---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I see this evident, that we willingly…"
description: "\"I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only the services that flatter our passions.\" — Michel de Montaigne"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg"
---

#  I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only…

![“I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only the services that flatter our passions.” quote by Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg)

> “I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only the services that flatter our passions.”

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

## About This Quote

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

People often praise only what aligns with their desires, ignoring deeper values.

**In simple terms:** Praise follows personal taste.

Key Takeaway

Seek truth beyond flattering opinions.

Themes

bias piety human nature

Mood

critical reflective

Type

philosophical advice

When to use this quote

- political discourse
- religious practice
- social media

Key Concepts

confirmation bias morality

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you value truth over comfort?
- How does bias shape your judgments?

A Different Perspective

Flattery can mask harmful ideas.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Flattery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flattery/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Piety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piety/) [Service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/service/)

## Related quotes

> [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/)

[Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/)

> [All day I think about it, then at night I say it. Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/all-day-i-think-about-it-then-at-night-i-say-it-where-did-i-come-from/)

[Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/)

> [A covenant is an agreement between God and man, an accord whose terms are set by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-todd-christofferson/a-covenant-is-an-agreement-between-god-and-man-an-accord-whose-terms/)

[D. Todd Christofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-todd-christofferson/)

> [The fineness which a hymn or psalm affords / If when the soul unto the lines accords.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/the-fineness-which-a-hymn-or-psalm-affords-if-when-the-soul-unto-the/)

[George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/)

> [If you want to accord with the Tao, just do your job, then let go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/if-you-want-to-accord-with-the-tao-just-do-your-job-then-let-go/)

[Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/)

> [The dominant propaganda systems have appropriated the term "globalization" to refer to the specific version of international economic integration that they favor, which privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-dominant-propaganda-systems-have-appropriated-the-term/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [Life is a cutup. And to pretend that you write or paint in a timeless vacuum is just simply . . . not .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/life-is-a-cutup-and-to-pretend-that-you-write-or-paint-in-a-timeless/)

[William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/)

> [It is a misfortune that necessity has induced men to accord greater license to this formidable engine, in order to obtain liberty, than can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-cooper/it-is-a-misfortune-that-necessity-has-induced-men-to-accord-greater/)

[James F. Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-cooper/)

> [“I'm not here to grant you the extraordinary love you never had for yourself. I'm here, on my own accord, to love you. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/i-m-not-here-to-grant-you-the-extraordinary-love-you-never-had-for/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [To act choicelessly is to act in accord with the situation. If someone throws a rock, you duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rami-m-shapiro/to-act-choicelessly-is-to-act-in-accord-with-the-situation-if-someone/)

[Rami M. Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rami-m-shapiro/)

> [It is a very high mind to which gratitude is not a painful sensation. If you wish to please, you will find it wiser…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/it-is-a-very-high-mind-to-which-gratitude-is-not-a-painful-sensation/)

[Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/)

> [I've never had a very quiet voice. I tried in choir to make it smaller, and it just didn't work out. And I listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-ditto/i-ve-never-had-a-very-quiet-voice-i-tried-in-choir-to-make-it-smaller/)

[Beth Ditto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-ditto/)

> [Christian obligation cannot be made to accord with a law of expediency. The Christian's maxims are, Do right because you are bound to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-landey-patton/christian-obligation-cannot-be-made-to-accord-with-a-law-of/)

Francis Landey Patton

> [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/)

[Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/)

> [All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/all-art-is-at-once-surface-and-symbol-those-who-go-beneath-the/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

## More by Michel de Montaigne

> [No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/no-man-is-exempt-from-saying-silly-things-the-mischief-is-to-say-them/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [The laws keep up their credit, not by being just, but because they are laws; 'tis the mystic foundation of their authority; they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-laws-keep-up-their-credit-not-by-being-just-but-because-they-are/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Every one rushes elsewhere and into the future, because no one wants to face one's own inner self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/every-one-rushes-elsewhere-and-into-the-future-because-no-one-wants/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Beauty is the true prerogative of women, and so peculiarly their own, that our sex, though naturally requiring another sort of feature, is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/beauty-is-the-true-prerogative-of-women-and-so-peculiarly-their-own/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [The height and value of true virtue consists in the facility, utility, and pleasure of its exercise; so far from difficulty, that boys, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-height-and-value-of-true-virtue-consists-in-the-facility-utility/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Fie on the eloquence that leaves us craving itself, not things!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/fie-on-the-eloquence-that-leaves-us-craving-itself-not-things/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [The plainest sign of wisdom is a continual cheerfulness: her state is like that of things in the regions above the moon, always clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-plainest-sign-of-wisdom-is-a-continual-cheerfulness-her-state-is/)

[Michel De Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [The corruption of the age is made up by the particular contribution of every individual man; some contribute treachery, others injustice, atheism, tyranny, avarice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-corruption-of-the-age-is-made-up-by-the-particular-contribution/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [If people must be talking about me, I would have it to be truthfully and justly. I would willingly return from the next world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/if-people-must-be-talking-about-me-i-would-have-it-to-be-truthfully/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Most pleasures embrace us but to strangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/most-pleasures-embrace-us-but-to-strangle/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [In true friendship, in which I am expert, I give myself to my friend more than I draw him to me. I not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/in-true-friendship-in-which-i-am-expert-i-give-myself-to-my-friend/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [There are as many and innumerable degrees of wit, as there are cubits between this and heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/there-are-as-many-and-innumerable-degrees-of-wit-as-there-are-cubits/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [A man has need of tough ears to hear himself fairly judged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/a-man-has-need-of-tough-ears-to-hear-himself-fairly-judged/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Lucius Arruntius killed himself, he said, to escape both the future and the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/lucius-arruntius-killed-himself-he-said-to-escape-both-the-future-and/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [I have a vocabulary all my own. I pass the time when itis wet and disagreeable. Whenit is fine I do not wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-have-a-vocabulary-all-my-own-i-pass-the-time-when-itis-wet-and/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

[Explore all 1,131 Michel de Montaigne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

## More Accord quotes

> [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/)

[Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/)

> [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/)

[Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/)

> [Christian obligation cannot be made to accord with a law of expediency. The Christian's maxims are, Do right because you are bound to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-landey-patton/christian-obligation-cannot-be-made-to-accord-with-a-law-of/)

Francis Landey Patton

> [I've never had a very quiet voice. I tried in choir to make it smaller, and it just didn't work out. And I listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-ditto/i-ve-never-had-a-very-quiet-voice-i-tried-in-choir-to-make-it-smaller/)

[Beth Ditto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-ditto/)

> [It is a very high mind to which gratitude is not a painful sensation. If you wish to please, you will find it wiser…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/it-is-a-very-high-mind-to-which-gratitude-is-not-a-painful-sensation/)

[Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/)

> [To act choicelessly is to act in accord with the situation. If someone throws a rock, you duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rami-m-shapiro/to-act-choicelessly-is-to-act-in-accord-with-the-situation-if-someone/)

[Rami M. Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rami-m-shapiro/)

> [“I'm not here to grant you the extraordinary love you never had for yourself. I'm here, on my own accord, to love you. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/i-m-not-here-to-grant-you-the-extraordinary-love-you-never-had-for/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [It is a misfortune that necessity has induced men to accord greater license to this formidable engine, in order to obtain liberty, than can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-cooper/it-is-a-misfortune-that-necessity-has-induced-men-to-accord-greater/)

[James F. Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-cooper/)

> [Life is a cutup. And to pretend that you write or paint in a timeless vacuum is just simply . . . not .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/life-is-a-cutup-and-to-pretend-that-you-write-or-paint-in-a-timeless/)

[William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/)

> [The dominant propaganda systems have appropriated the term "globalization" to refer to the specific version of international economic integration that they favor, which privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-dominant-propaganda-systems-have-appropriated-the-term/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [If you want to accord with the Tao, just do your job, then let go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/if-you-want-to-accord-with-the-tao-just-do-your-job-then-let-go/)

[Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/)

> [The fineness which a hymn or psalm affords / If when the soul unto the lines accords.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/the-fineness-which-a-hymn-or-psalm-affords-if-when-the-soul-unto-the/)

[George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/)

> [A covenant is an agreement between God and man, an accord whose terms are set by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-todd-christofferson/a-covenant-is-an-agreement-between-god-and-man-an-accord-whose-terms/)

[D. Todd Christofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-todd-christofferson/)

> [All day I think about it, then at night I say it. Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/all-day-i-think-about-it-then-at-night-i-say-it-where-did-i-come-from/)

[Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/)

> [All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/all-art-is-at-once-surface-and-symbol-those-who-go-beneath-the/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

Browse all 406 Accord quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only the services that flatter our passions.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michel de Montaigne"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-accord-to-piety-only-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Accord"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-accord-to-piety-only-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/michel-de-montaigne-142_accord_i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-acc_1018025.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I see this evident, that we willingly accord to piety only the services that flatter our passions.” — Michel de Montaigne",
                "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": "Michel de Montaigne",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I see this evident, that we...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-accord-to-piety-only-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-see-this-evident-that-we-willingly-accord-to-piety-only-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
