--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our minds, like our bodies, are in…" description: "\"Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux; something is hourly lost, and something acquired… Do not suffer life to stagnate; it will grow muddy..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png" --- # Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux… ![“Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux; something is hourly lost, and something acquired… Do not suffer life to stagnate; it will grow muddy for want of motion: commit yourself again to the current of the world.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png) > “Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux; something is hourly lost, and something acquired… Do not suffer life to stagnate; it will grow muddy for want of motion: commit yourself again to the current of the world.” [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is constantly changing; resisting change leads to stagnation and decay, so one must continually adapt. **In simple terms:** Embrace change to avoid stagnation. Key Takeaway Stay adaptable and keep moving forward. Themes change adaptation growth Mood thoughtful inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career transitions - personal habits - learning new skills - health routines Key Concepts philosophy psychology personal development Questions to Reflect On - What habits keep you from evolving? - How can you turn discomfort into motivation? A Different Perspective Change can be unsettling and may cause temporary discomfort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“Do not suffer life to stagnate, it will grow muddy for want of motion; commit yourself again to the current of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/do-not-suffer-life-to-stagnate-it-will-grow-muddy-for-want-of-motion/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [A man’s life may stagnate as literally as water may stagnate, and just as motion and direction are the remedy for one, so purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/a-man-s-life-may-stagnate-as-literally-as-water-may-stagnate-and-just/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [“Do not allow any of God’s gift in your life to stagnate.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anikor-daniel/do-not-allow-any-of-god-s-gift-in-your-life-to-stagnate/) [ANIKOR Daniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anikor-daniel/) > [So often I heard people paying blind obeisance to change - as though it had some virtue of its own. Change or we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-perelman-rossner/so-often-i-heard-people-paying-blind-obeisance-to-change-as-though-it/) [Judith Perelman Rossner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-perelman-rossner/) > [It's not the failure that holds us back but the reluctance to begin over again that causes us to stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/it-s-not-the-failure-that-holds-us-back-but-the-reluctance-to-begin/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Change or stagnate. Keep moving or die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercedes-lackey/change-or-stagnate-keep-moving-or-die/) [Mercedes Lackey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercedes-lackey/) > [To keep always in the same place means to stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/to-keep-always-in-the-same-place-means-to-stagnate/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [“The programmer who refuses to keep exploring will surely stagnate, forget his joy, lose the will to program (and become a manager).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marijn-haverbeke/the-programmer-who-refuses-to-keep-exploring-will-surely-stagnate/) [Marijn Haverbeke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marijn-haverbeke/) > [If you only do what you know and do it very, very well, chances are that you won't fail. You'll just stagnate, and your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/if-you-only-do-what-you-know-and-do-it-very-very-well-chances-are/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [Without immigration, nations would stagnate. It is key for innovation and for economic growth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taavet-hinrikus/without-immigration-nations-would-stagnate-it-is-key-for-innovation/) [Taavet Hinrikus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taavet-hinrikus/) > [It's easy to get stagnate, if you play the same character. In New Moon, I felt like I was going a little bit deeper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pattinson/it-s-easy-to-get-stagnate-if-you-play-the-same-character-in-new-moon/) [Robert Pattinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pattinson/) > [“Without curiosity, we are unable to sustain our attention, we avoid risks, we abort challenging tasks, we compromise our intellectual development, we fail to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-kashdan/without-curiosity-we-are-unable-to-sustain-our-attention-we-avoid/) [Todd Kashdan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-kashdan/) > [Everything has to keep moving forward in 'Endeavour.' Otherwise, it will stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-evans/everything-has-to-keep-moving-forward-in-endeavour-otherwise-it-will/) [Shaun Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-evans/) > [Freedom is not an ideal, it is not even a protection, if it means nothing more than freedom to stagnate, to live without dreams,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/freedom-is-not-an-ideal-it-is-not-even-a-protection-if-it-means/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I want is to be willing to fail rather than stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dickey/what-i-want-is-to-be-willing-to-fail-rather-than-stagnate/) [James Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dickey/) ## More by Samuel Johnson > [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Words are daughters of earth but ideas are sons of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/words-are-daughters-of-earth-but-ideas-are-sons-of-heaven/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“The cherubim were never intended as an object of worship, because they were only the appendices to another thing. But a thing is then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-cherubim-were-never-intended-as-an-object-of-worship-because-they/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [That kind of life is most happy which affords us most opportunities of gaining our own self-esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/that-kind-of-life-is-most-happy-which-affords-us-most-opportunities/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The time will come to every human being when it must be known how well he can bear to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-time-will-come-to-every-human-being-when-it-must-be-known-how/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) [Explore all 1,998 Samuel Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux; something is hourly lost, and something acquired… Do not suffer life to stagnate; it will grow muddy for want of motion: commit yourself again to the current of the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continual-flux-something-is-hourly/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Body" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continual-flux-something-is-hourly/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0f/samuel-johnson-50_body_our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continu_439426.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Our minds, like our bodies, are in continual flux; something is hourly lost, and something acquired… Do not…” — Samuel Johnson", "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 Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Our minds, like our bodies, are...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continual-flux-something-is-hourly/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/our-minds-like-our-bodies-are-in-continual-flux-something-is-hourly/#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 } } ] } ```