--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a great adventure to contemplate…" description: "\"“It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe, beyond man, to contemplate what it would be like without man, as it was in a great part of its lo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg" --- # It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe… ![“It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe, beyond man, to contemplate what it would be like without man, as it was in a great part of its long history and as it is in a great majority of places. When this objective view is finally attained, and the mystery and majesty of matter are fully…” quote by Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg) > ““It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe, beyond man, to contemplate what it would be like without man, as it was in a great part of its long history and as it is in a great majority of places. When this objective view is finally attained, and the mystery and majesty of matter are fully appreciated, to then turn the objective eye back on man viewed as matter, to view life as part of this universal mystery of greatest depth, is to sense an experience which is very rare, and very exciting. It usually ends in laughter and a delight in the futility of trying to understand what this atom in the universe is, this thing—atoms with curiosity—that looks at itself and wonders why it wonders. Well, these scientific views end in awe and mystery, lost at the edge in uncertainty, but they appear to be so deep and so impressive that the theory that it is all arranged as a stage for God to watch man's struggle for good and evil seems inadequate. Some will tell me that I have just described a religious experience. Very well, you may call it what you will. Then, in that language I would say that the young man's religious experience is of such a kind that he finds the religion of his church inadequate to describe, to encompass that kind of experience. The God of the church isn't big enough.”” [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Contemplating the universe reveals awe, mystery, and the limits of human understanding, challenging religious explanations. **In simple terms:** Science shows wonder and limits of belief. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity and humility. Themes wonder science spirituality Mood curious humble Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education - research - personal reflection Key Concepts cosmology philosophy humility Questions to Reflect On - How does awe influence your worldview? - What role does humility play in scientific inquiry? A Different Perspective Science may not answer all existential questions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) [Good and evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-and-evil/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religious experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious-experience/) ## Related quotes > [“Let man then contemplate the whole of nature in her full and lofty majesty, let him turn his gaze away from the lowly objects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/let-man-then-contemplate-the-whole-of-nature-in-her-full-and-lofty/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Let man then contemplate nature in full and lofty majesty, and turn his eyes away from the mean objects which surround him. Let him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/let-man-then-contemplate-nature-in-full-and-lofty-majesty-and-turn/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“Take a pinch of belief in God, add a dash of desire to experience God, stir in emotion to taste, and you have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-sinnott-armstrong/take-a-pinch-of-belief-in-god-add-a-dash-of-desire-to-experience-god/) [Walter Sinnott-Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-sinnott-armstrong/) > [Imagine listening to Beethoven with the prepossession that C is a good note and F a bad one; yet this is exactly the stand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/imagine-listening-to-beethoven-with-the-prepossession-that-c-is-a/) [Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/) > [If I contemplate myself as part of the Universe: what am I?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-van-beethoven/if-i-contemplate-myself-as-part-of-the-universe-what-am-i/) [Ludwig van Beethoven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-van-beethoven/) > [I think it's frightening for all of us to contemplate that there's more to the universe than just us, in whatever form it takes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-blum/i-think-it-s-frightening-for-all-of-us-to-contemplate-that-there-s/) [Jason Blum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-blum/) > [It doesn't seem to me that this fantastically marvelous universe, this tremendous range of time and space and different kinds of animals, and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-doesn-t-seem-to-me-that-this-fantastically-marvelous-universe-this/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“You and I were created to realize and experience God. We were created in such a way that nothing outside of Him, nothing above,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-versey/you-and-i-were-created-to-realize-and-experience-god-we-were-created/) [Jason Versey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-versey/) > [My relationship with God developed at an early age. I was raised on a remote little ranch, where I had for company and for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-medicine-eagle/my-relationship-with-god-developed-at-an-early-age-i-was-raised-on-a/) Brooke Medicine Eagle > [“According to James 1:22-25, we can experience God’s truth so powerfully that what the Lord wants us to do becomes as plain to us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-s-whitney/according-to-james-1-22-25-we-can-experience-god-s-truth-so/) [Donald S. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-s-whitney/) > [I deepen my experience of God through prayer, meditation, and forgiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-deepen-my-experience-of-god-through-prayer-meditation-and/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [The blog is meant to be a bit of a side chapel - a place to slip into and still and encounter the glory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-blog-is-meant-to-be-a-bit-of-a-side-chapel-a-place-to-slip-into/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [I can tell you from experience that God's help and presence in our lives is vital. He is the Author of all true success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/i-can-tell-you-from-experience-that-god-s-help-and-presence-in-our/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [“It is not objective proof of God’s existence that we want but the experience of God’s presence. That is the miracle we are really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/it-is-not-objective-proof-of-god-s-existence-that-we-want-but-the/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“I want to have a lasting experience of God', I told him. 'Sometimes I feel like I understand the divinity of this world, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-want-to-have-a-lasting-experience-of-god-i-told-him-sometimes-i/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) ## More by Richard P. Feynman > [“Philosophers have said before that one of the fundamental requisites of science is that whenever you set up the same conditions, the same thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/philosophers-have-said-before-that-one-of-the-fundamental-requisites/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [My rule is, when you are unhappy, think about it. But when you're happy, don't. Why spoil it? You're probably happy for some ridiculous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/my-rule-is-when-you-are-unhappy-think-about-it-but-when-you-re-happy/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Trying to understand the way nature works involves a most terrible test of human reasoning ability. It involves subtle trickery, beautiful tightropes of logic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/trying-to-understand-the-way-nature-works-involves-a-most-terrible/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Today's brains are yesterday's mashed potatoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/today-s-brains-are-yesterday-s-mashed-potatoes/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Mathematics is a language plus reasoning; it is like a language plus logic. Mathematics is a tool for reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/mathematics-is-a-language-plus-reasoning-it-is-like-a-language-plus/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [It is necessary for the very existence of science that minds exist which do not allow that nature must satisfy some preconceived conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-necessary-for-the-very-existence-of-science-that-minds-exist/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“There was a Princess Somebody of Denmark sitting at a table with a number of people around her, and I saw an empty chair…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/there-was-a-princess-somebody-of-denmark-sitting-at-a-table-with-a/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [All the time you're saying to yourself, 'I could do that, but I won't,'--which is just another way of saying that you can't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/all-the-time-you-re-saying-to-yourself-i-could-do-that-but-i-won-t/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“There's a big difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/there-s-a-big-difference-between-knowing-the-name-of-something-and/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [The fact that you are not sure means that it is possible that there is another way someday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/the-fact-that-you-are-not-sure-means-that-it-is-possible-that-there/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [You can always recognize truth by its beauty and simplicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/you-can-always-recognize-truth-by-its-beauty-and-simplicity/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [One cannot understand... the universality of laws of nature, the relationship of things, without an understanding of mathematics. There is no other way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/one-cannot-understand-the-universality-of-laws-of-nature-the/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Mathematics is not just a language. Mathematics is a language plus reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/mathematics-is-not-just-a-language-mathematics-is-a-language-plus/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [A poet once said, "The whole universe is in a glass of wine." We will probably never know in what sense he meant that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/a-poet-once-said-the-whole-universe-is-in-a-glass-of-wine-we-will/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [I was a very shy character, always feeling uncomfortable because everybody was stronger than I, and always afraid I would look like a sissy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/i-was-a-very-shy-character-always-feeling-uncomfortable-because/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) [Explore all 515 Richard P. Feynman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) ## More Adventure quotes > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I painted the words "GREAT ADVENTURE" in Beijing, Dallas, San Francisco, Copenhagen, and Japan. What it means to me is completely different to everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-eine/i-painted-the-words-great-adventure-in-beijing-dallas-san-francisco/) [Ben Eine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-eine/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/) Jessica Yu > [“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/so-many-people-live-within-unhappy-circumstances-and-yet-will-not/) Alexander Supertramp Chris McCandless > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [“Exactly. I think the original tantric Buddhists took notice of was some very wise old people who never studied in their youth, but took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-niemczura/exactly-i-think-the-original-tantric-buddhists-took-notice-of-was/) [Joe Niemczura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-niemczura/) > [As an adventurer...I try to protect against the downside. I make sure I have covered as many eventualities as I can. In the end,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/as-an-adventurer-i-try-to-protect-against-the-downside-i-make-sure-i/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [“Love can give you such happiness, then can break the very heart it filled, leaving a hole that can never be fixed or protected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mcleod/love-can-give-you-such-happiness-then-can-break-the-very-heart-it/) Kevin McLeod > [“It always gave Wolf a peculiar thrill thus to tighten his grip upon his stick, thus to wrap himself more closely in his faded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cowper-powys/it-always-gave-wolf-a-peculiar-thrill-thus-to-tighten-his-grip-upon/) [John Cowper Powys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cowper-powys/) > [“It all had to be squeezed and squeezed again, to provide a thrill, to provide enjoyment. What did people mean, with their simply determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/it-all-had-to-be-squeezed-and-squeezed-again-to-provide-a-thrill-to/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [I am not an adventurous person but I am gutsy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahul-vaidya/i-am-not-an-adventurous-person-but-i-am-gutsy/) [Rahul Vaidya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahul-vaidya/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) [Browse all 7,690 Adventure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe, beyond man, to contemplate what it would be like without man, as it was in a great part of its long history and as it is in a great majority of places. When this objective view is finally attained, and the mystery and majesty of matter are fully appreciated, to then turn the objective eye back on man viewed as matter, to view life as part of this universal mystery of greatest depth, is to sense an experience which is very rare, and very exciting. It usually ends in laughter and a delight in the futility of trying to understand what this atom in the universe is, this thing—atoms with curiosity—that looks at itself and wonders why it wonders. Well, these scientific views end in awe and mystery, lost at the edge in uncertainty, but they appear to be so deep and so impressive that the theory that it is all arranged as a stage for God to watch man's struggle for good and evil seems inadequate. Some will tell me that I have just described a religious experience. Very well, you may call it what you will. Then, in that language I would say that the young man's religious experience is of such a kind that he finds the religion of his church inadequate to describe, to encompass that kind of experience. The God of the church isn't big enough.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard P. Feynman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-the-universe-beyond-man-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adventure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-the-universe-beyond-man-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf5/richard-p-feynman-495_adventure_it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-t_2737733.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is a great adventure to contemplate the universe, beyond man, to contemplate what it would be like…” — Richard P. Feynman", "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": "Richard P. Feynman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It is a great adventure to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-the-universe-beyond-man-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-a-great-adventure-to-contemplate-the-universe-beyond-man-to/#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 } } ] } ```