--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only real sadness, the only real…" description: "\"“The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”7 As”\" — Rod Dreher" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg" --- # The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only… ![“The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”7 As” quote by Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg) > ““The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”7 As”” [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that failing to strive for moral or spiritual excellence is the greatest tragedy of life **In simple terms:** Not becoming a saint is life's biggest loss Key Takeaway Aim for personal moral growth Themes morality spirituality human potential Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal reflection - ethical decision‑making - community service Key Concepts ethical development self‑actualization purposeful living Questions to Reflect On - What does “becoming a saint” mean to you? - Can striving for perfection hinder realistic self‑improvement? A Different Perspective One may argue that perfection is unattainable and can cause despair ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Great tragedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-tragedy/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) ## Related quotes > [The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-on-bloy/the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-failure-the-only-great-tragedy-in-2/) [Leon Bloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-on-bloy/) > [The great tragedy of life is not that men perish, but that they cease to love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-great-tragedy-of-life-is-not-that-men-perish-but-that-they-cease/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I spent five years of my life being treated for cancer, but since then I've spent fifteen years being treated for nothing other than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/i-spent-five-years-of-my-life-being-treated-for-cancer-but-since-then/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [The great tragedy of life is not that people set their sights too high and fail to achieve their goals but that they set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo/the-great-tragedy-of-life-is-not-that-people-set-their-sights-too/) [Michelangelo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo/) > [“He came in looking so rough on the outside, but there was a real sadness in his eyes. I just wanted to comfort him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-cardello/he-came-in-looking-so-rough-on-the-outside-but-there-was-a-real/) [Ruth Cardello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-cardello/) > [You know whats sadness, the real sadness? Well if you don't,this is the real sadness in life is knowing that you can help but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria/you-know-whats-sadness-the-real-sadness-well-if-you-don-t-this-is-the/) [Maria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria/) > [When Someone's died, The real sadness of the death of his wife and his family,, because!! only her better know, what he has lost,,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/when-someone-s-died-the-real-sadness-of-the-death-of-his-wife-and-his/) Mak\_786 > [Real sadness is such an all-encompassing intense thing that it takes you out of your humdrum existence. If you can still function, you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/real-sadness-is-such-an-all-encompassing-intense-thing-that-it-takes/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [The real sadness of fifty is not that you change so much but that you change so little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lerner/the-real-sadness-of-fifty-is-not-that-you-change-so-much-but-that-you/) [Max Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lerner/) > [The wretchedness of failure is the great attraction of success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-wretchedness-of-failure-is-the-great-attraction-of-success/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Failure is a great learning tool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-langley/failure-is-a-great-learning-tool/) [Donna Langley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-langley/) > [The fear of failure is so great, it is no wonder that the desire to do right by one's children has led to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-bettelheim/the-fear-of-failure-is-so-great-it-is-no-wonder-that-the-desire-to-do/) [Bruno Bettelheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-bettelheim/) > [Failure is a great teacher and, if you are open to it, every mistake has a lesson to offer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/failure-is-a-great-teacher-and-if-you-are-open-to-it-every-mistake/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [There is not a fiercer hell than the failure in a great object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/there-is-not-a-fiercer-hell-than-the-failure-in-a-great-object/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [Success is its own reward, but failure is a great teacher too, and not to be feared.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/success-is-its-own-reward-but-failure-is-a-great-teacher-too-and-not/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) ## More by Rod Dreher > [“To love requires loving others and letting others love you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/to-love-requires-loving-others-and-letting-others-love-you/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [“Art really does instruct us in how to think, feel, and behave. 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Purgatorio is for learning how to overcome our tendencies to fall victim to them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/inferno-was-for-learning-about-the-nature-of-our-sins-purgatorio-is/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) > [I quite often feel that my greatest task as a father is to raise children who love what is good, true, and beautiful, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/i-quite-often-feel-that-my-greatest-task-as-a-father-is-to-raise/) [Rod Dreher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) [Explore all 52 Rod Dreher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. 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Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”7 As”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rod Dreher" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-failure-the-only-great-tragedy-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-failure-the-only-great-tragedy-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c5/rod-dreher-13031_failure_the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-fail_1175081.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”7 As” — Rod Dreher", "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": "Rod Dreher", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-dreher/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The only real sadness, the only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-failure-the-only-great-tragedy-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-dreher/the-only-real-sadness-the-only-real-failure-the-only-great-tragedy-in/#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 } } ] } ```