---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We neglect those things which are under…"
description: "\"We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and heedless of things within our grasp, pursue those which are afar off.\" — Pliny the Elder"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png"
---

#  We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and…

![“We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and heedless of things within our grasp, pursue those which are afar off.” quote by Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png)

> “We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and heedless of things within our grasp, pursue those which are afar off.”

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

## 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 ignore what is close and readily available, chasing distant, less practical goals.

**In simple terms:** Neglecting the present for distant dreams.

Key Takeaway

Value what you can grasp now.

Themes

focus shortsightedness priorities

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

philosophical practical

When to use this quote

- career planning
- financial budgeting
- health goals
- education

Key Concepts

human nature attention bias

Questions to Reflect On

- What nearby opportunities are you overlooking?
- Why do you chase far‑off goals?

A Different Perspective

Missing immediate opportunities can waste resources.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Neglect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neglect/)

## Related quotes

> [...you have to reach for things beyond your grasp, or what is heaven for](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garth-stein/you-have-to-reach-for-things-beyond-your-grasp-or-what-is-heaven-for/)

[Garth Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garth-stein/)

> [Upon us lies the responsibility neither to neglect things because they are old nor to reject them because they are new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-dearmer/upon-us-lies-the-responsibility-neither-to-neglect-things-because/)

Percy Dearmer

> [Perpetual devotion to what a man calls his business is only to be sustained by perpetual neglect of many other things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/perpetual-devotion-to-what-a-man-calls-his-business-is-only-to-be/)

[Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/)

> [I like Stella McCartney, Chloe, Alexander McQueen, Aaron Featherstone, normal Chanel if I can ever afford it, I'd be wearing that all the time!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-snow/i-like-stella-mccartney-chloe-alexander-mcqueen-aaron-featherstone/)

[Brittany Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-snow/)

> [There is good government when those who are near are made happy, and when those who are afar are attracted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/there-is-good-government-when-those-who-are-near-are-made-happy-and/)

[Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/)

> [There is so much more to the things that we think we know from afar. The close you get the more complex it is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meiselas/there-is-so-much-more-to-the-things-that-we-think-we-know-from-afar/)

[Susan Meiselas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meiselas/)

> [Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/our-birth-is-but-a-sleep-and-a-forgetting-the-soul-that-rises-with-us-2/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Kindle the taper like the steadfast star Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth, And add each night a lustre till afar An eightfold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-lazarus/kindle-the-taper-like-the-steadfast-star-ablaze-on-evening-s-forehead/)

[Emma Lazarus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-lazarus/)

> [I wasn't a 'Battlestar' fan, but I had a lot of respect for the show. I had a lot of friends who worked on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-roiz/i-wasn-t-a-battlestar-fan-but-i-had-a-lot-of-respect-for-the-show-i/)

[Sasha Roiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-roiz/)

> [Last but not least my family. My brother Tony, I love you. Thank you for beating me up when I was a kid. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/last-but-not-least-my-family-my-brother-tony-i-love-you-thank-you-for/)

[Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/)

> [Blessed is the servant who loves his brother as much when he is sick and useless as when he is well and an be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blessed-is-the-servant-who-loves-his-brother-as-much-when-he-is-sick/)

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

> [Ah, my brother, it is a far harder thing, and it is afar higher proof of a thorough-going, persistent, Christian principle woven into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/ah-my-brother-it-is-a-far-harder-thing-and-it-is-afar-higher-proof-of/)

[Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/)

> [Religion exalts mystery as an unknowable secret that must be sealed in glass like the corpse of an enchanted princess and fearfully worshipped from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-milo-duquette/religion-exalts-mystery-as-an-unknowable-secret-that-must-be-sealed/)

[Lon Milo DuQuette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-milo-duquette/)

> [“Can I like you from afar?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-bernardino/can-i-like-you-from-afar/)

[Bianca Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-bernardino/)

> [The Son of God goes forth to war,A kingly crown to gain;His blood red banner streams afar:Who follows in His train?Who best can drink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-heber/the-son-of-god-goes-forth-to-war-a-kingly-crown-to-gain-his-blood-red/)

[Reginald Heber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-heber/)

## More by Pliny the Elder

> [Simple diet is best: for many dishes bring many diseases, and rich sauces are worse than even heaping several meats upon each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/simple-diet-is-best-for-many-dishes-bring-many-diseases-and-rich/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Amid the sufferings of life on earth, suicide is God's best gift to man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/amid-the-sufferings-of-life-on-earth-suicide-is-god-s-best-gift-to-man/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [The happier the moment the shorter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/the-happier-the-moment-the-shorter/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Indeed, what is there that does not appear marvelous when it comes to our knowledge for the first time? How many things, too, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/indeed-what-is-there-that-does-not-appear-marvelous-when-it-comes-to/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Accustom yourself to master and overcome things of difficulty; for if you observe, the left hand for want of practice is insignificant, and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/accustom-yourself-to-master-and-overcome-things-of-difficulty-for-if/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [As land is improved by sowing it with various seeds, so is the mind by exercising it with different studies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/as-land-is-improved-by-sowing-it-with-various-seeds-so-is-the-mind-by/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [True happiness consists in being considered deserving of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/true-happiness-consists-in-being-considered-deserving-of-it/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [The largest land animal is the elephant, and it is the nearest to man in intelligence: it understands the language of its country and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/the-largest-land-animal-is-the-elephant-and-it-is-the-nearest-to-man/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Many dishes bring many diseases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/many-dishes-bring-many-diseases/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [In the literary as well as military world, most powerful abilities will often be found concealed under a rustic garb.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/in-the-literary-as-well-as-military-world-most-powerful-abilities/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Man naturally yearns for novelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/man-naturally-yearns-for-novelty/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [With man, most of his misfortunes are occasioned by man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/with-man-most-of-his-misfortunes-are-occasioned-by-man/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [Better do nothing than do ill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/better-do-nothing-than-do-ill/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [It is this earth that, like a kind mother, receives us at our birth, and sustains us when born; it is this alone, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/it-is-this-earth-that-like-a-kind-mother-receives-us-at-our-birth-and/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

> [His only fault is that he has no fault.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/his-only-fault-is-that-he-has-no-fault/)

[Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

[Explore all 147 Pliny the Elder quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/)

## More Afar quotes

> [The Son of God goes forth to war,A kingly crown to gain;His blood red banner streams afar:Who follows in His train?Who best can drink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-heber/the-son-of-god-goes-forth-to-war-a-kingly-crown-to-gain-his-blood-red/)

[Reginald Heber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-heber/)

> [“Can I like you from afar?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-bernardino/can-i-like-you-from-afar/)

[Bianca Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-bernardino/)

> [Religion exalts mystery as an unknowable secret that must be sealed in glass like the corpse of an enchanted princess and fearfully worshipped from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-milo-duquette/religion-exalts-mystery-as-an-unknowable-secret-that-must-be-sealed/)

[Lon Milo DuQuette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-milo-duquette/)

> [Ah, my brother, it is a far harder thing, and it is afar higher proof of a thorough-going, persistent, Christian principle woven into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/ah-my-brother-it-is-a-far-harder-thing-and-it-is-afar-higher-proof-of/)

[Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/)

> [Blessed is the servant who loves his brother as much when he is sick and useless as when he is well and an be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blessed-is-the-servant-who-loves-his-brother-as-much-when-he-is-sick/)

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

> [Last but not least my family. My brother Tony, I love you. Thank you for beating me up when I was a kid. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/last-but-not-least-my-family-my-brother-tony-i-love-you-thank-you-for/)

[Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/)

> [I wasn't a 'Battlestar' fan, but I had a lot of respect for the show. I had a lot of friends who worked on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-roiz/i-wasn-t-a-battlestar-fan-but-i-had-a-lot-of-respect-for-the-show-i/)

[Sasha Roiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-roiz/)

> [Kindle the taper like the steadfast star Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth, And add each night a lustre till afar An eightfold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-lazarus/kindle-the-taper-like-the-steadfast-star-ablaze-on-evening-s-forehead/)

[Emma Lazarus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-lazarus/)

> [Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/our-birth-is-but-a-sleep-and-a-forgetting-the-soul-that-rises-with-us-2/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [There is so much more to the things that we think we know from afar. The close you get the more complex it is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meiselas/there-is-so-much-more-to-the-things-that-we-think-we-know-from-afar/)

[Susan Meiselas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meiselas/)

> [There is good government when those who are near are made happy, and when those who are afar are attracted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/there-is-good-government-when-those-who-are-near-are-made-happy-and/)

[Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/)

> [I like Stella McCartney, Chloe, Alexander McQueen, Aaron Featherstone, normal Chanel if I can ever afford it, I'd be wearing that all the time!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-snow/i-like-stella-mccartney-chloe-alexander-mcqueen-aaron-featherstone/)

[Brittany Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-snow/)

> [The New England Patriots have always been a special organization and I've always watched from afar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-moss/the-new-england-patriots-have-always-been-a-special-organization-and/)

[Randy Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-moss/)

> [Time past, present, and to come, as also depth and height, near and afar off, are all one in God, one comprehensibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-bohme/time-past-present-and-to-come-as-also-depth-and-height-near-and-afar/)

[Jakob Bohme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-bohme/)

> [In the glory which overhangs Palestine afar off, we imagine emotions which never come, when we tread the soil and walk over the hallowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bayard-taylor/in-the-glory-which-overhangs-palestine-afar-off-we-imagine-emotions/)

[Bayard Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bayard-taylor/)

Browse all 212 Afar quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and heedless of things within our grasp, pursue those which are afar off.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Pliny the Elder"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under-our-very-eyes-and-heedless-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Afar"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under-our-very-eyes-and-heedless-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/pliny-the-elder-2838_afar_we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under_2214940.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We neglect those things which are under our very eyes, and heedless of things within our grasp, pursue those…” — Pliny the Elder",
                "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": "Pliny the Elder",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "We neglect those things which are...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under-our-very-eyes-and-heedless-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/we-neglect-those-things-which-are-under-our-very-eyes-and-heedless-of/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```