--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The highest task of education is—to take…" description: "\"“The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s transcendental self—to be at once the I of its I. It is all the less to be wondered at that ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg" --- # The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s… ![“The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s transcendental self—to be at once the I of its I. It is all the less to be wondered at that we lack complete insight and understanding for others. Without perfect self-understanding one will never learn to truly understand others.” quote by Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg) > ““The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s transcendental self—to be at once the I of its I. It is all the less to be wondered at that we lack complete insight and understanding for others. Without perfect self-understanding one will never learn to truly understand others.”” [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True education requires mastering one's transcendent self, which then enables genuine understanding of others. **In simple terms:** Self‑mastery is key to understanding others. Key Takeaway Cultivate self‑knowledge first. Themes education self‑knowledge empathy philosophy Mood reflective serene Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - mindful meditation - philosophical study - mentor training - conflict resolution Key Concepts transcendence self‑realization other‑understanding Questions to Reflect On - How does knowing yourself help you relate to others? - What practices deepen transcendent self‑awareness? A Different Perspective Self‑focus can become self‑absorption if not applied outwardly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Learn Truly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-truly-5529666/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Self understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-understanding/) [Transcendental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transcendental/) [Transcendental Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transcendental-self-1298997/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) ## Related quotes > [There comes a time in the seeker's life when he discovers that he is at once the lover and the beloved. The aspiring soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/there-comes-a-time-in-the-seeker-s-life-when-he-discovers-that-he-is-2/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [“A person does not reach the pinnacle of self-realization without relentlessly exploring the parameters of the self, exhausting their psychic energy coming to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/a-person-does-not-reach-the-pinnacle-of-self-realization-without/) [Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/) > [The ancient Greek philosopher Epictetus taught his students that what happens to them is not as important as what they believe happens to them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-krippner/the-ancient-greek-philosopher-epictetus-taught-his-students-that-what/) [Stanley Krippner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-krippner/) > [“He often acted out of impulse just so that he could then devote his leisure hours to mulling why; he relished self-analysis, though he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/he-often-acted-out-of-impulse-just-so-that-he-could-then-devote-his/) [Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/) > [“Provocative. Striking. Rachel Resnick is a virtuoso on the page. Her fearless examination of the desperate thirst to find love is guaranteed to break…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-dunn/provocative-striking-rachel-resnick-is-a-virtuoso-on-the-page-her/) [Samantha Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-dunn/) > [“the idea that God is inseparable from humans, as it is a force we all live with within ourselves, can bring us to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amitai-rosengart/the-idea-that-god-is-inseparable-from-humans-as-it-is-a-force-we-all/) [Amitai Rosengart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amitai-rosengart/) > [“A positive response to any situation is the key to the feeling of well-being. The more we practice it the easier it becomes. Gradually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raphael-zernoff/a-positive-response-to-any-situation-is-the-key-to-the-feeling-of/) [Raphael Zernoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raphael-zernoff/) > [Psychiatry is a strange field because, unlike any other field of medicine, you never really finish. Your greatest instrument is you, yourself, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-d-yalom/psychiatry-is-a-strange-field-because-unlike-any-other-field-of/) [Irvin D. Yalom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-d-yalom/) > [“The person in the mirror is waiting for you to believe that their reflection is greater than what can be contained by a thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/the-person-in-the-mirror-is-waiting-for-you-to-believe-that-their/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [If we reverse the outer shell and the essence--in other words, consider the outer shell the essence and the essence only the shell--our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-we-reverse-the-outer-shell-and-the-essence-in-other-words-consider/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You attract what you lack, not what you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-delawar/you-attract-what-you-lack-not-what-you-are/) [Omar Delawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-delawar/) > [“When you love people, you are curious about who they are, what they think, and how they feel. You watch them closely, wondering about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vironika-tugaleva/when-you-love-people-you-are-curious-about-who-they-are-what-they/) [Vironika Tugaleva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vironika-tugaleva/) > [It is that the individual has within him or herself vast resources for self-understanding, for altering the self-concept basic attitudes, and his or her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/it-is-that-the-individual-has-within-him-or-herself-vast-resources/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [“The measure of who you are will always exceed measurement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/the-measure-of-who-you-are-will-always-exceed-measurement/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“Instead of labelling your emotions as problems to solve, you can see them as signals to interpret. Instead of judging your desires as shameful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vironika-tugaleva/instead-of-labelling-your-emotions-as-problems-to-solve-you-can-see/) [Vironika Tugaleva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vironika-tugaleva/) ## More by Novalis > [To get to know a truth properly, one must polemicize it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/to-get-to-know-a-truth-properly-one-must-polemicize-it/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Character is a wish for a perfect education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/character-is-a-wish-for-a-perfect-education/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [“Whoever sees life other than as a self-destroying illusion is himself still preoccupied with life. Life must not be a novel that is given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/whoever-sees-life-other-than-as-a-self-destroying-illusion-is-himself/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [“Inspiration without intellect is useless and dangerous; and the poet will be able to perform few wonders, when he is astonished by wonders.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/inspiration-without-intellect-is-useless-and-dangerous-and-the-poet/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [It is not merely the multiplicity of tints, the gladness of tone, or the balminess of the air which delight in the spring; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/it-is-not-merely-the-multiplicity-of-tints-the-gladness-of-tone-or/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [“The world must be romanticized. Only in that way will one rediscover its original senses. Romanticization is nothing less than a qualitative raising of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/the-world-must-be-romanticized-only-in-that-way-will-one-rediscover/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Nature is an aeolian harp, a musical instrument whose tones are the re-echo of higher strings within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/nature-is-an-aeolian-harp-a-musical-instrument-whose-tones-are-the-re/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Our bodies are molded rivers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/our-bodies-are-molded-rivers/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Where are we really going? Always home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/where-are-we-really-going-always-home/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Darwin remarks that we are less dazzled by the light at waking, if we have been dreaming of visible objects. Happy are those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/darwin-remarks-that-we-are-less-dazzled-by-the-light-at-waking-if-we/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [We are near waking when we dream we are dreaming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/we-are-near-waking-when-we-dream-we-are-dreaming/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Man has his being in truth--if he sacrifices truth he sacrifices himself. Whoever betrays truth betrays himself. It is not a question of lying--but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/man-has-his-being-in-truth-if-he-sacrifices-truth-he-sacrifices/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Every beloved object is the center point of a paradise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/every-beloved-object-is-the-center-point-of-a-paradise/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [In a work of art, chaos must shimmer through the veil of order.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/in-a-work-of-art-chaos-must-shimmer-through-the-veil-of-order/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [Many things are too delicate to be thought; many more, to be spoken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/many-things-are-too-delicate-to-be-thought-many-more-to-be-spoken/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) [Explore all 167 Novalis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) [Ioannes Amos Commenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ioannes-amos-commenius/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) [H.D. (Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s transcendental self—to be at once the I of its I. It is all the less to be wondered at that we lack complete insight and understanding for others. Without perfect self-understanding one will never learn to truly understand others.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Novalis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take-command-of-one-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take-command-of-one-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1f/novalis-1989_education_the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take_3129460.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The highest task of education is—to take command of one’s transcendental self—to be at once the I of its I…” — Novalis", "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": "Novalis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The highest task of education is—to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take-command-of-one-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/the-highest-task-of-education-is-to-take-command-of-one-s/#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 } } ] } ```