--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Embraces do not matter; they merely…" description: "\"Embraces do not matter; they merely indicate the will to love and may as well be followed by defeat as victory. But disregard means that now there need..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/rebecca-west-1248_defeat_embraces-do-not-matter-they-merely-indic_2887789.jpg" --- # Embraces do not matter; they merely indicate the will to… ![“Embraces do not matter; they merely indicate the will to love and may as well be followed by defeat as victory. But disregard means that now there needs to be no straining of the eyes, no stretching forth of the hands, no pressing of the lips, because theirs is such a union that they are no longer…” quote by Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/rebecca-west-1248_defeat_embraces-do-not-matter-they-merely-indic_2887789.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/rebecca-west-1248_defeat_embraces-do-not-matter-they-merely-indic_2887789.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/rebecca-west-1248_defeat_embraces-do-not-matter-they-merely-indic_2887789.jpg) > “Embraces do not matter; they merely indicate the will to love and may as well be followed by defeat as victory. But disregard means that now there needs to be no straining of the eyes, no stretching forth of the hands, no pressing of the lips, because theirs is such a union that they are no longer aware of the division of their flesh.” [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love transcends physical form; true union renders distinctions irrelevant. **In simple terms:** Deep love makes physical differences irrelevant. Key Takeaway Seek unity beyond superficial differences. Themes love union spirituality perception Mood poetic philosophical intimate Type novel philosophical essay poetry When to use this quote - marriage - spiritual practice - conflict resolution - artistic expression Key Concepts metaphysics intimacy human connection Questions to Reflect On - How does love change your perception of self? - When is it healthy to maintain personal boundaries? A Different Perspective Idealizing unity may ignore necessary boundaries. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Defeat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeat/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Lips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lips/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Stretching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stretching/) [Unions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unions/) [Victory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory/) ## Related quotes > [The Filipino embraces civilization and lives and thrives in every clime, in contact with every people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-rizal/the-filipino-embraces-civilization-and-lives-and-thrives-in-every/) [Jose Rizal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-rizal/) > [“I gave up the unequal struggle against what appeared to be in my fate, indeed, I welcomed it with more affection. As one embraces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-moravia/i-gave-up-the-unequal-struggle-against-what-appeared-to-be-in-my-fate/) [Alberto Moravia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-moravia/) > [History never embraces more than a small part of reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/history-never-embraces-more-than-a-small-part-of-reality/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [The love of Christ embraces all without exception. Fire of love, crazy over what You have made. Oh, divine Madman. (Prayer of Catherine Siena)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/the-love-of-christ-embraces-all-without-exception-fire-of-love-crazy/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“The strength of a man isn't seen in the power of his arms. It's seen in the love with which he EMBRACES you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/the-strength-of-a-man-isn-t-seen-in-the-power-of-his-arms-it-s-seen/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [The locker room embraces the guy that is about the team, and is serious about winning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/the-locker-room-embraces-the-guy-that-is-about-the-team-and-is/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [“i like your embraces because the vertigo smells like the sun.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwen-calvo/i-like-your-embraces-because-the-vertigo-smells-like-the-sun/) [Gwen Calvo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwen-calvo/) > [I do realize that God has given me so many blessings in my life. I mean, not only with football, but with the family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-bradford/i-do-realize-that-god-has-given-me-so-many-blessings-in-my-life-i/) [Sam Bradford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-bradford/) > [We need a country that embraces all, and rewards innovators, entrepreneurs, job creators, and hard-working people of all sorts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-durant/we-need-a-country-that-embraces-all-and-rewards-innovators/) [Clark Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-durant/) > [You are far away, but yet your love remains, I can feel it all around. It embraces me and holds me tight, night after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-are-far-away-but-yet-your-love-remains-i-can-feel-it-all-around/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [MC Lyte definitely embraces me. Jada Pinkett Smith embraces me. Those are two people that I can call and get advice. Those are two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-mama/mc-lyte-definitely-embraces-me-jada-pinkett-smith-embraces-me-those/) [Lil Mama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-mama/) > [“From these foolish embraces, which were not of very frequent occurrence, I must allow, I used to wish to extricate myself; but my energies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sheridan-le-fanu/from-these-foolish-embraces-which-were-not-of-very-frequent/) [Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sheridan-le-fanu/) > [Friendship embraces innumerable ends; turn where you will it is ever at your side; no barrier shuts it out; it is never untimely and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/friendship-embraces-innumerable-ends-turn-where-you-will-it-is-ever/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [As we contemplate with reverence and awe how our Savior embraces us, comforts us, and heals us, let us commit to become His hands,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/as-we-contemplate-with-reverence-and-awe-how-our-savior-embraces-us/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [“I manage to hold the poker face when she submits to dominance, to the summons, and swans into my arms, pressing her quivering form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/poppet/i-manage-to-hold-the-poker-face-when-she-submits-to-dominance-to-the/) Poppet ## More by Rebecca West > [I see the main problem of my life, and indeed anybody's life, as the balancing of competitive freedoms ... a sense of mutual obligations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/i-see-the-main-problem-of-my-life-and-indeed-anybody-s-life-as-the/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [“There is, of course, no reason for the existence of the male sex except that sometimes one needs help with moving the piano.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/there-is-of-course-no-reason-for-the-existence-of-the-male-sex-except/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [“At the top of a hill our automobile stuck in a snowdrift. Peasants ran out of a cottage near by, shouting with laughter because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/at-the-top-of-a-hill-our-automobile-stuck-in-a-snowdrift-peasants-ran/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [We all drew on the comfort which is given out by the major works of Mozart, which is as real and material as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/we-all-drew-on-the-comfort-which-is-given-out-by-the-major-works-of/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Christianity must be regarded not as a final revelation but as a phase of revelation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/christianity-must-be-regarded-not-as-a-final-revelation-but-as-a/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Art and propaganda have this much connection, that if a propaganda makes art impossible, it is clearly damned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/art-and-propaganda-have-this-much-connection-that-if-a-propaganda/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [The American struggle for the vote was much more difficult than the English for the simple reason that it was much more easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/the-american-struggle-for-the-vote-was-much-more-difficult-than-the/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [ Like all bad drivers, he \[Henry Andrews\] thought he was the best driver in the world... ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/like-all-bad-drivers-he-henry-andrews-thought-he-was-the-best-driver/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [The childhood of the individual and the race is full of fears, and panic-stricken attempts to avert what is feared by placating the gods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/the-childhood-of-the-individual-and-the-race-is-full-of-fears-and/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Humanity is never more sphinxlike than when it is expressing itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/humanity-is-never-more-sphinxlike-than-when-it-is-expressing-itself/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [ \[On Jane Austen:\] To believe her limited in range because she was harmonious in method is as sensible as to imagine that when the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/on-jane-austen-to-believe-her-limited-in-range-because-she-was/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [a good oyster cannot please the palate as acutely as a bad one can revolt it, and a good oyster cannot make him who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/a-good-oyster-cannot-please-the-palate-as-acutely-as-a-bad-one-can/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [If there is a God, I don't think He would demand that anyone bow down or stand up to Him. I often have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/if-there-is-a-god-i-don-t-think-he-would-demand-that-anyone-bow-down/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Any authentic work of art must start an argument between the artist and his audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/any-authentic-work-of-art-must-start-an-argument-between-the-artist/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [... there has never been a period in history when there have been necessary killings which has not been instantly followed by a period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/there-has-never-been-a-period-in-history-when-there-have-been/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) [Explore all 264 Rebecca West quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) ## More Defeat quotes > [A poor self-image is the magnifying glass that can transform a trivial mistake or an imperfection into an overwhelming symbol of personal defeat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-d-burns/a-poor-self-image-is-the-magnifying-glass-that-can-transform-a/) [David D. Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-d-burns/) > [Even though you can't expect to defeat the absurdity of the world, you must make that attempt. That's morality, that's religion. That's art. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-ochs/even-though-you-can-t-expect-to-defeat-the-absurdity-of-the-world-you/) [Phil Ochs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-ochs/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [If Pete’s (Sampras) child is a girl, my son will like her; if he’s a boy, my son will defeat him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-agassi/if-pete-s-sampras-child-is-a-girl-my-son-will-like-her-if-he-s-a-boy/) [Andre Agassi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-agassi/) > [All our efforts to defeat poverty and pursue sustainable development will be in vain if environmental degradation and natural resource depletion continue unabated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/all-our-efforts-to-defeat-poverty-and-pursue-sustainable-development/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [Defeat furnishes good material to the poets and the artists, but none of us care to have the glory of the conquered apply to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-glaspell/defeat-furnishes-good-material-to-the-poets-and-the-artists-but-none/) [Susan Glaspell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-glaspell/) > [“We don't have to defeat any individual but our own self.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avijeet-das/we-don-t-have-to-defeat-any-individual-but-our-own-self/) [Avijeet Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avijeet-das/) > [“Defeat is a disease, and victory is the cure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/defeat-is-a-disease-and-victory-is-the-cure/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The glow of victory and the harsh chill of defeat are two sides of the same coin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-lenartowicz/the-glow-of-victory-and-the-harsh-chill-of-defeat-are-two-sides-of/) Maria Lenartowicz > [After a big defeat, any player feels affected - it is about how long he needs to recover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerardo-martino/after-a-big-defeat-any-player-feels-affected-it-is-about-how-long-he/) [Gerardo Martino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerardo-martino/) > [I have clearly said we faced terrorist enemies who use Islam to justify slaughtering innocent people and we have to stop them and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-have-clearly-said-we-faced-terrorist-enemies-who-use-islam-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [We know from this book entitled... What is it? Surrendered? Succumbed? I can never remember the title perform. And we learn from this book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/we-know-from-this-book-entitled-what-is-it-surrendered-succumbed-i/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The ultimate aim of Karate lies not in victory or defeat, but in the perfection of the character of its participants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gichin-funakoshi/the-ultimate-aim-of-karate-lies-not-in-victory-or-defeat-but-in-the/) [Gichin Funakoshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gichin-funakoshi/) > [It has never been more critical that a leader step forward to accelerate our understanding of cancer - and champion the effort to finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-dzau/it-has-never-been-more-critical-that-a-leader-step-forward-to/) Victor J. 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