---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It may be said that myths give to the…"
description: "\"It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality an immanent, this-worldly objectivity. Myths speak about gods and demons as powers on which ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg"
---

#  It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality…

![“It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality an immanent, this-worldly objectivity. Myths speak about gods and demons as powers on which man knows himself to be dependent, powers whose favors he needs, powers whose wrath he fears. Myths express the knowledge that man is not master of…” quote by Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg)

> “It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality an immanent, this-worldly objectivity. Myths speak about gods and demons as powers on which man knows himself to be dependent, powers whose favors he needs, powers whose wrath he fears. Myths express the knowledge that man is not master of the world and his life, that the world within which he lives is full of riddles and mysteries and that human life also is full of riddles and mysteries.”

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

## About This Quote

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

Myths reveal humanity’s dependence on forces beyond control, highlighting mystery in life.

**In simple terms:** Myths show we are not masters of the world.

Key Takeaway

Recognize limits and seek humility.

Themes

mythology humility existence

Mood

contemplative thoughtful

Type

philosophical reflective

When to use this quote

- counseling
- education
- spiritual practice

Key Concepts

theology philosophy psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do myths shape your worldview?
- Can myth inspire agency?

A Different Perspective

Myths can be misinterpreted to justify fatalism.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Demon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demon/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Myths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myths/) [Objectivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/objectivity/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Riddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/riddle/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Transcendent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transcendent/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Wrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrath/)

## Related quotes

> [“Musical myths speak with authority about our society, its fragility, its strengths, its desires, and its limits. Music becomes a wise version of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-rothstein/musical-myths-speak-with-authority-about-our-society-its-fragility/)

Edward Rothstein

> [The motive for criticizing myth, that is, its objectifying representations, is present in myth itself, insofar as its real intention to talk about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/the-motive-for-criticizing-myth-that-is-its-objectifying/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [It is the transcendent (or 'abstract' or 'self-contained') nature of music that the new so called concretism--Pop Art, eighteen-hour slices-of-reality films, musique concrete--opposes. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-stravinsky/it-is-the-transcendent-or-abstract-or-self-contained-nature-of-music/)

[Igor Stravinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-stravinsky/)

> [Janet Mock's honest and sometimes searing journey is a rare and important look into la vida liminal, one that she manages to negotiate remarkably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raquel-cepeda/janet-mock-s-honest-and-sometimes-searing-journey-is-a-rare-and/)

[Raquel Cepeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raquel-cepeda/)

> [“Go deeper after your feelings created by your awareness and go into your heart beyond this simple word.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raz-mihal/go-deeper-after-your-feelings-created-by-your-awareness-and-go-into/)

[Raz Mihal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raz-mihal/)

> [After the dead are buried, after the physical pain of grief has become a permanent wound in the soul, then comes the transcendent and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-dubus/after-the-dead-are-buried-after-the-physical-pain-of-grief-has-become/)

[Andre Dubus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-dubus/)

> [Enough, if something from our hands have power To live, and act, and serve the future hour; And if, as toward the silent tomb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/enough-if-something-from-our-hands-have-power-to-live-and-act-and/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [An encounter with god or with the transcendent, per se, can only occur when we experience the violent side of god.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-encounter-with-god-or-with-the-transcendent-per-se-can-only-occur/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [People who reject transcendent authority can no longer persuade one another through rational arguments; everything is reduced to personal opinion. Debates about ideas thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/people-who-reject-transcendent-authority-can-no-longer-persuade-one/)

[Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/)

> [The thing we long for, that we are For one transcendent moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-thing-we-long-for-that-we-are-for-one-transcendent-moment/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Marx did not recognize that our desire to connect with a transcendent power runs even deeper than our drive for economic satisfaction. Each of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-klein/marx-did-not-recognize-that-our-desire-to-connect-with-a-transcendent/)

Jeffrey Klein

> [I cannot escape from the conclusion that the great ages of progress have depended upon a small number of individuals of transcendent ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/i-cannot-escape-from-the-conclusion-that-the-great-ages-of-progress/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [Plato, the first true pope of philosophy (sorry, Socrates), argued for a World of Forms above the reality-a transcendent plane of perfect essences, pure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/plato-the-first-true-pope-of-philosophy-sorry-socrates-argued-for-a/)

[N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/)

> [In the particular dwells the tawdry. In the conceptual dwells the grand, the transcendent, the everlasting. Earthly countries and single malignant boys can go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/in-the-particular-dwells-the-tawdry-in-the-conceptual-dwells-the/)

[Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/)

> [“The Transcendent was my morning meal, we had the Eternal at lunch, and I ate a slice of the Infinite at dinner.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huston-smith/the-transcendent-was-my-morning-meal-we-had-the-eternal-at-lunch-and/)

[Huston Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huston-smith/)

## More by Rudolf Bultmann

> [We cannot use electric lights and radios and, in the event of illness, avail ourselves of modern medical and clinical means and at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/we-cannot-use-electric-lights-and-radios-and-in-the-event-of-illness/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [Man is always on the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/man-is-always-on-the-way/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [There is something precious in our being mysteries to ourselves, in our being unable ever to see through even the person who is closest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/there-is-something-precious-in-our-being-mysteries-to-ourselves-in/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [Contemporary Christian proclamation is faced with the question whether, when it demands faith from men and women, it expects them to acknowledge this mythical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/contemporary-christian-proclamation-is-faced-with-the-question/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [Christian life is not realized in developing the personality or in shaping human community and somehow changing the world but in turning away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/christian-life-is-not-realized-in-developing-the-personality-or-in/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [“All such desires are cut short by the statement: the Word became flesh. It is in his sheer humanity that he is the Revealer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/all-such-desires-are-cut-short-by-the-statement-the-word-became-flesh/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [Myth does not want to be interpreted in cosmological terms but in anthropological terms or, better, in existentialist terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/myth-does-not-want-to-be-interpreted-in-cosmological-terms-but-in/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [It is impossible to repristinate a past world picture by sheer resolve, especially a mythical world picture, now that all of our thinking is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/it-is-impossible-to-repristinate-a-past-world-picture-by-sheer/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [The motive for criticizing myth, that is, its objectifying representations, is present in myth itself, insofar as its real intention to talk about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/the-motive-for-criticizing-myth-that-is-its-objectifying/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

> [The mythology of the New Testament, also, is not to be questioned with respect to the content of its objectifying representations but with respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/the-mythology-of-the-new-testament-also-is-not-to-be-questioned-with/)

[Rudolf Bultmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

[Explore all 11 Rudolf Bultmann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/)

## More Demon quotes

> [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

> [I believe that on any trip to heaven, there are always detours through hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-finney/i-believe-that-on-any-trip-to-heaven-there-are-always-detours-through/)

[Richard Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-finney/)

> [I wonder what disgusts you more, the fact that I’m a demon, or the fact that when I touch you, it doesn’t matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larissa-ione/i-wonder-what-disgusts-you-more-the-fact-that-i-m-a-demon-or-the-fact/)

[Larissa Ione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larissa-ione/)

> [“The demon stopped its frantic attempts to escape. It stared at the glitter and began to pant, fingers twitching in anticipation. More twitching. Faster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jana-oliver/the-demon-stopped-its-frantic-attempts-to-escape-it-stared-at-the/)

[Jana Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jana-oliver/)

> [“He curled his claw into a fist. "I'd like to shove a stake up that bastard's ass." Adam's lip curled. "Remind me not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaye-wells/he-curled-his-claw-into-a-fist-i-d-like-to-shove-a-stake-up-that/)

[Jaye Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaye-wells/)

> [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/)

[Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/)

> [I’m getting all warm and fuzzy inside at the prospect of these demon things roaming the street, preying on us. (Tate)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-m-getting-all-warm-and-fuzzy-inside-at-the-prospect-of-these-demon/)

[Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/)

> [For many people it's Facebook, or sports on TV, whatever it is. I have my own demons that I battle. But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/)

[Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/)

> [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/)

[Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/)

> [In an attempt to hinder, if not altogether halt, the next move of God, Satan has sent forth an army of faultfinding demons against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-frangipane/in-an-attempt-to-hinder-if-not-altogether-halt-the-next-move-of-god/)

[Francis Frangipane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-frangipane/)

> [Having an eating disorder doesn't show ‘strength.’ Strength is when are able to overcome your demons after being sick and tired for so long.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/having-an-eating-disorder-doesn-t-show-strength-strength-is-when-are/)

[Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/)

> [I think we should be very careful about artificial intelligence. If I had to guess at what our biggest existential threat is, it's probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elon-musk/i-think-we-should-be-very-careful-about-artificial-intelligence-if-i/)

[Elon Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elon-musk/)

> [Evil is the shadow of angel. Just as there are angels of light, support, guidance, healing and defense, so we have experiences of shadow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-fox/evil-is-the-shadow-of-angel-just-as-there-are-angels-of-light-support/)

[Matthew Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-fox/)

> [“I assure you; while I look like a ghost, I'm no spirit or demon. I'm nothing but a girl struggling to make her way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leanna-renee-hieber/i-assure-you-while-i-look-like-a-ghost-i-m-no-spirit-or-demon-i-m/)

[Leanna Renee Hieber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leanna-renee-hieber/)

> [A rollicking good read-THE HUNTER is steampunk with a Wild West feel. Theresa Meyers is an entertaining and witty writer with a fresh, new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmine-galenorn/a-rollicking-good-read-the-hunter-is-steampunk-with-a-wild-west-feel/)

[Yasmine Galenorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmine-galenorn/)

[Browse all 1,462 Demon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demon/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality an immanent, this-worldly objectivity. Myths speak about gods and demons as powers on which man knows himself to be dependent, powers whose favors he needs, powers whose wrath he fears. Myths express the knowledge that man is not master of the world and his life, that the world within which he lives is full of riddles and mysteries and that human life also is full of riddles and mysteries.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Rudolf Bultmann"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-transcendent-reality-an/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Demon"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-transcendent-reality-an/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/rudolf-bultmann-39373_demon_it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-tr_870255.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It may be said that myths give to the transcendent reality an immanent, this-worldly objectivity. Myths…” — Rudolf Bultmann",
                "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": "Rudolf Bultmann",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-bultmann/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It may be said that myths...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-transcendent-reality-an/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-bultmann/it-may-be-said-that-myths-give-to-the-transcendent-reality-an/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
