---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To open the dictionary of the Beyond and…"
description: "\"To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one suspected, that the only word in it is nothing.\" — Mark Strand"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png"
---

#  To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one…

![“To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one suspected, that the only word in it is nothing.” quote by Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png)

> “To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one suspected, that the only word in it is nothing.”

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The ultimate mystery of existence may be that nothing exists beyond the unknown.

**In simple terms:** Beyond the unknown, nothing is known.

Key Takeaway

Accept uncertainty as part of existence.

Themes

philosophy existence mystery

Mood

contemplative somber

Type

poetic philosophical

When to use this quote

- spiritual practice
- science
- poetry

Key Concepts

nothingness ontological inquiry

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you cope with existential uncertainty?
- What gives your life meaning?

A Different Perspective

Some find this view unsettling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Dictionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/)

## Related quotes

> [Life is not when you find a word in the dictionary, it is when you type the wrong word and it gives you many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/life-is-not-when-you-find-a-word-in-the-dictionary-it-is-when-you/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [Impossibility is a dictionary word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/impossibility-is-a-dictionary-word/)

[Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/)

> [I used to go through the dictionary looking for unusual but nontechnical words. At one time, I thought the greatest word was 'jejune' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/i-used-to-go-through-the-dictionary-looking-for-unusual-but/)

[Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/)

> [The word 'gratitude' is not part of the Hollywood dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-cohn/the-word-gratitude-is-not-part-of-the-hollywood-dictionary/)

[Harry Cohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-cohn/)

> [When I need to know the meaning of a word, I look it up in a dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/when-i-need-to-know-the-meaning-of-a-word-i-look-it-up-in-a-dictionary/)

[William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/)

> [Cults use our vocabulary, but they don't use our dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-swindoll/cults-use-our-vocabulary-but-they-don-t-use-our-dictionary/)

[Charles R. Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-swindoll/)

> [“Every dictionary contains a world. I open a book of thieves’ slang from Queen Anne’s reign and they have a hundred words for swords,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-forsyth/every-dictionary-contains-a-world-i-open-a-book-of-thieves-slang-from/)

[Mark Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-forsyth/)

> [“A dictionary is a ship that crosses the sea of words,” said Araki, with a sense that he was laying bare his innermost soul.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shion-miura/a-dictionary-is-a-ship-that-crosses-the-sea-of-words-said-araki-with/)

[Shion Miura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shion-miura/)

> [“We have control on every word of the dictionary except for the 2:; "Death" and "Heart”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-tak/we-have-control-on-every-word-of-the-dictionary-except-for-the-2/)

[Nikita Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-tak/)

> [Is there another word for synonym?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/is-there-another-word-for-synonym/)

[George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/)

> [What I voice, I voice though my art, if that's not too vainglorious a word. But I don't think it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-gleeson/what-i-voice-i-voice-though-my-art-if-that-s-not-too-vainglorious-a/)

[Brendan Gleeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-gleeson/)

> [Efficiency is the golden word for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendie-renard/efficiency-is-the-golden-word-for-me/)

[Wendie Renard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendie-renard/)

> [“The word isn't just the way it is. It is how we understand it, no? And in understanding something, we bring something to it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/the-word-isn-t-just-the-way-it-is-it-is-how-we-understand-it-no-and/)

[Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/)

> [The word 'comedy' implies slapstick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ridley-scott/the-word-comedy-implies-slapstick/)

[Ridley Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ridley-scott/)

> [“A word is not filling in the gaps, but the fertilization of silence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/a-word-is-not-filling-in-the-gaps-but-the-fertilization-of-silence/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

## More by Mark Strand

> [We’re only here for a short while. And I think it’s such a lucky accident, having been born, that we’re almost obliged to pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/we-re-only-here-for-a-short-while-and-i-think-it-s-such-a-lucky/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [If every head of state and every government official spent an hour a day reading poetry we'd live in a much more humane and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/if-every-head-of-state-and-every-government-official-spent-an-hour-a/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [I think the best American poetry is the poetry that utilizes the resources of poetry rather than exploits the defects or triumphs of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/i-think-the-best-american-poetry-is-the-poetry-that-utilizes-the/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [“The ultimate self-effacement is not the pretense of the minimal, but the jocular considerations of the maximal in the manner of Wallace Stevens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/the-ultimate-self-effacement-is-not-the-pretense-of-the-minimal-but/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [I have been eating poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/i-have-been-eating-poetry/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [“Keeping Things Whole" In a field I am the absence of field. This is always the case. Wherever I am I am what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/keeping-things-whole-in-a-field-i-am-the-absence-of-field-this-is/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [There's a certain point, when you're writing autobiographical stuff, where you don't want to misrepresent yourself. It would be dishonest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/there-s-a-certain-point-when-you-re-writing-autobiographical-stuff/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [Poetry is about slowing down. You sit and you read something, you read it again, and it reveals a little bit more, and things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/poetry-is-about-slowing-down-you-sit-and-you-read-something-you-read/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [These wrinkles are nothing These gray hairs are nothing, This stomach which sags with old food, these bruised and swollen ankles, my darkening brain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/these-wrinkles-are-nothing-these-gray-hairs-are-nothing-this-stomach/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [Pain is filtered in a poem so that it becomes finally, in the end, pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/pain-is-filtered-in-a-poem-so-that-it-becomes-finally-in-the-end/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [In a field I am the absence of field.That is always the case. Wherever I am, I am what is missing. When I walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/in-a-field-i-am-the-absence-of-field-that-is-always-the-case-wherever/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [Even this late it happens the coming of love, the coming of light. You wake and the candles are lit as if by themselves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/even-this-late-it-happens-the-coming-of-love-the-coming-of-light-you/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [Those hours given over to basking in the glow of an imagined future, of being carried away in streams of promise by a love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/those-hours-given-over-to-basking-in-the-glow-of-an-imagined-future/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [I feel that anything is possible in a poem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/i-feel-that-anything-is-possible-in-a-poem/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [I tend to like poems that engage me - that is to say, which do not bore me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/i-tend-to-like-poems-that-engage-me-that-is-to-say-which-do-not-bore/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

[Explore all 70 Mark Strand quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

## More Dictionary quotes

> [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/)

[Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/)

> [“I hereby propose the term “miserize”, as a verb for misery – referring to “to cause misery”.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/i-hereby-propose-the-term-miserize-as-a-verb-for-misery-referring-to/)

[Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/)

> [The only place where compensation comes before service is in the dictionary or anywhere the government meddles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-woodward/the-only-place-where-compensation-comes-before-service-is-in-the/)

[Orrin Woodward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-woodward/)

> [What's a depression? The dictionary says a depression is a dent. And what's a dent? Everybody knows a dent is a hole. And what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-durante/what-s-a-depression-the-dictionary-says-a-depression-is-a-dent-and/)

[Jimmy Durante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-durante/)

> [Cults use our vocabulary, but they don't use our dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-swindoll/cults-use-our-vocabulary-but-they-don-t-use-our-dictionary/)

[Charles R. Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-swindoll/)

> [“Every dictionary contains a world. I open a book of thieves’ slang from Queen Anne’s reign and they have a hundred words for swords,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-forsyth/every-dictionary-contains-a-world-i-open-a-book-of-thieves-slang-from/)

[Mark Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-forsyth/)

> [I've been in 'Who's Who' and I know what's what, but it'll be the first time I ever made the dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/i-ve-been-in-who-s-who-and-i-know-what-s-what-but-it-ll-be-the-first/)

[Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/)

> [Everybody talks about being a role model. But if you look up the word 'role' in a dictionary, it describes playing a part. Everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/everybody-talks-about-being-a-role-model-but-if-you-look-up-the-word/)

[Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/)

> [“We have control on every word of the dictionary except for the 2:; "Death" and "Heart”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-tak/we-have-control-on-every-word-of-the-dictionary-except-for-the-2/)

[Nikita Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-tak/)

> [Weird itself, even in the dictionary, is just something that is different and unexplainable. A weirdo is someone who follows their heart. Im definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kid-cudi/weird-itself-even-in-the-dictionary-is-just-something-that-is/)

[Kid Cudi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kid-cudi/)

> [I'm not sure what to call 'Lego Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary.' Nonfiction? Movie/toy fiction? But it is any Lego/'Star Wars' kid's dream. Call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-scieszka/i-m-not-sure-what-to-call-lego-star-wars-the-visual-dictionary/)

[Jon Scieszka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-scieszka/)

> [“A dictionary is a ship that crosses the sea of words,” said Araki, with a sense that he was laying bare his innermost soul.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shion-miura/a-dictionary-is-a-ship-that-crosses-the-sea-of-words-said-araki-with/)

[Shion Miura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shion-miura/)

> [There is a word Kristos in the Greek dictionary, and this word is supposed to be borrowed from the Sanskrit word "Krishna," and Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-c-bhaktivedanta-swami-prabhupada/there-is-a-word-kristos-in-the-greek-dictionary-and-this-word-is/)

[A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-bhaktivedanta-swami-prabhupada/)

> [If you look in the dictionary under 'perfectionist,' you see Henry Selick correcting the definition of perfectionist in the dictionary. I mean, he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hodgman/if-you-look-in-the-dictionary-under-perfectionist-you-see-henry/)

[John Hodgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hodgman/)

> [I'm pretty sure that if you looked up the word "nuts" in the dictionary, you'll find my picture. Just another fun feature of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/i-m-pretty-sure-that-if-you-looked-up-the-word-nuts-in-the-dictionary/)

[James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/)

[Browse all 550 Dictionary quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one suspected, that the only word in it is nothing.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mark Strand"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and-discover-what-one-suspected/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dictionary"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and-discover-what-one-suspected/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54d/mark-strand-9847_dictionary_to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and_137410.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To open the dictionary of the Beyond and discover what one suspected, that the only word in it is nothing.” — Mark Strand",
                "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": "Mark Strand",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "To open the dictionary of the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and-discover-what-one-suspected/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/to-open-the-dictionary-of-the-beyond-and-discover-what-one-suspected/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
