--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I learned to make my mind large, as the…" description: "\"I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for contradictions.\" — Maxine Hong Kingston" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png" --- # I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large… ![“I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for contradictions.” quote by Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png) > “I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for contradictions.” [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Expanding one's mind to accommodate contradictions allows for a broader, more inclusive perspective, mirroring the universe's vastness. **In simple terms:** Embrace contradictions to broaden thinking. Key Takeaway Cultivate an expansive, inclusive mindset. Themes open‑mindedness contradiction philosophy personal growth Mood contemplative inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - creative writing - conflict resolution - education - spiritual practice Key Concepts paradox acceptance cognitive flexibility Questions to Reflect On - How do you handle conflicting ideas? - When is it useful to hold opposing views? A Different Perspective It may cause indecision if contradictions are not reconciled. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contradictions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contradictions/) [Large](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/large/) [Large Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/large-universe-3044820/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Mind Large](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind-large-2461909/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Universe Large](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe-large-452894/) ## Related quotes > [I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for paradoxes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-universe-is-large-so-that-2/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [Baseball is a universe as large as life itself, and therefore all things in life, whether good or bad, whether tragic or comic, fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/baseball-is-a-universe-as-large-as-life-itself-and-therefore-all/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [The universe is large and old, and the ingredients for life as we know it are everywhere, so there's no reason to think that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-universe-is-large-and-old-and-the-ingredients-for-life-as-we-know/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The whole of the hydrogen on the earth might be transformed at once and the success of the experiment published at large to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-william-aston/the-whole-of-the-hydrogen-on-the-earth-might-be-transformed-at-once/) [Francis William Aston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-william-aston/) > [In the small matters trust the mind, in the large ones the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/in-the-small-matters-trust-the-mind-in-the-large-ones-the-heart/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [The true genius is a mind of large general powers, accidentally determined to some particular direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-true-genius-is-a-mind-of-large-general-powers-accidentally/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Small rooms or dwellings discipline the mind, large ones weaken it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/small-rooms-or-dwellings-discipline-the-mind-large-ones-weaken-it/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [The universe is very large, and its boundaries are not known very well, but it is still possible to define some kind of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/the-universe-is-very-large-and-its-boundaries-are-not-known-very-well/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [There are many, many books I've read and I think this is quite naïve actually because we all just try to uncover something. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-h-zewail/there-are-many-many-books-i-ve-read-and-i-think-this-is-quite-na-ve/) [Ahmed H. Zewail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-h-zewail/) > [And so The Snow Queen also became a story about the need to seek equilibrium, in our own lives, with the natural world, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-d-vinge/and-so-the-snow-queen-also-became-a-story-about-the-need-to-seek/) [Joan D. Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-d-vinge/) > [The whole Universe is a large joke. Everything in the Universe are just subdivisions of this joke. So why take anything too serious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-zappa/the-whole-universe-is-a-large-joke-everything-in-the-universe-are/) [Frank Zappa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-zappa/) > [Everything that can be found in the universe on a large scale is reflected in a human being on a small scale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-bardon/everything-that-can-be-found-in-the-universe-on-a-large-scale-is/) [Franz Bardon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-bardon/) > [The other way is the multiverse way. That says that maybe the universe we are in is one of a very large number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-other-way-is-the-multiverse-way-that-says-that-maybe-the-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We live on a hunk of rock and metal that circles a humdrum star that is one of 400 billion other stars that make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/we-live-on-a-hunk-of-rock-and-metal-that-circles-a-humdrum-star-that/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [:)So Micayla didn't quite understand the meaning of the word paradox, so like most things I struggle to understand or make sense of I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/micayla-ludick-basson/so-micayla-didn-t-quite-understand-the-meaning-of-the-word-paradox-so/) [Micayla Ludick Basson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/micayla-ludick-basson/) ## More by Maxine Hong Kingston > [“What are you going to do for a living? Yea, you're going to have to work because you can't be a housewife. Somebody has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/what-are-you-going-to-do-for-a-living-yea-you-re-going-to-have-to/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [The way I'm going now is to focus on peace, to create peace. As Sister Corita said, "I don't go to anti-war rallies. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/the-way-i-m-going-now-is-to-focus-on-peace-to-create-peace-as-sister/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [The images of peace are ephemeral. The language of peace is subtle. The reasons for peace, the definitions of peace, the very idea of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/the-images-of-peace-are-ephemeral-the-language-of-peace-is-subtle-the/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [Gods you avoid won't hurt you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/gods-you-avoid-won-t-hurt-you/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [We're all under the same sky and walk the same earth; we're alive together during the same moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/we-re-all-under-the-same-sky-and-walk-the-same-earth-we-re-alive/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [“The villagers were speeding up the circling of events because she was too shortsighted to see that her infidelity had already harmed the village,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/the-villagers-were-speeding-up-the-circling-of-events-because-she-was/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [When I'm teaching, I tell my students: It's all process. Don't even think of product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/when-i-m-teaching-i-tell-my-students-it-s-all-process-don-t-even/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [I'm so proud that my offspring became a musician. I'm full of awe that we are able to have a whole family live the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-m-so-proud-that-my-offspring-became-a-musician-i-m-full-of-awe-that/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [Chinese Americans, when you try to understand what things in you are Chinese, how do you separate what is peculiar to childhood, to poverty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/chinese-americans-when-you-try-to-understand-what-things-in-you-are/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [When I am composing, I try to clear my mind of having to publish, or having to sell a book or find readers. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/when-i-am-composing-i-try-to-clear-my-mind-of-having-to-publish-or/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [“Upon Good Earth, lay the body down, open the mouth wide, let song rush through.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/upon-good-earth-lay-the-body-down-open-the-mouth-wide-let-song-rush/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [To me success means effectiveness in the world, that I am able to carry my ideas and values into the world--that I am able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/to-me-success-means-effectiveness-in-the-world-that-i-am-able-to/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [Do the right thing by whoever crosses your path. Those coincidental people are your people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/do-the-right-thing-by-whoever-crosses-your-path-those-coincidental/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [“To write out the precepts again, we contend with them, and keep them; we build our humanity, and keep our humanity alive... Thay has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/to-write-out-the-precepts-again-we-contend-with-them-and-keep-them-we/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [And I had to get out of hating range.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/and-i-had-to-get-out-of-hating-range/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) [Explore all 74 Maxine Hong Kingston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) ## More Contradictions quotes > [:)So Micayla didn't quite understand the meaning of the word paradox, so like most things I struggle to understand or make sense of I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/micayla-ludick-basson/so-micayla-didn-t-quite-understand-the-meaning-of-the-word-paradox-so/) [Micayla Ludick Basson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/micayla-ludick-basson/) > [I've realized that life is indeed full of contradictions. Sometimes its crazy to be sane.You need to fall to fly. People suffer because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ve-realized-that-life-is-indeed-full-of-contradictions-sometimes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Contradictions in human character are one of its most consistent notes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-spark/contradictions-in-human-character-are-one-of-its-most-consistent-notes/) [Muriel Spark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-spark/) > [There are evidently limits to the achievements of science; and there are irresolvable contradictions both between prosperity and virtue, and between happiness and ''the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/there-are-evidently-limits-to-the-achievements-of-science-and-there/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [The reflection of nature in man's thought must be understood not lifelessly but in the eternal process of movement, the arising of contradictions and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/the-reflection-of-nature-in-man-s-thought-must-be-understood-not/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [“Seemed she should learn to smile when she was unhappy, to stop laughing, to speak up, to never speak to strangers, to share guilt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-aylett/seemed-she-should-learn-to-smile-when-she-was-unhappy-to-stop/) [Steve Aylett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-aylett/) > [We both wondered whether these contradictions that one can't avoid if one begins to think of time and space may not really be proofs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-machen/we-both-wondered-whether-these-contradictions-that-one-can-t-avoid-if/) [Arthur Machen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-machen/) > [I spend a great deal of time on research, on finding all the available accounts of a scene or incident, finding out all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/i-spend-a-great-deal-of-time-on-research-on-finding-all-the-available/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [We crave support in vanity, as we do in religion, and never forgive contradictions in that sphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/we-crave-support-in-vanity-as-we-do-in-religion-and-never-forgive/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [“ If "If freckles were lovely, and day was night, And measles were nice and a lie warn't a lie, Life would be delight,--…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings-2/if-if-freckles-were-lovely-and-day-was-night-and-measles-were-nice/) [E.E. Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings-2/) > [There is, in short, no 'spatial fix' that can contain the contradictions of capitalism in the long run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harvey/there-is-in-short-no-spatial-fix-that-can-contain-the-contradictions/) [David Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harvey/) > [“A true god surely cannot have been born of a girl, nor died on the gibbet, nor be eaten in a piece of dough...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/a-true-god-surely-cannot-have-been-born-of-a-girl-nor-died-on-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Songwriters such as Alanis Morissette write about the constant balance of contradictions, and that's something I adhere to in my life and work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/songwriters-such-as-alanis-morissette-write-about-the-constant/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [“One of the things about Ike that makes him so indisputably a hero is that he doesn't leave his own contradictions to the effete…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leyner/one-of-the-things-about-ike-that-makes-him-so-indisputably-a-hero-is/) [Mark Leyner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leyner/) > [When an individual does not become conscious of their inner contradictions, the world acts out the conflict and is torn in opposite halves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/when-an-individual-does-not-become-conscious-of-their-inner/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 348 Contradictions quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contradictions/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for contradictions.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maxine Hong Kingston" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-universe-is-large-so-that-3/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contradictions" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-universe-is-large-so-that-3/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2fa/maxine-hong-kingston-9297_contradictions_i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-u_2820696.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I learned to make my mind large, as the universe is large, so that there is room for contradictions.” — Maxine Hong Kingston", "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": "Maxine Hong Kingston", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I learned to make my mind...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-universe-is-large-so-that-3/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/i-learned-to-make-my-mind-large-as-the-universe-is-large-so-that-3/#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 } } ] } ```