--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What keeps us playing our parts and going…" description: "\"What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round the three lower worlds is not a Divine dictate, but ourselves, our own will-to-live, which co..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg" --- # What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round… ![“What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round the three lower worlds is not a Divine dictate, but ourselves, our own will-to-live, which comes from within ourselves.” quote by Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg) > “What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round the three lower worlds is not a Divine dictate, but ourselves, our own will-to-live, which comes from within ourselves.” [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Our drive to act comes from inner will, not external commands or divine orders. **In simple terms:** We act because we want to, not because we must. Key Takeaway Cultivate inner motivation. Themes willpower autonomy purpose Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal goals - creative projects - spiritual practice - team leadership Key Concepts existentialism self-determination Questions to Reflect On - What inner desire fuels your daily actions? - Can external expectations ever be beneficial? A Different Perspective External pressures can also inspire action, challenging pure self‑driven motivation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Keeps Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keeps-playing-2290079/) [Lower Worlds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lower-worlds-2717249/) [Parts Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parts-going-2717250/) [Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing/) [Playing Parts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing-parts-522567/) [Rounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rounds/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Will to live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will-to-live/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“I was playing for keeps and he was playing for fun.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/i-was-playing-for-keeps-and-he-was-playing-for-fun/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [“I gotta know—are my parts going to rot and fall off, or am I forever frozen in youthful perfection?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-vincent/i-gotta-know-are-my-parts-going-to-rot-and-fall-off-or-am-i-forever/) [Rachel Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-vincent/) > [All the parts of us that we ever were are always going to be with us. You make space to carry them and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/all-the-parts-of-us-that-we-ever-were-are-always-going-to-be-with-us/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I'm just naturally gravitating towards different things. As you mature, different subject matters. And as you're older, you can't play as many parts, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/i-m-just-naturally-gravitating-towards-different-things-as-you-mature/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [There is nothing wrong in playing parts in a good film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soni-razdan/there-is-nothing-wrong-in-playing-parts-in-a-good-film/) [Soni Razdan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soni-razdan/) > [I've always made a point of playing parts where weight has nothing to do with it, and not just weight but looks. It's about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-baker/i-ve-always-made-a-point-of-playing-parts-where-weight-has-nothing-to/) [Sarah Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-baker/) > [Playing our parts. Yes, we all have to do that and from childhood on, I have found that my own character has been much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-davis/playing-our-parts-yes-we-all-have-to-do-that-and-from-childhood-on-i/) [Bette Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-davis/) > [If they didn't call you a tough guy, then what else would they call you? Something worse than that? I'm playing parts, and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-winstone/if-they-didn-t-call-you-a-tough-guy-then-what-else-would-they-call/) [Ray Winstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-winstone/) > [I now want to be playing parts more interesting to me and more exciting to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-langella/i-now-want-to-be-playing-parts-more-interesting-to-me-and-more/) [Frank Langella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-langella/) > [My parents would have their friends over - their friends who thought, 'How can you live without a TV?' By the time they left,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-galecki/my-parents-would-have-their-friends-over-their-friends-who-thought/) [Johnny Galecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-galecki/) > [I like to grow as an actor, and you can do that by playing parts that are unfamiliar to you and uncomfortable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-schwimmer/i-like-to-grow-as-an-actor-and-you-can-do-that-by-playing-parts-that/) [David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-schwimmer/) > [As an actress, I should be playing my parts with conviction; otherwise, the audience won't be convinced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shruti-haasan/as-an-actress-i-should-be-playing-my-parts-with-conviction-otherwise/) [Shruti Haasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shruti-haasan/) > [When you do watch a band that are actually playing their parts, that's so fun to watch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-rowsell/when-you-do-watch-a-band-that-are-actually-playing-their-parts-that-s/) [Ellie Rowsell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-rowsell/) > [When you're directing, I feel like I'm playing all the parts, without the make-up. I really get into the heads of the characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/griffin-dunne/when-you-re-directing-i-feel-like-i-m-playing-all-the-parts-without/) [Griffin Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/griffin-dunne/) > [There was a reason these boys were still alive, though. Something made them stronger than the other kids, the ones who had died in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-higson/there-was-a-reason-these-boys-were-still-alive-though-something-made/) [Charlie Higson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-higson/) ## More by Nilakanta Sri Ram > [No individual can ultimately fail. The Divinity which descends into humanity is bound to re-gain its original state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/no-individual-can-ultimately-fail-the-divinity-which-descends-into/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [What we call "willing" is often but an inflation of ourselves, attended by a hardening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-we-call-willing-is-often-but-an-inflation-of-ourselves-attended/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Let the one great aim and ideal be to lift up and universalize our affection, so that while it is as deep and intimate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/let-the-one-great-aim-and-ideal-be-to-lift-up-and-universalize-our/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Wisdom is not knowledge, but lies in the use we make of knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/wisdom-is-not-knowledge-but-lies-in-the-use-we-make-of-knowledge/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [We have yet to discover the true incentive, the inner Will which will have an over-mastering effect upon our lives, and yet be present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/we-have-yet-to-discover-the-true-incentive-the-inner-will-which-will/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Ideal Love, stepped down to the level of the practical, day-to-day life, must mean the service of each to all within his or her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/ideal-love-stepped-down-to-the-level-of-the-practical-day-to-day-life/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [The will is a product of integrity, not a child of contradictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/the-will-is-a-product-of-integrity-not-a-child-of-contradictions/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [What man really seeks is not perfection which is in the future, but fulfillment which is ever in the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-man-really-seeks-is-not-perfection-which-is-in-the-future-but/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [There is no wisdom without love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/there-is-no-wisdom-without-love/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Each must discover his own way in life, and that way lies in his heart. Let him delve deeply into the depths of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/each-must-discover-his-own-way-in-life-and-that-way-lies-in-his-heart/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [He is the wise man who has by perfect living gained the instinct of rightness by which he guides himself, whether in thought or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/he-is-the-wise-man-who-has-by-perfect-living-gained-the-instinct-of/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Let your courage mount with difficulties. There would be no will if there were no resistance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/let-your-courage-mount-with-difficulties-there-would-be-no-will-if/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [What each one of us fundamentally needs is that inner peace which is to be discovered solely within ourselves, which no-one else can give,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-each-one-of-us-fundamentally-needs-is-that-inner-peace-which-is/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Man is more than his environment. It is from the innate quality of the Spirit in him, his inner storehouse, that he draws those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/man-is-more-than-his-environment-it-is-from-the-innate-quality-of-the/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) > [Wisdom is not a matter of study, but a matter of living, and of sure action which rises above opposites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/wisdom-is-not-a-matter-of-study-but-a-matter-of-living-and-of-sure/) [Nilakanta Sri Ram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) [Explore all 18 Nilakanta Sri Ram quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/) ## More Divine quotes > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/) [Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Monsters are divine portents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/monsters-are-divine-portents/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Evil may mar the divine image and cloud its brilliance, but it cannot destroy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/evil-may-mar-the-divine-image-and-cloud-its-brilliance-but-it-cannot/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [Coercion is the basis of every law in the universe,--human or divine. A law is not law without coercion behind it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/coercion-is-the-basis-of-every-law-in-the-universe-human-or-divine-a/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Silence tells the seeker in us to love, to love himself. It tells us it is wrong to hate ourselves because of our imperfections.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/silence-tells-the-seeker-in-us-to-love-to-love-himself-it-tells-us-it/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [Friend, you are a divine mingle-mangle of guts and stardust. So hang in there! If doors opened for me, they can open for anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-capra/friend-you-are-a-divine-mingle-mangle-of-guts-and-stardust-so-hang-in/) [Frank Capra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-capra/) > [A woman is more influenced by what she divines than by what she is told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninon-de-l-enclos/a-woman-is-more-influenced-by-what-she-divines-than-by-what-she-is/) [Ninon de L'Enclos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninon-de-l-enclos/) [Browse all 4,543 Divine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round the three lower worlds is not a Divine dictate, but ourselves, our own will-to-live, which comes from within ourselves.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nilakanta Sri Ram" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-going-round-and-round-the-three/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Divine" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-going-round-and-round-the-three/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/268/nilakanta-sri-ram-29301_divine_what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-goin_279807.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What keeps us playing our parts and going round and round the three lower worlds is not a Divine dictate…” — Nilakanta Sri Ram", "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": "Nilakanta Sri Ram", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nilakanta-sri-ram/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What keeps us playing our parts...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-going-round-and-round-the-three/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nilakanta-sri-ram/what-keeps-us-playing-our-parts-and-going-round-and-round-the-three/#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 } } ] } ```