--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To say that the universe exists is silly…" description: "\"To say that the universe exists is silly, because it says that the universe is one of the things in the universe. So there's something wrong with quest..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9a/marvin-minsky-7760_silly_to-say-that-the-universe-exists-is-silly_111904.jpg" --- # To say that the universe exists is silly, because it says… ![“To say that the universe exists is silly, because it says that the universe is one of the things in the universe. So there's something wrong with questions like, "What caused the Universe to exist?"” quote by Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9a/marvin-minsky-7760_silly_to-say-that-the-universe-exists-is-silly_111904.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9a/marvin-minsky-7760_silly_to-say-that-the-universe-exists-is-silly_111904.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9a/marvin-minsky-7760_silly_to-say-that-the-universe-exists-is-silly_111904.jpg) > “To say that the universe exists is silly, because it says that the universe is one of the things in the universe. So there's something wrong with questions like, "What caused the Universe to exist?"” [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Questioning the universe’s existence leads to a logical loop; the phrase is self‑referential and thus meaningless as a genuine inquiry. **In simple terms:** The question 'What caused the universe?' is a self‑contradiction. Key Takeaway Self‑referential questions can be ill‑posed. Themes philosophy logic metaphysics language Mood analytical skeptical Type critical intellectual When to use this quote - debating origins of consciousness - discussing cosmology in classrooms - analyzing circular arguments in debates Key Concepts self‑reference semantic paradox Practical Applications - Reframe questions to avoid self‑reference - Identify hidden assumptions before answering Questions to Reflect On - How can we ask meaningful questions about origins? - What logical tools detect self‑referential fallacies? A Different Perspective Dismisses genuine scientific curiosity about cosmological origins. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Caused Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caused-universe-1326787/) [Exists Silly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exists-silly-1326786/) [Says Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/says-universe-764851/) [Silly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silly/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Universe Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe-exist-882839/) [Universe Exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe-exists-850745/) ## Related quotes > [I'm a big believer in quantum physics, which says that the universe is more incredible and mysterious than any of us can imagine, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-leavitt/i-m-a-big-believer-in-quantum-physics-which-says-that-the-universe-is/) [Caroline Leavitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-leavitt/) > [We are today beginning to see work by very reputable scientists that says the universe is created by our observations. It is not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-h-lipton/we-are-today-beginning-to-see-work-by-very-reputable-scientists-that/) [Bruce H. Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-h-lipton/) > [Quantum physics really begins to point to this discovery. It says that you can't have a Universe without mind entering into it, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/quantum-physics-really-begins-to-point-to-this-discovery-it-says-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am not talking to you from the point of view of just wishful thinking, or imaginary craziness. I'm talking to you from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-alan-wolf/i-am-not-talking-to-you-from-the-point-of-view-of-just-wishful/) [Fred Alan Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-alan-wolf/) > [“THE SHOP THAT LETS YOU RENT HAPPINESS “This is the one.” The universe assures me from behind the counter. “But I thought you said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pleasefindthis/the-shop-that-lets-you-rent-happiness-this-is-the-one-the-universe/) [pleasefindthis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pleasefindthis/) > [So remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/so-remember-to-look-up-at-the-stars-and-not-down-at-your-feet-try-to/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [All things in this vast universe exist in you, with you, and for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/all-things-in-this-vast-universe-exist-in-you-with-you-and-for-you/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [The universe must exist for the self-expression of God and the delight of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/the-universe-must-exist-for-the-self-expression-of-god-and-the/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [We look at it as the multiverse. We have our TV universe and our film universe, but they all co-exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-johns/we-look-at-it-as-the-multiverse-we-have-our-tv-universe-and-our-film/) [Geoff Johns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-johns/) > [“And if any of these forces were in the slightest degree different, our universe would not exist. But how were the values of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/and-if-any-of-these-forces-were-in-the-slightest-degree-different-our/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [All of my life, I have been fascinated by the big questions that face us, and have tried to find scientific answers to them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/all-of-my-life-i-have-been-fascinated-by-the-big-questions-that-face/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Does the universe exist only for me? It's possible. If so, it's sure going well for me, I must admit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/does-the-universe-exist-only-for-me-it-s-possible-if-so-it-s-sure/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Then we shall... be able to take part in the discussion of the question of why it is that we and the universe exist.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/then-we-shall-be-able-to-take-part-in-the-discussion-of-the-question/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“... if we do discover a complete theory, it should in time be understandable in broad principle by everyone, not just a few scientists.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/if-we-do-discover-a-complete-theory-it-should-in-time-be/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/look-up-at-the-stars-and-not-down-at-your-feet-try-to-make-sense-of/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## More by Marvin Minsky > [Theorems often tell us complex truths about the simple things, but only rarely tell us simple truths about the complex ones. To believe otherwise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/theorems-often-tell-us-complex-truths-about-the-simple-things-but/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [We wanted to solve robot problems and needed some vision, action, reasoning, planning, and so forth. We even used some structural learning, such as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/we-wanted-to-solve-robot-problems-and-needed-some-vision-action/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [We rarely recognize how wonderful it is that a person can traverse an entire lifetime without making a single really serious mistake — like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/we-rarely-recognize-how-wonderful-it-is-that-a-person-can-traverse-an/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [Each practitioner thinks there's one magic way to get a machine to be smart, and so they're all wasting their time in a sense.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/each-practitioner-thinks-there-s-one-magic-way-to-get-a-machine-to-be/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [You don't understand anything until you learn it more than one way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/you-don-t-understand-anything-until-you-learn-it-more-than-one-way/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [ A couple of hundred years from now, maybe \[science fiction writers\] Isaac Asimov and Fred Pohl will be considered the important philosophers of the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/a-couple-of-hundred-years-from-now-maybe-science-fiction-writers/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [All intelligent problem solvers are subject to the same ultimate constraints - limitations on space, time, and materials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/all-intelligent-problem-solvers-are-subject-to-the-same-ultimate/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [“But there’s a big difference between “impossible” and “hard to imagine.” The first is about it; the second is about you!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/but-there-s-a-big-difference-between-impossible-and-hard-to-imagine/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [But the big feature of human-level intelligence is not what it does what it is works but what it does when it's stuck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/but-the-big-feature-of-human-level-intelligence-is-not-what-it-does/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [What magical trick makes us intelligent? The trick is that there is no trick. The power of intelligence stems from our vast diversity, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/what-magical-trick-makes-us-intelligent-the-trick-is-that-there-is-no/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [Everything, including that which happens in our brains, depends on these and only on these: A set of fixed, deterministic laws. A purely random…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/everything-including-that-which-happens-in-our-brains-depends-on/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [I believed in realism, as summarized by John McCarthy's comment to the effect that if we worked really hard, we'd have an intelligent system…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/i-believed-in-realism-as-summarized-by-john-mccarthy-s-comment-to-the/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [By the way, it was his simulations that helped out in Jurassic Park - without them, there would have been only a few dinosaurs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/by-the-way-it-was-his-simulations-that-helped-out-in-jurassic-park/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [If you just have a single problem to solve, then fine, go ahead and use a neural network. But if you want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/if-you-just-have-a-single-problem-to-solve-then-fine-go-ahead-and-use/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [“We shouldn't let our envy of distinguished masters of the arts distract us from the wonder of how each of us gets new ideas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/we-shouldn-t-let-our-envy-of-distinguished-masters-of-the-arts/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) [Explore all 87 Marvin Minsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) ## More Silly quotes > [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/) [Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/) > [I love being my silly ole self! Lifes a lot better when you have a good sense of humor and you smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-being-my-silly-ole-self-lifes-a-lot-better-when-you-have-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am a zizzer zazzer zuzz as you can plainly see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss-2/i-am-a-zizzer-zazzer-zuzz-as-you-can-plainly-see/) [Dr Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss-2/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's great when you can write a meaningful song that touches people, but sometimes you just wanna have fun and sing a silly song…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-underwood/it-s-great-when-you-can-write-a-meaningful-song-that-touches-people/) [Carrie Underwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-underwood/) > [Silly sis!!! love you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gold/silly-sis-love-you/) [Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gold/) > [I'll run through things over and over and over again in my head and think, "How could I have done that better?" Silly things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-dallas-howard/i-ll-run-through-things-over-and-over-and-over-again-in-my-head-and/) [Bryce Dallas Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-dallas-howard/) > [... there are far, far worse things in the living world than dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/there-are-far-far-worse-things-in-the-living-world-than-dying/) [J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/) > [Silly me, for a while I thought I actually meant something to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/silly-me-for-a-while-i-thought-i-actually-meant-something-to-someone/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [ The most important thing I learned \[...\] was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-extence/the-most-important-thing-i-learned-was-that-when-a-person-dies-he/) [Gavin Extence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-extence/) > [The boys had asked why, if it acted slowly, was it called quicksand. The Mollusks had replied that, as far as they were concerned,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ridley-pearson/the-boys-had-asked-why-if-it-acted-slowly-was-it-called-quicksand-the/) [Ridley Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ridley-pearson/) > [Lol u silly, I love u :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lol-u-silly-i-love-u/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I also found being called Sir rather silly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-pinter/i-also-found-being-called-sir-rather-silly/) [Harold Pinter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-pinter/) > [I spent 90% of my money on women and drink. The rest I wasted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-best/i-spent-90-of-my-money-on-women-and-drink-the-rest-i-wasted/) [George Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-best/) > [You perceive, now, that these things are all impossible except in a dream. You perceive that they are pure and puerile insanities, the silly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-perceive-now-that-these-things-are-all-impossible-except-in-a/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) [Browse all 2,164 Silly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silly/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To say that the universe exists is silly, because it says that the universe is one of the things in the universe. 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