---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Look at the animals roaming the forest…"
description: "\"Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the sky: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg"
---

#  Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit…

![“Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the sky: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the tiny insects crawling in the grass: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the fish in the river and sea….There is no creature on earth…” quote by Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg)

> “Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the sky: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the tiny insects crawling in the grass: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the fish in the river and sea….There is no creature on earth in whom God is absent… his breath had brought every creature to life… God’s spirit is present within plant as well. The presence of God’s spirit in all living things is what makes them beautiful; and if we look with God’s eyes, nothing on earth is ugly.”

[Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

## About This Quote

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

All living beings contain divine presence, making creation beautiful and free from ugliness when seen through a spiritual lens.

**In simple terms:** God lives in every creature, giving beauty.

Key Takeaway

Recognize divinity in all life.

Themes

spirituality nature beauty divine perception

Mood

reverent hopeful

Type

reflective inspirational

When to use this quote

- environmental stewardship
- meditation
- artistic inspiration
- interfaith dialogue

Key Concepts

theology panentheism holism

Questions to Reflect On

- How does seeing divinity in nature change your actions?
- What does “God’s eyes” mean to you?

A Different Perspective

Some may view this as metaphorical, not literal divine presence.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Bird flying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird-flying/) [Birds Flying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birds-flying/) [Breaths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breaths/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Flying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flying/) [Forests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests/) [Insects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insects/) [Living things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-things/) [Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plant/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sky/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/)

## Related quotes

> [ “Do you not know,” he asks, “that you \[plural\] are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you \[plural\]?” (3:16). To read this… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hays/do-you-not-know-he-asks-that-you-plural-are-god-s-temple-and-that-god/)

Richard Hays

> [Spending your time with true spiritual friends will fill you with love for all beings and help you to see how negative attachment and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dilgo-khyentse-rinpoche/spending-your-time-with-true-spiritual-friends-will-fill-you-with/)

[Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dilgo-khyentse-rinpoche/)

> [Birds flying high you know how I feel Sun in the sky you know how I feel Breeze driftin' on by you know how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/birds-flying-high-you-know-how-i-feel-sun-in-the-sky-you-know-how-i/)

[Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/)

> [You can fall on your face easily if you go off in a certain direction. The Birds is a good example, some people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-a-romero/you-can-fall-on-your-face-easily-if-you-go-off-in-a-certain-direction/)

[George A. Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-a-romero/)

> [But hopes are shy birds flying at a great distance, seldom reached by the best of guns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-james-audubon/but-hopes-are-shy-birds-flying-at-a-great-distance-seldom-reached-by/)

[John James Audubon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-james-audubon/)

> [There is a town in north Ontario, With dream comfort memory to spare, And in my mind I still need a place to go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/there-is-a-town-in-north-ontario-with-dream-comfort-memory-to-spare/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Meditation, witnessing, silently sitting and looking at the mind, will be of much help. Not forcing, simply sitting and looking. Not doing much, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/meditation-witnessing-silently-sitting-and-looking-at-the-mind-will/)

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

> [Maybe we are all prospective migrants. The lines of national borders on maps are artificial constructs, as unnatural to us as they are to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/maybe-we-are-all-prospective-migrants-the-lines-of-national-borders/)

[Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/)

> [No one has ever built a statue to a critic, it's true. On the other hand, it's only the people with statues that get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/no-one-has-ever-built-a-statue-to-a-critic-it-s-true-on-the-other/)

[Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/)

> [It's clear to me now that I have been moving toward you and you toward me for a long time. Though neither of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-james-waller/it-s-clear-to-me-now-that-i-have-been-moving-toward-you-and-you/)

[Robert James Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-james-waller/)

> [This is what Zen means by being detached—not being without emotion or feeling, but being one in whom feeling is not sticky or blocked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/this-is-what-zen-means-by-being-detached-not-being-without-emotion-or/)

[Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/)

> [Stories are like birds flying, here and gone in a moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-l-travers/stories-are-like-birds-flying-here-and-gone-in-a-moment/)

[P. L. Travers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-l-travers/)

> [When you have shot one bird flying you have shot all birds flying. They are all different and they fly in different ways but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/when-you-have-shot-one-bird-flying-you-have-shot-all-birds-flying/)

[Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/)

> [Old places and old persons in their turn, when spirit dwells in them, have an intrinsic vitality of which youth is incapable, precisely, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/old-places-and-old-persons-in-their-turn-when-spirit-dwells-in-them/)

[George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/)

> [“Do you know, my friends, that the Spirit within you is very God? Oh that our eyes were opened to see the greatness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/watchman-nee/do-you-know-my-friends-that-the-spirit-within-you-is-very-god-oh-that/)

[Watchman Nee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/watchman-nee/)

## More by Pelagius

> [There is no worse death than the end of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/there-is-no-worse-death-than-the-end-of-hope/)

[Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

> [It is not what you believe that matters; it is how you respond with your heart and your actions. It is not believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/it-is-not-what-you-believe-that-matters-it-is-how-you-respond-with/)

[Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

> [You will realize that doctrines are inventions of the human mind, as it tried to penetrate the mystery of God. You will realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/you-will-realize-that-doctrines-are-inventions-of-the-human-mind-as/)

[Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

> [If we wish not to go backwards, we must run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/if-we-wish-not-to-go-backwards-we-must-run/)

[Pelagius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

[Explore all 5 Pelagius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/)

## More Absent quotes

> [Majority decisions tend to be made without engaging the systematic thought and critical thinking skills of the individuals in the group. Given the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/majority-decisions-tend-to-be-made-without-engaging-the-systematic/)

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

> [In a general way, the literature of the twentieth century is essentially psychological; and psychology consists of describing states of the soul by displaying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/in-a-general-way-the-literature-of-the-twentieth-century-is/)

[Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/)

> [Emma was a shocking driver, simultaneously sloppy and petrified, and for the first fifty miles had been absent-mindedly driving with her spectacles on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/emma-was-a-shocking-driver-simultaneously-sloppy-and-petrified-and/)

[David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/)

> [They are enthusiasts, devotees. Addicts. Something about the circus stirs their souls, and they ache for it when it is absent. They seek each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/they-are-enthusiasts-devotees-addicts-something-about-the-circus/)

[Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/)

> [The interesting thing about an absent father is, for a child, you don't know he's absent. You just think he's... tardy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-majors/the-interesting-thing-about-an-absent-father-is-for-a-child-you-don-t/)

[Jonathan Majors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-majors/)

> [For my own part, I would rather be in company with a dead man than with an absent one; for if the dead man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-my-own-part-i-would-rather-be-in-company-with-a-dead-man-than/)

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

> [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... Measure and symmetry are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-measure-and-symmetry-are-absent-from-any-composition-in-any-degree/)

[Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/)

> [“You may not appreciate the presence of good health, but you will definitely regret the absence of good health, because health is happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/you-may-not-appreciate-the-presence-of-good-health-but-you-will/)

[Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/)

> [... if we are ashamed to imitate our Lord's sufferings, which He endured for us, and to suffer as He suffered, it is obvious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/symeon-the-new-theologian/if-we-are-ashamed-to-imitate-our-lord-s-sufferings-which-he-endured/)

[Symeon the New Theologian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/symeon-the-new-theologian/)

> [It's Simon, he's missing." Ahh." said Magnus delicately "Missing what exactly?" Missing!" Jace repeated "As in gone, absent, notable for his lack of presence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/it-s-simon-he-s-missing-ahh-said-magnus-delicately-missing-what/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [Anger clearly has its proper place at work, which is neither wholly absent nor ever present. The manager who is an emotional blank is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-baggini/anger-clearly-has-its-proper-place-at-work-which-is-neither-wholly/)

[Julian Baggini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-baggini/)

> [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/)

[Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/)

> [Religion has always been a matter of community building; a matter of building precisely those relations of compassion, fellow feeling and - I dare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/religion-has-always-been-a-matter-of-community-building-a-matter-of/)

[Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/)

> [A FRIEND IS A PERSON . . . With whom you can be sincere. . . . To whom you never need to defend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-armand-montapert/a-friend-is-a-person-with-whom-you-can-be-sincere-to-whom-you-never/)

[Alfred Armand Montapert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-armand-montapert/)

> [The very serpents bite their tails; the bees forget to sting, For a language so celestial setteth up a wondering. And the touch of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathalia-crane/the-very-serpents-bite-their-tails-the-bees-forget-to-sting-for-a/)

[Nathalia Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathalia-crane/)

Browse all 490 Absent quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the sky: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the tiny insects crawling in the grass: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the fish in the river and sea….There is no creature on earth in whom God is absent… his breath had brought every creature to life… God’s spirit is present within plant as well. The presence of God’s spirit in all living things is what makes them beautiful; and if we look with God’s eyes, nothing on earth is ugly.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Pelagius"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-god-s-spirit-dwells-within/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Absent"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-god-s-spirit-dwells-within/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88b/pelagius-63893_absent_look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-g_1021189.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Look at the animals roaming the forest: God’s spirit dwells within them. Look at the birds flying across the…” — Pelagius",
                "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": "Pelagius",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pelagius/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Look at the animals roaming the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-god-s-spirit-dwells-within/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pelagius/look-at-the-animals-roaming-the-forest-god-s-spirit-dwells-within/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
