---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It takes a huge effort to free yourself…"
description: "\"It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you’re capable of far more than you imagined. You ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg"
---

#  It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but…

![“It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you’re capable of far more than you imagined. You live in this vast body called the Universe, which contains all the solutions and all the problems. Visit your soul; don’t visit your past. The…” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg)

> “It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you’re capable of far more than you imagined. You live in this vast body called the Universe, which contains all the solutions and all the problems. Visit your soul; don’t visit your past. The Universe goes through many mutations and carries the past with it. We call each of those mutations a ‘life,’ but just as the cells in your body change and yet you remain the same, so time does not pass, it merely changes.”

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

## About This Quote

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

Personal growth requires letting go of past memories; the universe constantly changes, yet identity persists

**In simple terms:** Release past, embrace change

Key Takeaway

Let go of past, evolve

Themes

growth identity change

Mood

reflective philosophical

Type

self‑help spiritual

When to use this quote

- therapy
- creative projects
- spiritual practice

Key Concepts

memory universal continuity self‑realization

Questions to Reflect On

- What memories hold you back?
- How can you align personal growth with universal change?

A Different Perspective

Focusing on past can hinder present progress

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Body change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-change/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Free yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-yourself/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Our past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-past/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Your past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-past/) [Your soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-soul/)

## Related quotes

> [It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you're capable of far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-but-when-you/)

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

> [“It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory … visit your soul; don’t visit your past”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-visit-your-soul/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [It takes a huge effort to free yourself from a memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-a-memory/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [This fact immediately suggested a singular event - that at some time in the distant past the universe began expanding from an extremely small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/this-fact-immediately-suggested-a-singular-event-that-at-some-time-in/)

[Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/)

> [“In the past, I walk between green lawns, surrounded by golden stone. In the past, I am brilliant and I am happy and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-hall/in-the-past-i-walk-between-green-lawns-surrounded-by-golden-stone-in/)

[Alexis Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-hall/)

> [Spiritual growth involves giving up the stories of your past so the universe can write a new one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/spiritual-growth-involves-giving-up-the-stories-of-your-past-so-the/)

[Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/)

> [The trouble with science fiction is that you can write about everything: time, space, all the future, all the past, all of the universe,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-j-klass/the-trouble-with-science-fiction-is-that-you-can-write-about/)

Philip J. Klass

> [Obviously from 12-years-old to 16-years-old, your body changes and that's nothing to be embarrassed about, but boy I was!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coco-rocha/obviously-from-12-years-old-to-16-years-old-your-body-changes-and/)

[Coco Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coco-rocha/)

> [A pretty face will get old,a nice body will change,but a nice women will always b a nice women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-pretty-face-will-get-old-a-nice-body-will-change-but-a-nice-women/)

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

> [We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/we-but-mirror-the-world-all-the-tendencies-present-in-the-outer-world/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [I got into animals by drawing hair follicles. I liked drawing hair, and from that I got into feathers and fur, then into images…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiki-smith/i-got-into-animals-by-drawing-hair-follicles-i-liked-drawing-hair-and/)

[Kiki Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiki-smith/)

> [To all of a sudden go from feeling almost invincible to being temporarily paralyzed to then having rods and screws in my neck and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyson-kidd/to-all-of-a-sudden-go-from-feeling-almost-invincible-to-being/)

[Tyson Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyson-kidd/)

> [Even your own memory changes over time because of circumstances or even because your body changes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-ronk/even-your-own-memory-changes-over-time-because-of-circumstances-or/)

[Martha Ronk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-ronk/)

> [The human body has been designed to resist an infinite number of changes and attacks brought about by its environment. The secret of good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-johnson/the-human-body-has-been-designed-to-resist-an-infinite-number-of/)

Harry Johnson

> [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/)

[Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/)

## More by Paulo Coelho

> [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/)

> [Love will never separate a man from his personal legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/love-will-never-separate-a-man-from-his-personal-legend/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [To love is to be in communion with the other and to discover in that other the spark of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-love-is-to-be-in-communion-with-the-other-and-to-discover-in-that/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [It is not enough to dream of the Impossible Love - it is necessary to conquer it too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-enough-to-dream-of-the-impossible-love-it-is-necessary-to/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [Eat when it is time to eat. And walk when it is time to walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/eat-when-it-is-time-to-eat-and-walk-when-it-is-time-to-walk/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [People are reading more and writing more because of the internet. So the virtual world is a way for me to listen to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/people-are-reading-more-and-writing-more-because-of-the-internet-so/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [“Joy is like sex – it begins and ends. I want pleasure. I want to be contended, but happiness? I no longer fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/joy-is-like-sex-it-begins-and-ends-i-want-pleasure-i-want-to-be/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [“Trudi se da zivis, sjecanja su za starije ljude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/trudi-se-da-zivis-sjecanja-su-za-starije-ljude/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [I've always been a very restless person. I work hard, spend too much time looking after my son, I dance like a mad thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-ve-always-been-a-very-restless-person-i-work-hard-spend-too-much/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [When someone leaves, it's because someone else is about to arrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-someone-leaves-it-s-because-someone-else-is-about-to-arrive/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [She didn't need to understand the meaning of life; it was enough to find someone who did, and then fall asleep in his arms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/she-didn-t-need-to-understand-the-meaning-of-life-it-was-enough-to/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [“The simpler the pose, the better; the more sober, the more beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-simpler-the-pose-the-better-the-more-sober-the-more-beautiful/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

[Explore all 3,665 Paulo Coelho quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

## More Body quotes

> [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/)

[Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/)

> [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/)

[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/)

> [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/)

[Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/)

> [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/)

Jennifer Siebel Newsom

> [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/)

[Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/)

[Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/)

> [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/)

[Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/)

> [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/)

[Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/)

> [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/)

[Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/)

> [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/)

[Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/)

> [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/)

[Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/)

[Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you’re capable of far more than you imagined. You live in this vast body called the Universe, which contains all the solutions and all the problems. Visit your soul; don’t visit your past. The Universe goes through many mutations and carries the past with it. We call each of those mutations a ‘life,’ but just as the cells in your body change and yet you remain the same, so time does not pass, it merely changes.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Paulo Coelho"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-but-when-you-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Body"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-but-when-you-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/paulo-coelho-10_body_it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself_2349339.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory, but when you succeed, you start to realize that you’re…” — Paulo Coelho",
                "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": "Paulo Coelho",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It takes a huge effort to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-but-when-you-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-takes-a-huge-effort-to-free-yourself-from-memory-but-when-you-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
