---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is no such source of error as the…"
description: "\"There is no such source of error as the pursuit of absolute truth.\" — Samuel Butler"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg"
---

#  There is no such source of error as the pursuit of…

![“There is no such source of error as the pursuit of absolute truth.” quote by Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg)

> “There is no such source of error as the pursuit of absolute truth.”

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

## About This Quote

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

Pursuing absolute truth leads to errors; humility and openness are essential for learning.

**In simple terms:** Seeking absolute truth can cause mistakes.

Key Takeaway

Embrace uncertainty and question assumptions.

Themes

philosophy truth humility

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- academic research
- personal decision making
- scientific inquiry

Key Concepts

epistemology critical thinking

Questions to Reflect On

- What truths have you accepted without question?
- How can you balance certainty with openness?

A Different Perspective

Absolute truth is often unattainable.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Absolute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolute/) [Absolute truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolute-truth/) [Absolutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes/) [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Error Pursuit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/error-pursuit-5665805/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [Pursuit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pursuit/) [Pursuit Absolute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pursuit-absolute-5815066/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Source](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/source/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/)

## Related quotes

> [There is no such source of error as the pursuit of truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the-pursuit-of-truth/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Nobody in this world possesses absolute truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/nobody-in-this-world-possesses-absolute-truth/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [It will never be possible by pure reason to arrive at some absolute truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-heisenberg/it-will-never-be-possible-by-pure-reason-to-arrive-at-some-absolute/)

[Werner Heisenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-heisenberg/)

> [All we know of the truth is that the absolute truth, such as it is, is beyond our reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-of-cusa/all-we-know-of-the-truth-is-that-the-absolute-truth-such-as-it-is-is/)

[Nicholas of Cusa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-of-cusa/)

> [The only absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feyerabend/the-only-absolute-truth-is-that-there-are-no-absolute-truths/)

[Paul Feyerabend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feyerabend/)

> [There can be no absolute reality, there can be no absolute truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-warwick/there-can-be-no-absolute-reality-there-can-be-no-absolute-truth/)

[Kevin Warwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-warwick/)

> [It is of no help to us that there is an absolute truth of the matter of things because unfortunately, none of us are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-fish/it-is-of-no-help-to-us-that-there-is-an-absolute-truth-of-the-matter/)

[Stanley Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-fish/)

> [Absolute truth belongs to Thee alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gotthold-ephraim-lessing/absolute-truth-belongs-to-thee-alone/)

[Gotthold Ephraim Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gotthold-ephraim-lessing/)

> [“Science is a human construct. Scientific laws are as valid as our understanding at any particular moment. Scientific laws are not absolute. Scientific laws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/science-is-a-human-construct-scientific-laws-are-as-valid-as-our/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [“Only God has the Absolute Truth. He has broken it into pieces and distributed it among those yearning for it, so we may always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naide-p-obiang/only-god-has-the-absolute-truth-he-has-broken-it-into-pieces-and/)

[Naide P Obiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naide-p-obiang/)

> [It there anyone that knows the absolute truth?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sorin-cerin/it-there-anyone-that-knows-the-absolute-truth/)

[Sorin Cerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sorin-cerin/)

> [In seeking absolute truth we aim at the unattainable and must be content with broken portions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-osler/in-seeking-absolute-truth-we-aim-at-the-unattainable-and-must-be/)

[William Osler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-osler/)

> [“There is no absolute truth in life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-al-dred/there-is-no-absolute-truth-in-life/)

[Rob Al'dred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-al-dred/)

> [The absolute truth is that there is no power in celebrity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/the-absolute-truth-is-that-there-is-no-power-in-celebrity/)

[Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/)

> [Football is wonderful because no one is right: there's no absolute truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diego-simeone/football-is-wonderful-because-no-one-is-right-there-s-no-absolute/)

[Diego Simeone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diego-simeone/)

## More by Samuel Butler

> [Is life worth living? This is a question for an embryo not for a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/is-life-worth-living-this-is-a-question-for-an-embryo-not-for-a-man/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [I am the enfant terrible of literature and science. If I cannot, and I know I cannot, get the literary and scientific bigwigs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/i-am-the-enfant-terrible-of-literature-and-science-if-i-cannot-and-i/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [If you follow reason far enough it always leads to conclusions that are contrary to reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/if-you-follow-reason-far-enough-it-always-leads-to-conclusions-that/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [All animals, except man, know that the principal business of life is to enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/all-animals-except-man-know-that-the-principal-business-of-life-is-to/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [The advantage of doing one's praising for oneself is that one can lay it on so thick and exactly in the right places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/the-advantage-of-doing-one-s-praising-for-oneself-is-that-one-can-lay/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Spare the rod and spoil the child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/spare-the-rod-and-spoil-the-child/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Opinions have vested interests just as men have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/opinions-have-vested-interests-just-as-men-have/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [“we must judge men not so much by what they, as by what they make us feel that they have it in them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/we-must-judge-men-not-so-much-by-what-they-as-by-what-they-make-us/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [If I die prematurely I shall be saved from being bored to death at my own success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/if-i-die-prematurely-i-shall-be-saved-from-being-bored-to-death-at-my/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Vaccination is the medical sacrament corresponding to baptism. Whether it is or is not more efficacious I do not know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/vaccination-is-the-medical-sacrament-corresponding-to-baptism-whether/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [“Having, then, once introduced an element of inconsistency into his system, he was far too consistent not to be inconsistent consistently, and he lapsed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/having-then-once-introduced-an-element-of-inconsistency-into-his/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/brigands-demand-your-money-or-your-life-women-require-both/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [A man who lets himself be bored is even more contemptible than the bore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/a-man-who-lets-himself-be-bored-is-even-more-contemptible-than-the/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [It is not sufficiently considered in the hour of exultation, that all human excellence is comparative; that no man performs much but in proportion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/it-is-not-sufficiently-considered-in-the-hour-of-exultation-that-all/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

> [“The oldest books are still only just out to those who have not read them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/the-oldest-books-are-still-only-just-out-to-those-who-have-not-read/)

[Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

[Explore all 355 Samuel Butler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/)

## More Absolute quotes

> [“In the worldly life, due to maadakta (intoxication of the ego of ‘I am Chandubhai’), one has completely lost awareness of everything about one’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/in-the-worldly-life-due-to-maadakta-intoxication-of-the-ego-of-i-am/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [Absolute is a game with only one player where Absolute forgets itself so it would have a reason to fulfill the motion while returning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/absolute-is-a-game-with-only-one-player-where-absolute-forgets-itself/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [“The necessity of nothingness does not create anything. The real value and meaning of the Being are not in its necessity but in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/the-necessity-of-nothingness-does-not-create-anything-the-real-value/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [Anarchy is the stepping stone to absolute power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/anarchy-is-the-stepping-stone-to-absolute-power/)

[Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/)

> [I can like something. You can like something. It's not an absolute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/i-can-like-something-you-can-like-something-it-s-not-an-absolute/)

[will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/)

> [Nothing is absolute. Everything changes, everything moves, everything revolves, everything flies and goes away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frida-kahlo/nothing-is-absolute-everything-changes-everything-moves-everything/)

[Frida Kahlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frida-kahlo/)

> [I - it's simply not for me to evaluate an independent rating agency's processes. But I will say that there was reason to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-carney/i-it-s-simply-not-for-me-to-evaluate-an-independent-rating-agency-s/)

[Jay Carney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-carney/)

> [Absolute morality is the regulation of conduct in such a way that pain shall not be inflicted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/absolute-morality-is-the-regulation-of-conduct-in-such-a-way-that/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [What is liberty? There is no such thing as absolute liberty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benito-mussolini/what-is-liberty-there-is-no-such-thing-as-absolute-liberty/)

[Benito Mussolini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benito-mussolini/)

> [Doing the right thing at all costs is an absolute, and only a sith deals in absolutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-filoni/doing-the-right-thing-at-all-costs-is-an-absolute-and-only-a-sith/)

[Dave Filoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-filoni/)

> [“Energy is the world-born phenomenon, the world that puts itself in motion and flies into space by receiving space into itself. From this point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/energy-is-the-world-born-phenomenon-the-world-that-puts-itself-in/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [“As we see it, space is possible only when the primordial Being swallows emptiness. Space is born when the Being accepts emptiness, the Nonbeing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/as-we-see-it-space-is-possible-only-when-the-primordial-being/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [Absolute faith can blind you to the consequences of the actions you allow. It can tell you it's okay to drop bombs on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-denton/absolute-faith-can-blind-you-to-the-consequences-of-the-actions-you/)

[Andrew Denton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-denton/)

> [“Zero is a gateway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/zero-is-a-gateway/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [Absolute perfection is here and now, not in some future, near or far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/absolute-perfection-is-here-and-now-not-in-some-future-near-or-far/)

[Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/)

[Browse all 631 Absolute quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolute/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "There is no such source of error as the pursuit of absolute truth.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Samuel Butler"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the-pursuit-of-absolute-truth/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Absolute"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the-pursuit-of-absolute-truth/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f30/samuel-butler-823_absolute_there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the_2366789.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“There is no such source of error as the pursuit of absolute truth.” — Samuel Butler",
                "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": "Samuel Butler",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "There is no such source of...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the-pursuit-of-absolute-truth/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/there-is-no-such-source-of-error-as-the-pursuit-of-absolute-truth/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
