--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: O that our souls could scale a height…" description: "\"O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty mountain swept o'er by the bleak Keen winds of heaven; and, standing on that peak Above the b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg" --- # O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty… ![“O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty mountain swept o'er by the bleak Keen winds of heaven; and, standing on that peak Above the blinding clouds of prejudice, Would we could see all truly as it is; The calm eternal truth would keep us meek.” quote by Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg) > “O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty mountain swept o'er by the bleak Keen winds of heaven; and, standing on that peak Above the blinding clouds of prejudice, Would we could see all truly as it is; The calm eternal truth would keep us meek.” [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet wishes to rise above prejudice to see truth plainly, hoping humility follows. **In simple terms:** Seek truth beyond bias and stay humble. Key Takeaway Climb above bias, see truth, stay meek. Themes humility truth perspective Mood contemplative serene Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - social justice - self‑reflection Key Concepts philosophy spirituality Questions to Reflect On - How can you rise above your own biases? - What practices keep you humble? A Different Perspective Truth may be distorted by personal limits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bleak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bleak/) [Calm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calm/) [Clouds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clouds/) [Eternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternal/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Heaven Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven-standing-5104519/) [Height](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/height/) [Meek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meek/) [Mighty Mountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mighty-mountain-3971173/) [Mountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountain/) [Mountain Swept](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountain-swept-5104520/) [Prejudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudice/) [Scales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scales/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standing/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) ## Related quotes > [We've climbed the mighty mountain. I see the valley below, and it's a valley of peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/we-ve-climbed-the-mighty-mountain-i-see-the-valley-below-and-it-s-a/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [In his bleak mercy, Death forever strips The soul of light and memory, rendering blind Our vision, lest surmounted deeps appal, As when on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-ashton-smith/in-his-bleak-mercy-death-forever-strips-the-soul-of-light-and-memory/) [Clark Ashton Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-ashton-smith/) > [That holy, humble, meek, modest, retiring Form, sometimes called the Spirit of Prayer, has been dragged from the closet, and so rudely handled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asahel-nettleton/that-holy-humble-meek-modest-retiring-form-sometimes-called-the/) [Asahel Nettleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asahel-nettleton/) > [The least known among the virtues and also the most misunderstood is the virtue of humility. Yet, it is the very groundwork of Christianity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernard-ullathorne/the-least-known-among-the-virtues-and-also-the-most-misunderstood-is/) [William Bernard Ullathorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernard-ullathorne/) > [Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, Look upon a little child; Pity my simplicity, Suffer me to come to thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wesley/gentle-jesus-meek-and-mild-look-upon-a-little-child-pity-my/) [Charles Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wesley/) > [Even as we seek to be meek and to avoid contention, we must not compromise or dilute our commitment to the truths we understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallin-h-oaks/even-as-we-seek-to-be-meek-and-to-avoid-contention-we-must-not/) [Dallin H. Oaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallin-h-oaks/) > [“What a mess the world was in, Vimes reflected. Constable Visit had told him the meek would inherit it, and what had the poor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/what-a-mess-the-world-was-in-vimes-reflected-constable-visit-had-told/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Any man who behaves arrogantly with what little he knows, or claims to know all, only reveals to all that he really knows nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/any-man-who-behaves-arrogantly-with-what-little-he-knows-or-claims-to/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [If there is anybody in this land who thoroughly believes that the meek shall inherit the earth they have not often let their presence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/if-there-is-anybody-in-this-land-who-thoroughly-believes-that-the/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [I wouldn't mind gigging around the same era as Jesus, after he gives his speech about the meek and how blessed they are and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-jefferies/i-wouldn-t-mind-gigging-around-the-same-era-as-jesus-after-he-gives/) [Jim Jefferies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-jefferies/) > [If the civil magistrate be a Christian, a disciple or follower of the meek Lamb of God, he is bound to be far from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-williams/if-the-civil-magistrate-be-a-christian-a-disciple-or-follower-of-the/) [Roger Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-williams/) > [The world is hard and cruel. We are here none knows why, and we go none knows whither. We must be very humble. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/the-world-is-hard-and-cruel-we-are-here-none-knows-why-and-we-go-none/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“Humble yourself before the Lord and he will lift you high. People who are gentle, humble and able always have a great ending no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/humble-yourself-before-the-lord-and-he-will-lift-you-high-people-who/) [israelmore ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [A “collective” mind does not exist. It is merely the sum of endless numbers of individual minds. If we have an endless number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/a-collective-mind-does-not-exist-it-is-merely-the-sum-of-endless/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“I am waiting for the meek to be blessed and inherit the earth... without taxes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-am-waiting-for-the-meek-to-be-blessed-and-inherit-the-earth-without/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) ## More by Robinson Jeffers > [A little too abstract, a little too wise, It is time for us to kiss the earth again, It is time to let the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/a-little-too-abstract-a-little-too-wise-it-is-time-for-us-to-kiss-the/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“While this America settles in the mould of its vulgarity, heavily thickening to empire, I And protest, only a bubble in the molten mass,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/while-this-america-settles-in-the-mould-of-its-vulgarity-heavily/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [Happy people die whole, they are all dissolved in a moment, they have had what they wanted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/happy-people-die-whole-they-are-all-dissolved-in-a-moment-they-have/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“The Atlantic is a stormy moat, and the Mediterranean, The blue pool in the old garden, More than five thousand years has drunk sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/the-atlantic-is-a-stormy-moat-and-the-mediterranean-the-blue-pool-in/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“The broken pillar of the wing jags from the clotted shoulder, The wing trails like a banner in defeat, No more to use the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/the-broken-pillar-of-the-wing-jags-from-the-clotted-shoulder-the-wing/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [As for me, I would rather be a worm in a wild apple than a son of man. But we are what we are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/as-for-me-i-would-rather-be-a-worm-in-a-wild-apple-than-a-son-of-man/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [Oh heavy change. The world deteriorates like a rotting apple, worms and a skin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/oh-heavy-change-the-world-deteriorates-like-a-rotting-apple-worms-and/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [Truly men hate the truth; they'd liefer meet a tiger on the road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/truly-men-hate-the-truth-they-d-liefer-meet-a-tiger-on-the-road/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [I've changed my ways a little, I cannot now Run with you in the evenings along the shore, Except in a kind of dream,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/i-ve-changed-my-ways-a-little-i-cannot-now-run-with-you-in-the/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [Why does insanity always twist the great answers? Because only tormented persons want truth. Man is an animal like other animals, wants food and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/why-does-insanity-always-twist-the-great-answers-because-only/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“One existence, one music, one organism, one life, one God: star-fire and rock-strength, the sea's cold flow And man's dark soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/one-existence-one-music-one-organism-one-life-one-god-star-fire-and/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [We might remember ... not to fear death; it is the only way to be cleansed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/we-might-remember-not-to-fear-death-it-is-the-only-way-to-be-cleansed/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [Hear the music, the thunder of the wings. Love the wild swan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/hear-the-music-the-thunder-of-the-wings-love-the-wild-swan/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [If millions are born millions must die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/if-millions-are-born-millions-must-die/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [That public men publish falsehoods Is nothing new. That America must accept Like the historical republics corruption and empire Has been known for years.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/that-public-men-publish-falsehoods-is-nothing-new-that-america-must/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) [Explore all 79 Robinson Jeffers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) ## More Bleak quotes > [Single-sex private schools, especially in the middle of nowhere on a bleak hill in County Durham - I don't think they make sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-deacon/single-sex-private-schools-especially-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-on-a/) [Giles Deacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-deacon/) > [I wonder whether my bleak-o-meter is set differently from other people's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-arnold/i-wonder-whether-my-bleak-o-meter-is-set-differently-from-other/) [Andrea Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-arnold/) > [I felt cheated by the way grown-ups told me that the future of the world was bleak when I became a teenager in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-ridley/i-felt-cheated-by-the-way-grown-ups-told-me-that-the-future-of-the/) [Matt Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-ridley/) > [No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear, Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermilion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-manley-hopkins/no-wonder-of-it-sheer-plod-makes-plough-down-sillion-shine-and-blue/) [Gerard Manley Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-manley-hopkins/) > [“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/during-the-whole-of-a-dull-dark-and-soundless-day-in-the-autumn-of/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The future looks a bit bleak to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/the-future-looks-a-bit-bleak-to-me/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Nothing that's ever happened has taken away the optimist in me. 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Harper”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-bellet/life-on-hardcore-mode-she-thought-with-a-twinge-of-bleak-humor-no-do/) [Annie Bellet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-bellet/) > [A cold and searching wind drives away all contagion, and nothing can withstand it but what has a virtue in it, and accordingly, whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-cold-and-searching-wind-drives-away-all-contagion-and-nothing-can/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Killing the poorest third is good genetics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/killing-the-poorest-third-is-good-genetics/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“Wyoming, to Annie, was represented by a blank, bleak space in her imagination. It was a place she could hide. The worst that could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-wilson/wyoming-to-annie-was-represented-by-a-blank-bleak-space-in-her/) [Kevin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-wilson/) [Browse all 335 Bleak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bleak/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty mountain swept o'er by the bleak Keen winds of heaven; and, standing on that peak Above the blinding clouds of prejudice, Would we could see all truly as it is; The calm eternal truth would keep us meek.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robinson Jeffers" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-like-this-a-mighty-mountain/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bleak" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-like-this-a-mighty-mountain/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8c/robinson-jeffers-8592_bleak_o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-li_2244950.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“O that our souls could scale a height like this, A mighty mountain swept o'er by the bleak Keen winds of…” — Robinson Jeffers", "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": "Robinson Jeffers", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "O that our souls could scale...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-like-this-a-mighty-mountain/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/o-that-our-souls-could-scale-a-height-like-this-a-mighty-mountain/#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 } } ] } ```