--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our past is not sacred for being past…" description: "\"“Our past is not sacred for being past, and there is much that is behind us that we are struggling to keep behind us, and to which, it is to be hoped, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78c/sam-harris-457_caste-system_our-past-is-not-sacred-for-being-past-an_3151178.jpg" --- # Our past is not sacred for being past, and there is much… ![“Our past is not sacred for being past, and there is much that is behind us that we are struggling to keep behind us, and to which, it is to be hoped, we could never return with a clear conscience: the divine right of kings, feudalism, the caste system, slavery, political executions, forced…” quote by Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78c/sam-harris-457_caste-system_our-past-is-not-sacred-for-being-past-an_3151178.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78c/sam-harris-457_caste-system_our-past-is-not-sacred-for-being-past-an_3151178.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78c/sam-harris-457_caste-system_our-past-is-not-sacred-for-being-past-an_3151178.jpg) > ““Our past is not sacred for being past, and there is much that is behind us that we are struggling to keep behind us, and to which, it is to be hoped, we could never return with a clear conscience: the divine right of kings, feudalism, the caste system, slavery, political executions, forced castration, vivisection, bearbaiting, honorable duels, chastity belts, trial by ordeal, child labor, human and animal sacrifice, the stoning of heretics, cannibalism, sodomy laws, taboos against contraception, human radiation experiments - the lists is nearly endless, and if it were extended indefinitely, the proportion of abuses for which religion could be found directly responsible is likely to remain undiminished. In fact, almost every indignity just mentioned can be attributed to an insufficient taste for evidence, to an uncritical faith in one dogma or another.”” [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Historical abuses linked to religion often stem from uncritical belief and lack of evidence, not the faith itself. **In simple terms:** Many wrongs blamed on religion arise from blind faith and poor evidence. Key Takeaway Question dogma, seek evidence. Themes history religion critical thinking human rights Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - educational curricula - public policy debates - personal belief systems - interfaith dialogues Key Concepts dogma evidence moral responsibility institutional critique Questions to Reflect On - What role does evidence play in moral judgments? - How can societies balance tradition with critical inquiry? A Different Perspective Religion also inspires positive change, complicating blame. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abuses Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuses-religion-5657454/) [Caste system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caste-system/) [Child labor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-labor/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Clear conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clear-conscience/) [Conscience Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience-divine-4279728/) [Past Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-sacred-5657456/) [Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacred/) [Sacred Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacred-past-5657455/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Conscience, the divine nature within us, sees everything as connected, what’s good for all is always its priority.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilchi-lee/conscience-the-divine-nature-within-us-sees-everything-as-connected/) [Ilchi Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilchi-lee/) > [Small hands can handle a pen better. 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Only consciousness can know itself—and directly, through first-person experience.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/but-the-reality-of-consciousness-appears-irreducible-only/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Whether or not one likes Huntington's formulation, one thing is clear: the evil that has finally reached our shores is not merely the evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/whether-or-not-one-likes-huntington-s-formulation-one-thing-is-clear/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The problem is that religion tends to give people bad reasons to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-problem-is-that-religion-tends-to-give-people-bad-reasons-to-be/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Muslim moderates, wherever they are, must be given every tool necessary to win a war of ideas with their co-religionists. 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And yet, it is obvious that an utter revolution in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/what-could-possibly-cause-billions-of-human-beings-to-reconsider/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) [Explore all 543 Sam Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## More Caste system quotes > [Class - or the economic status of individuals - is evident in all societies, some very well stratified by a rigid caste system determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/class-or-the-economic-status-of-individuals-is-evident-in-all/) [F. 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Ambedkar believed the tale was not so much about Ram’s character as it was about the unsustainability of the caste system that needed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devdutt-pattanaik/b-r-ambedkar-believed-the-tale-was-not-so-much-about-ram-s-character/) [Devdutt Pattanaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devdutt-pattanaik/) > [Arguably the most important parallel between mass incarceration and Jim Crow is that both have served to define the meaning and significance of race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/arguably-the-most-important-parallel-between-mass-incarceration-and/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [“While the Reconstruction Era was fraught with corruption and arguably doomed by the lack of land reform, the sweeping economic and political developments in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/while-the-reconstruction-era-was-fraught-with-corruption-and-arguably/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [“Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 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