-too-much-accustomed-to-attribute-to-a-single-cause-that-which/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself, "I have to go to work - as a human being. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/at-dawn-when-you-have-trouble-getting-out-of-bed-tell-yourself-i-have/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) [Explore all 1,138 Marcus Aurelius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) ## 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. 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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. 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