---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know you can't wash in the same river…"
description: "\"“I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know the river will bring new lights that you will not see I know we live slightly longer than a h..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg"
---

#  I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know…

![“I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know the river will bring new lights that you will not see I know we live slightly longer than a horse and not nearly as long as a crow I know this has troubled people before and will trouble those after me I know all this has been said a…” quote by Nazım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg)

> ““I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know the river will bring new lights that you will not see I know we live slightly longer than a horse and not nearly as long as a crow I know this has troubled people before and will trouble those after me I know all this has been said a thousand times before and will be said after me I didn't know I like the sky cloudy or clear the blue vault that Andrei watched on his back on the battlefield at Borodino ...””

[Nazım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

## About This Quote

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

The speaker reflects on impermanence, the fleeting nature of life, and how each generation repeats the same concerns while seeking new insights

**In simple terms:** Life is fleeting and repetitive, yet each era seeks fresh understanding

Key Takeaway

Embrace change and learn from past repetitions

Themes

impermanence history reflection

Mood

contemplative melancholic

Type

poetic philosophical

When to use this quote

- personal growth
- historical analysis
- philosophical contemplation

Key Concepts

existentialism cyclical patterns human condition

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we break cycles of repeated mistakes?
- What new perspectives can we bring to age-old problems?

A Different Perspective

Each generation faces similar struggles, limiting novelty

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/)

## Related quotes

> [“I wake up at cock crow and I know where I am. I'm in the parlour. I'm in the scullery. I'm in the cellar.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wake-up-at-cock-crow-and-i-know-where-i-am-i-m-in-the-parlour-i-m/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“I shall tell them this story against the background of the county I grew up in and along the river I know and do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-shall-tell-them-this-story-against-the-background-of-the-county-i/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“Only the most ignorant still believe, like Saint Augustine, that time is a river. We others know it is a delta: that it branches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-the-most-ignorant-still-believe-like-saint-augustine-that-time/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [TWENTY bridges from Tower to Kew - Wanted to know what the River knew, Twenty Bridges or twenty-two, For they were young, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/twenty-bridges-from-tower-to-kew-wanted-to-know-what-the-river-knew/)

[Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/)

> [“What does a river know about this and what does a tree know? And I, who am no more than those, what do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/what-does-a-river-know-about-this-and-what-does-a-tree-know-and-i-who/)

[Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/)

> [“It is not required that we know all of the details about every stretch of the river. Indeed, were we to know, it would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-anderson/it-is-not-required-that-we-know-all-of-the-details-about-every/)

[Jeffrey R. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-anderson/)

> [Twenty bridges from Tower to Kew — (Twenty bridges or twenty two) — Wanted to know what the River knew, For they were young,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/twenty-bridges-from-tower-to-kew-twenty-bridges-or-twenty-two-wanted/)

[Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/)

> [“The Tejo runs down from Spain And the Tejo goes into the sea in Portugal. Everybody knows that. But not many people know the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-caeiro/the-tejo-runs-down-from-spain-and-the-tejo-goes-into-the-sea-in/)

[Alberto Caeiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-caeiro/)

> [You know how a river goes on and on? That's my love for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-kephart/you-know-how-a-river-goes-on-and-on-that-s-my-love-for-you/)

[Beth Kephart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-kephart/)

> [We have an unknown distance yet to run, an unknown river to explore. What falls there are, we know not; what rocks beset the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley-powell/we-have-an-unknown-distance-yet-to-run-an-unknown-river-to-explore/)

[John Wesley Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley-powell/)

> [How could drops of water know themselves to be a river? Yet the river flows on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/how-could-drops-of-water-know-themselves-to-be-a-river-yet-the-river/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [“True love is being so in love that you run out of ways to say it. True love is having to google new and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-swan/true-love-is-being-so-in-love-that-you-run-out-of-ways-to-say-it-true/)

[Sharon Swan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-swan/)

> [“Let us not subside into a single mandatory way of thinking or feeling, immersed by a spirit of self-gratification. But let’s dig into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/let-us-not-subside-into-a-single-mandatory-way-of-thinking-or-feeling/)

[Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/)

> [But if I've heard this saying once, I've heard it a thousand times- everything happens for a reason. And possibly it does. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-lawler/but-if-i-ve-heard-this-saying-once-i-ve-heard-it-a-thousand-times/)

[Jerry Lawler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-lawler/)

> [ “The tremendous world I have inside my head. But how \[to\] free myself and free it without being torn to pieces. And a thousand… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-tremendous-world-i-have-inside-my-head-but-how-to-free-myself-and/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

## More by Nazım Hikmet

> [“Separation isn’t time or distance it’s the bridge between us finer than silk thread sharper than swords”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/separation-isn-t-time-or-distance-it-s-the-bridge-between-us-finer/)

[Nazım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“You Are My Drunkenness You are my drunkenness... I did not sober up, as if I can do that; I don't want to anyway.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/you-are-my-drunkenness-you-are-my-drunkenness-i-did-not-sober-up-as/)

[Nazim Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“I come and stand at every door But none can hear my silent tread I knock and yet remain unseen For I am dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-come-and-stand-at-every-door-but-none-can-hear-my-silent-tread-i/)

[Nazim Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“The life-loving, smart, good-hearted dead don't want forty days of mourning or say, "After me the deluge!" Leaving behind some helpful things - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/the-life-loving-smart-good-hearted-dead-don-t-want-forty-days-of/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“moonlight the falsest the most languid the most petit-bourgeois strikes me I like it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/moonlight-the-falsest-the-most-languid-the-most-petit-bourgeois/)

[Nazim Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“I like the sound of rain more than my voice. - Windows ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-like-the-sound-of-rain-more-than-my-voice-windows/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“The strangest of our powers Is the courage to live Knowing that we will die, Knowing nothing more true. - In the Snowy Night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/the-strangest-of-our-powers-is-the-courage-to-live-knowing-that-we/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“MY WOMAN My woman came with me as far as Brest, she got off the train and stayed on the platform, she grew smaller…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/my-woman-my-woman-came-with-me-as-far-as-brest-she-got-off-the-train/)

[Nazim Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“Haven't you ever thought of living unconsciously like bears, sniffing the earth, close to pears and the mossy dark, far from human voices and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/haven-t-you-ever-thought-of-living-unconsciously-like-bears-sniffing/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“Hayatı ıskalama lüksün yok senin!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/hayat-skalama-l-ks-n-yok-senin/)

[Nazım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“The worst is when people - knowingly or not - carry prison inside themselves. - 9-10 P.M. Poems ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/the-worst-is-when-people-knowingly-or-not-carry-prison-inside/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“Believe in seeds, earth, and the sea, but in people above all. Love clouds, machines, and books, but people above all. Grieve for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/believe-in-seeds-earth-and-the-sea-but-in-people-above-all-love/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“and the world is so huge so lovely its shores are so endless to live as one divines a masterpiece as one hears a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/and-the-world-is-so-huge-so-lovely-its-shores-are-so-endless-to-live/)

[Nazim Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“I want the right of life, of the leopard at the spring, of the seed splitting open- I want the right of the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-want-the-right-of-life-of-the-leopard-at-the-spring-of-the-seed/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

> [“Dil durmadan doğuran bir anadır..." (s.57)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/dil-durmadan-do-uran-bir-anad-r-s-57/)

[Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

[Explore all 37 Nazım Hikmet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/)

## More Love quotes

> [Whatever meaning 'Annie's Song' had for me on a personal level, there was also a larger context. It could just as easily have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denver/whatever-meaning-annie-s-song-had-for-me-on-a-personal-level-there/)

[John Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denver/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [I love going to Columbia, Missouri. That is a really underrated campus. It shocked me when I went there because I really didn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-herbstreit/i-love-going-to-columbia-missouri-that-is-a-really-underrated-campus/)

[Kirk Herbstreit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-herbstreit/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [We talk to God--that is prayer; God talks to us--that is inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-emilie-cady/we-talk-to-god-that-is-prayer-god-talks-to-us-that-is-inspiration/)

[H. Emilie Cady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-emilie-cady/)

> [I fell in love with social work, and that was my undoing as a poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rakosi/i-fell-in-love-with-social-work-and-that-was-my-undoing-as-a-poet/)

[Carl Rakosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rakosi/)

> [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/)

[Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/)

[Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/)

> [“To be loved by a man, truly loved, made a woman feel as if she could burst. Of course, Lia was strong and could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-anne/to-be-loved-by-a-man-truly-loved-made-a-woman-feel-as-if-she-could/)

[Melody Anne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-anne/)

> [So when you take those tears, don't look to see I'm alright. …\*Seal - Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-nickel/so-when-you-take-those-tears-don-t-look-to-see-i-m-alright-seal-violet/)

[Eric Nickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-nickel/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/)

[Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/)

> [I could program a 'fabulous, I love it' kind of hit season right now. I'm more interested in breaking boundaries, telling a story, defying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/i-could-program-a-fabulous-i-love-it-kind-of-hit-season-right-now-i-m/)

[George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/)

[Browse all 233,035 Love quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know the river will bring new lights that you will not see I know we live slightly longer than a horse and not nearly as long as a crow I know this has troubled people before and will trouble those after me I know all this has been said a thousand times before and will be said after me I didn't know I like the sky cloudy or clear the blue vault that Andrei watched on his back on the battlefield at Borodino ...”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Nazım Hikmet"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river-even-once-i-know-the-river/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Love"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river-even-once-i-know-the-river/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc6/naz-m-hikmet-7988_love_i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river_3118783.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I know you can't wash in the same river even once I know the river will bring new lights that you will not…” — Nazım Hikmet",
                "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": "Nazım Hikmet",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I know you can't wash in...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river-even-once-i-know-the-river/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/i-know-you-can-t-wash-in-the-same-river-even-once-i-know-the-river/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
