--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but…" description: "\"“It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but it is easy, by a process of neglect, to ruin your food crops and let them revert to their primitive state of w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebf/rabindranath-tagore-383_civilization-state_it-is-not-easy-to-get-rid-of-weeds-but-i_1940521.jpg" --- # It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but it is easy, by a… ![“It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but it is easy, by a process of neglect, to ruin your food crops and let them revert to their primitive state of wildness. [...] In political civilization, the state is an abstraction and the relationship of men utilitarian. Because it has no roots in…” quote by Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebf/rabindranath-tagore-383_civilization-state_it-is-not-easy-to-get-rid-of-weeds-but-i_1940521.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebf/rabindranath-tagore-383_civilization-state_it-is-not-easy-to-get-rid-of-weeds-but-i_1940521.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebf/rabindranath-tagore-383_civilization-state_it-is-not-easy-to-get-rid-of-weeds-but-i_1940521.jpg) > ““It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but it is easy, by a process of neglect, to ruin your food crops and let them revert to their primitive state of wildness. \[...\] In political civilization, the state is an abstraction and the relationship of men utilitarian. Because it has no roots in sentiments, it is so dangerously easy to handle. Half a century has been enough for you to master this machine; and there are men among you, whose fondness for it exceeds their love for the living ideals which were born with the birth of your nation and nursed in your centuries. It is like a child who in the excitement of his play imagines he likes his playthings better than his mother.”” [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Neglecting core values lets societies revert to chaos, despite technological control. **In simple terms:** Ignoring values leads to societal decay. Key Takeaway Preserve foundational ideals. Themes society values politics decay Mood reflective critical Type philosophical social When to use this quote - education reform - community dialogue - policy oversight - ethical training Key Concepts cultural erosion ethical neglect Questions to Reflect On - What values are most at risk today? - How can societies protect core ideals? A Different Perspective Change is slow and faces resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [Men become utilitarian out of fear of the alternative the chaos of tangled or tepid desires, of rootlessness and boredom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carroll/men-become-utilitarian-out-of-fear-of-the-alternative-the-chaos-of/) [John Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carroll/) > [Western Civilization has been in a state of decline since the Edwardian age, say 1910. That was the height of Greco-Roman European civilization. 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What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [Set the bird's wings with gold and it will never again soar in thesky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/set-the-bird-s-wings-with-gold-and-it-will-never-again-soar-in-thesky/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [From the grasses in the field to the stars in the sky, each one is doing just that; and there is such profound peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/from-the-grasses-in-the-field-to-the-stars-in-the-sky-each-one-is/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [Plant flowers in others' gardens and your life becomes a bouquet! 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Go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/go-not-to-the-temple-to-put-flowers-upon-the-feet-of-god-first-fill/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [The best kind of wealth is to give up inordinate desires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-best-kind-of-wealth-is-to-give-up-inordinate-desires/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [Now it is time to sit quiet, face to face with thee, and to sing dedication of life in this silent and overflowing leisure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/now-it-is-time-to-sit-quiet-face-to-face-with-thee-and-to-sing/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [If it is necessary to die in order to live like men, what harm in dying?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/if-it-is-necessary-to-die-in-order-to-live-like-men-what-harm-in-dying/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“Strong Mercy: My desires are many and my cry is pitiful, but ever didst thou save me by hard refusals; and this strong mercy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/strong-mercy-my-desires-are-many-and-my-cry-is-pitiful-but-ever-didst/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [The weak can be terrible because they try furiously to appear strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-weak-can-be-terrible-because-they-try-furiously-to-appear-strong/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [The movement of life has to rest in its own music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-movement-of-life-has-to-rest-in-its-own-music/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [It is the docile who achieve the most impossible things in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/it-is-the-docile-who-achieve-the-most-impossible-things-in-this-world/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“There, display and extravagance, in dress, in furniture, in costly entertainments, are startling. They seem to push you back into a corner, like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/there-display-and-extravagance-in-dress-in-furniture-in-costly/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) [Explore all 596 Rabindranath Tagore quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) ## More Civilization State quotes > [Western Civilization has been in a state of decline since the Edwardian age, say 1910. That was the height of Greco-Roman European civilization. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/western-civilization-has-been-in-a-state-of-decline-since-the/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [The civilization of a state should be measured by the amount of suffering it prevents and the degree of happiness it makes possible for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/the-civilization-of-a-state-should-be-measured-by-the-amount-of/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [This is the gravest danger that today threatens civilization: State intervention; the absorption of all spontaneous social effort by the State, that is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/this-is-the-gravest-danger-that-today-threatens-civilization-state/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) Browse all 4 Civilization State quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is not easy to get rid of weeds; but it is easy, by a process of neglect, to ruin your food crops and let them revert to their primitive state of wildness. 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