--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We do not always see the things that are…" description: "\"We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase after rainbows.\" — Paramahansa Yogananda" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg" --- # We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We… ![“We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase after rainbows.” quote by Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg) > “We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase after rainbows.” [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) ## 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 overlook immediate blessings while chasing distant, idealized goals. **In simple terms:** Notice nearby riches, not just distant dreams. Key Takeaway Appreciate present opportunities. Themes mindfulness contentment perception Mood contemplative inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career decisions - financial planning - personal relationships Key Concepts spirituality psychology Questions to Reflect On - What “rainbows” are you chasing that ignore nearby value? - How can you balance present appreciation with future aspirations? A Different Perspective Focusing only on the present can limit ambition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Rainbow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rainbow/) [Rainbows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rainbows/) [Riches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/riches/) ## Related quotes > [We will continue to chase rainbows unless we recognize that they are rainbows and there is no pot of gold at the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ravitch/we-will-continue-to-chase-rainbows-unless-we-recognize-that-they-are/) [Diane Ravitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ravitch/) > [Those who want the fewest things are nearest to the gods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/those-who-want-the-fewest-things-are-nearest-to-the-gods/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“I shall ne'er chase rainbows again, Knowing no pot o' gold awaits at the end. My Irish treasure is not there. For ye, my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/i-shall-ne-er-chase-rainbows-again-knowing-no-pot-o-gold-awaits-at/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > ["You know that it is quite preposterous of you to chase rainbows," said the sane person to the poet. "Yet it would be rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-william-hodgson-crosland/you-know-that-it-is-quite-preposterous-of-you-to-chase-rainbows-said/) Thomas William Hodgson Crosland > [A man's best things are nearest him, Lie close about his feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-monckton-milnes-1st-baron-houghton/a-man-s-best-things-are-nearest-him-lie-close-about-his-feet/) [Richard Monckton Milnes, 1st Baron Houghton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-monckton-milnes-1st-baron-houghton/) > [The best things are nearest: breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/the-best-things-are-nearest-breath-in-your-nostrils-light-in-your/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [There was an awful rainbow once in heaven: We know her woof, her texture; she is given In the dull catalogue of common things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/there-was-an-awful-rainbow-once-in-heaven-we-know-her-woof-her/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [A rainbow was created with unique and different colors; together they standout as one whole beautiful thing. So are we.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katya-bertrand/a-rainbow-was-created-with-unique-and-different-colors-together-they/) Katya Bertrand > [It takes two loving hearts to form a successful relationship, just like a rainbow, it will need the rain and the sun to create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chee-vai-tang/it-takes-two-loving-hearts-to-form-a-successful-relationship-just/) [Chee Vai Tang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chee-vai-tang/) > [What is Love? Listen! It is the rainbow that stands out, in all its glorious many-colored hues, illuminating and making glad again the dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinclair-lewis/what-is-love-listen-it-is-the-rainbow-that-stands-out-in-all-its/) [Sinclair Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinclair-lewis/) > [“Rainbows are yesterday's storm...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nanette-l-avery/rainbows-are-yesterday-s-storm/) [Nanette L. Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nanette-l-avery/) > [Mostly we just add to the piles of rainbow glass that's been blown off the exteriors of the cany-colored buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/mostly-we-just-add-to-the-piles-of-rainbow-glass-that-s-been-blown/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“I swear you must have a rainbow shooting out of your ass, you're so bright and shiny and wonderful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-rockland/i-swear-you-must-have-a-rainbow-shooting-out-of-your-ass-you-re-so/) [Kate Rockland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-rockland/) > [Since 'coming out,' I've marched in gay pride parades all around the world, I've filled my home full of rainbow tat and I've become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-carr/since-coming-out-i-ve-marched-in-gay-pride-parades-all-around-the/) [Liz Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-carr/) > [“Anytime I see a rainbow, what comes into my mind is how skillful and talented someone was to create an ark that didn't leak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/anytime-i-see-a-rainbow-what-comes-into-my-mind-is-how-skillful-and/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) ## More by Paramahansa Yogananda > [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Love cannot be had for the asking; it comes only as a gift from the heart of another](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/love-cannot-be-had-for-the-asking-it-comes-only-as-a-gift-from-the/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [He who is persistent will realize God. So try your best to make meditation a regular experience in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/he-who-is-persistent-will-realize-god-so-try-your-best-to-make/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Truth is exact correspondence with reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/truth-is-exact-correspondence-with-reality/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [We should bathe our spirits in the deep, pure feeling that stirs within us when we gaze on the glories of His creation. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/we-should-bathe-our-spirits-in-the-deep-pure-feeling-that-stirs/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Since you alone are responsible for your thoughts, only you can change them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/since-you-alone-are-responsible-for-your-thoughts-only-you-can-change/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Mankind is engaged in an eternal quest for that ‘something else' he hopes will bring him happiness, complete and unending.For those individual souls who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/mankind-is-engaged-in-an-eternal-quest-for-that-something-else-he/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Just as oil is present in every part of the olive, so love permeates every part of creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/just-as-oil-is-present-in-every-part-of-the-olive-so-love-permeates/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [The mother's love is not given to us to spoil us with indulgence, but to soften our hearts, that we may in turn soften…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/the-mother-s-love-is-not-given-to-us-to-spoil-us-with-indulgence-but/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [“If one busies himself with an outer display of scriptural wealth, what time is left for silent inward diving after the priceless pearls?” Sri”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/if-one-busies-himself-with-an-outer-display-of-scriptural-wealth-what/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [When you meditate the glory of the Divine shines forth. You realize then that all along there was something tremendous within you and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/when-you-meditate-the-glory-of-the-divine-shines-forth-you-realize/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [He who knows his soul knows this truth: " I am beyond everything finite; I I now see that the Spirit, alone in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/he-who-knows-his-soul-knows-this-truth-i-am-beyond-everything-finite/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Possession of material riches, without inner peace, is like dying of thirst while bathing in a lake. If material poverty is to be avoided,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/possession-of-material-riches-without-inner-peace-is-like-dying-of/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [“Physicians must carry on their work of healing through God’s laws as applied to matter.” But he extolled the superiority of mental therapy, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/physicians-must-carry-on-their-work-of-healing-through-god-s-laws-as/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [If you have a strong mind and plant in it a firm resolve, you can change your destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/if-you-have-a-strong-mind-and-plant-in-it-a-firm-resolve-you-can/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) [Explore all 466 Paramahansa Yogananda quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) ## More Hands quotes > [When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. I think the writers showed bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/when-i-passed-the-chancellor-he-arose-waved-his-hand-at-me-and-i/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [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/) > [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/) [Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/) > [Then come to realize that you're making mountains out of molehills. Realize how petty you've become. Sure, it may feel like you can't get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/then-come-to-realize-that-you-re-making-mountains-out-of-molehills/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My folks tried to make a preacher of me and missed by a narrow margin… I would have made a good one if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/my-folks-tried-to-make-a-preacher-of-me-and-missed-by-a-narrow-margin/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [When you put your hand on the Bible, you are saying something much stronger than just telling your peers that you're going to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-greenwood/when-you-put-your-hand-on-the-bible-you-are-saying-something-much/) [Lee Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-greenwood/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“for they are all the work of his hands?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zondervan/for-they-are-all-the-work-of-his-hands/) Zondervan > [I nibbled my lower lip. "If you could see into my past just by touching my back, you'd have a hard time resisting the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/i-nibbled-my-lower-lip-if-you-could-see-into-my-past-just-by-touching/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [My happiness is in my hands not between another person hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hero/my-happiness-is-in-my-hands-not-between-another-person-hands/) [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hero/) Browse all 18,228 Hands quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase after rainbows.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paramahansa Yogananda" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are-nearest-to-us-we-pass-by/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hands" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are-nearest-to-us-we-pass-by/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c3/paramahansa-yogananda-556_hands_we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are_1239853.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase…” — Paramahansa Yogananda", "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": "Paramahansa Yogananda", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We do not always see the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are-nearest-to-us-we-pass-by/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/we-do-not-always-see-the-things-that-are-nearest-to-us-we-pass-by/#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 } } ] } ```