---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: we are continually overflowing toward…"
description: "\"we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded us, toward our origin, and toward those who seemingly come after us. ... It is our task to imp..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg"
---

#  we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded…

![“we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded us, toward our origin, and toward those who seemingly come after us. ... It is our task to imprint this temporary, perishable earth into ourselves so deeply, so painfully and passionately, that its essence can rise again “invisibly,” inside…” quote by Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg)

> “we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded us, toward our origin, and toward those who seemingly come after us. ... It is our task to imprint this temporary, perishable earth into ourselves so deeply, so painfully and passionately, that its essence can rise again “invisibly,” inside us. We are the bees of the invisible. We wildly collect the honey of the visible, to store it in the great golden hive of the invisible.”

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

## About This Quote

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

Human experience is a continual exchange between the visible world and the invisible inner self, urging deep, passionate integration.

**In simple terms:** Blend outer experiences with inner spirit.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate deep inner‑outer connection.

Themes

spirituality creativity legacy

Mood

contemplative inspirational

Type

poetic philosophical

When to use this quote

- artistic creation
- personal growth
- legacy building

Key Concepts

transcendence impermanence

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you honor the invisible aspects of yourself?
- In what ways can you make your inner world visible?

A Different Perspective

Risk of over‑idealizing inner life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) [Bees Invisible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees-invisible-3932121/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Essence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence/) [Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/golden/) [Honey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honey/) [Honey Visible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honey-visible-3932120/) [Invisible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invisible/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Rise Invisibly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rise-invisibly-4674135/) [Seemingly Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seemingly-come-4674136/) [Stores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stores/) [Tasks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tasks/) [Temporary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temporary/)

## Related quotes

> [We are the bees of the invisible. We madly gather the honey of the visible to store it in the great golden hive of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/we-are-the-bees-of-the-invisible-we-madly-gather-the-honey-of-the/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [The Bee Gees are a fly-by-night sort of group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gibb/the-bee-gees-are-a-fly-by-night-sort-of-group/)

[Barry Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gibb/)

> [There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-are-certain-pursuits-which-if-not-wholly-poetic-and-true-do-at/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [My banks they are furnish'd with bees, Whose murmur invites one to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shenstone/my-banks-they-are-furnish-d-with-bees-whose-murmur-invites-one-to/)

[William Shenstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shenstone/)

> [“Bees chase flowers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-l-shreve/bees-chase-flowers/)

[Tracy L. Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-l-shreve/)

> [“This time of year, the purple blooms were busy with life- not just the bees, but butterflies and ladybugs, skippers and emerald-toned beetles, flitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/this-time-of-year-the-purple-blooms-were-busy-with-life-not-just-the/)

[Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/)

> [The little bee returns with evening's gloom, To join her comrades in the braided hive, Where, housed beside their might honey-comb, They dream their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tennyson-turner/the-little-bee-returns-with-evening-s-gloom-to-join-her-comrades-in/)

[Charles Tennyson Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tennyson-turner/)

> [Precise, graceful, and generous, the poems in SuperLoop, seem to be born out of a deep, careful attention and a profound compassion. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-limon/precise-graceful-and-generous-the-poems-in-superloop-seem-to-be-born/)

[Ada Limon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-limon/)

> [When I heard that the bees were in trouble, the fact that they're disappearing and not coming back to the hive, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-schwartzberg/when-i-heard-that-the-bees-were-in-trouble-the-fact-that-they-re/)

[Louie Schwartzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-schwartzberg/)

> [It is hard to imagine a world without bees. It would be even harder to live in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gardiner/it-is-hard-to-imagine-a-world-without-bees-it-would-be-even-harder-to/)

[Barry Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gardiner/)

> [As the bee collecteth honey with great zest, so the fool collecteth wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/as-the-bee-collecteth-honey-with-great-zest-so-the-fool-collecteth/)

[Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/)

> [You see, years ago I was just an ordinary bee minding my own business, smelling flowers all day, and occasionally picking up part-time work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norton-juster/you-see-years-ago-i-was-just-an-ordinary-bee-minding-my-own-business/)

[Norton Juster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norton-juster/)

> [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [Arouse a bee and it will come at you with the force of a dragon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takeda-shingen/arouse-a-bee-and-it-will-come-at-you-with-the-force-of-a-dragon/)

[Takeda Shingen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takeda-shingen/)

> [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/)

[Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/)

## More by Rainer Maria Rilke

> [The artist's experience lies so unbelievably close to the sexual, to its pain and its pleasure, that the two phenomena are really just different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/the-artist-s-experience-lies-so-unbelievably-close-to-the-sexual-to/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“Out of infinite longings rise finite deeds like weak fountains, falling back just in time and trembling. And yet, what otherwise remains silent, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/out-of-infinite-longings-rise-finite-deeds-like-weak-fountains/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“I love the dark hours of my being. My mind deepens into them. There I can find, as in old letters, the days of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/i-love-the-dark-hours-of-my-being-my-mind-deepens-into-them-there-i/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“A complete sharing between two people is an impossibility and whenever it seems, nevertheless, to exist, it is a narrowing, a mutual agreement which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/a-complete-sharing-between-two-people-is-an-impossibility-and/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“But this is what ... people are so often and disastrously wrong in doing: they (who by their very nature are impatient) fling themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/but-this-is-what-people-are-so-often-and-disastrously-wrong-in-doing/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“If there is nothing you can share with other people, try to be close to Things. Things will not abandon you. The nights are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/if-there-is-nothing-you-can-share-with-other-people-try-to-be-close/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [To be here is immense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/to-be-here-is-immense/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“Sin is the most wonderfully roundabout path to God”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/sin-is-the-most-wonderfully-roundabout-path-to-god/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [Swells, Marina? we ocean, depths, Marina? we sky!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/swells-marina-we-ocean-depths-marina-we-sky/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“The point of marriage is not to create a quick commonality by tearing down all boundaries; on the contrary, a good marriage is one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/the-point-of-marriage-is-not-to-create-a-quick-commonality-by-tearing/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [You life will find its own paths... and that they be good, rich, and wide is what I wish for you, more than I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/you-life-will-find-its-own-paths-and-that-they-be-good-rich-and-wide/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [I do not want to be folded for where I am folded, there I am a lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/i-do-not-want-to-be-folded-for-where-i-am-folded-there-i-am-a-lie/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [At no other time (than autumn) does the earth let itself be inhaled in one smell, the ripe earth; in a smell that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/at-no-other-time-than-autumn-does-the-earth-let-itself-be-inhaled-in/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“That is why the sadness passes: the new presence inside us, the presence that has been added, has entered our heart, has gone into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/that-is-why-the-sadness-passes-the-new-presence-inside-us-the/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms, like books written in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/have-patience-with-everything-that-remains-unsolved-in-your-heart-try/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

[Explore all 861 Rainer Maria Rilke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

## More Bees quotes

> [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/)

[Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/)

> [Arouse a bee and it will come at you with the force of a dragon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takeda-shingen/arouse-a-bee-and-it-will-come-at-you-with-the-force-of-a-dragon/)

[Takeda Shingen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takeda-shingen/)

> [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [You see, years ago I was just an ordinary bee minding my own business, smelling flowers all day, and occasionally picking up part-time work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norton-juster/you-see-years-ago-i-was-just-an-ordinary-bee-minding-my-own-business/)

[Norton Juster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norton-juster/)

> [As the bee collecteth honey with great zest, so the fool collecteth wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/as-the-bee-collecteth-honey-with-great-zest-so-the-fool-collecteth/)

[Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/)

> [It is hard to imagine a world without bees. It would be even harder to live in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gardiner/it-is-hard-to-imagine-a-world-without-bees-it-would-be-even-harder-to/)

[Barry Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gardiner/)

> [When I heard that the bees were in trouble, the fact that they're disappearing and not coming back to the hive, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-schwartzberg/when-i-heard-that-the-bees-were-in-trouble-the-fact-that-they-re/)

[Louie Schwartzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-schwartzberg/)

> [Precise, graceful, and generous, the poems in SuperLoop, seem to be born out of a deep, careful attention and a profound compassion. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-limon/precise-graceful-and-generous-the-poems-in-superloop-seem-to-be-born/)

[Ada Limon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-limon/)

> [The little bee returns with evening's gloom, To join her comrades in the braided hive, Where, housed beside their might honey-comb, They dream their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tennyson-turner/the-little-bee-returns-with-evening-s-gloom-to-join-her-comrades-in/)

[Charles Tennyson Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tennyson-turner/)

> [“This time of year, the purple blooms were busy with life- not just the bees, but butterflies and ladybugs, skippers and emerald-toned beetles, flitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/this-time-of-year-the-purple-blooms-were-busy-with-life-not-just-the/)

[Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/)

> [“Bees chase flowers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-l-shreve/bees-chase-flowers/)

[Tracy L. Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-l-shreve/)

> [My banks they are furnish'd with bees, Whose murmur invites one to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shenstone/my-banks-they-are-furnish-d-with-bees-whose-murmur-invites-one-to/)

[William Shenstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shenstone/)

> [There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-are-certain-pursuits-which-if-not-wholly-poetic-and-true-do-at/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [The Bee Gees are a fly-by-night sort of group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gibb/the-bee-gees-are-a-fly-by-night-sort-of-group/)

[Barry Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gibb/)

> [“I don't like to hear cut and dried sermons. No—when I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-don-t-like-to-hear-cut-and-dried-sermons-no-when-i-hear-a-man/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

[Browse all 770 Bees quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded us, toward our origin, and toward those who seemingly come after us. ... It is our task to imprint this temporary, perishable earth into ourselves so deeply, so painfully and passionately, that its essence can rise again “invisibly,” inside us. We are the bees of the invisible. We wildly collect the honey of the visible, to store it in the great golden hive of the invisible.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Rainer Maria Rilke"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-those-who-preceded-us-toward/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bees"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-those-who-preceded-us-toward/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/rainer-maria-rilke-193_bees_we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-th_2986921.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“we are continually overflowing toward those who preceded us, toward our origin, and toward those who…” — Rainer Maria Rilke",
                "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": "Rainer Maria Rilke",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "we are continually overflowing toward those...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-those-who-preceded-us-toward/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/we-are-continually-overflowing-toward-those-who-preceded-us-toward/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
