--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Piety is the only proper and adequate…" description: "\"Piety is the only proper and adequate relief of decaying man. He that grows old without religions hopes, as he declines into imbecility, and feels pain..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/samuel-johnson-50_adequate_piety-is-the-only-proper-and-adequate-re_2255530.jpg" --- # Piety is the only proper and adequate relief of decaying… ![“Piety is the only proper and adequate relief of decaying man. He that grows old without religions hopes, as he declines into imbecility, and feels pains and sorrows incessantly crowding upon him, falls into a gulf of bottomless misery, in which every reflection must plunge him deeper and deeper.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/samuel-johnson-50_adequate_piety-is-the-only-proper-and-adequate-re_2255530.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/samuel-johnson-50_adequate_piety-is-the-only-proper-and-adequate-re_2255530.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/samuel-johnson-50_adequate_piety-is-the-only-proper-and-adequate-re_2255530.jpg) > “Piety is the only proper and adequate relief of decaying man. He that grows old without religions hopes, as he declines into imbecility, and feels pains and sorrows incessantly crowding upon him, falls into a gulf of bottomless misery, in which every reflection must plunge him deeper and deeper.” [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. Human beings need spiritual practice to find meaning and avoid despair as they age, otherwise they risk sinking into hopelessness. **In simple terms:** Religion can give purpose in later life. Key Takeaway Seek meaning beyond material comforts. Themes spirituality aging meaning despair Mood reflective somber Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - elder care - personal reflection - community worship Key Concepts existentialism psychology theology Questions to Reflect On - What gives you purpose as you age? - Can meaning be found without faith? A Different Perspective Not all find solace in religion; secular paths exist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Imbecility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imbecility/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Misery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misery/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Pain and sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain-and-sorrow/) [Piety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piety/) [Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflection/) [Relief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relief/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow/) ## Related quotes > [Every man naturally persuades himself that he can keep his resolutions, nor is he convinced of his imbecility but by length of time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/every-man-naturally-persuades-himself-that-he-can-keep-his/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Let mine not be that saddest fate of all To live beyond my greater self; to see My faculties decaying, as the tree Stands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-wheeler-wilcox/let-mine-not-be-that-saddest-fate-of-all-to-live-beyond-my-greater/) [Ella Wheeler Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-wheeler-wilcox/) > [In a decaying society, art, if it is truthful, must also reflect decay. And unless it wants to break faith with its social function,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-fischer/in-a-decaying-society-art-if-it-is-truthful-must-also-reflect-decay/) Ernst Fischer > [The money has always been wasted on me. I don't care for beautiful things, funnily enough. I am my father's daughter. The things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/the-money-has-always-been-wasted-on-me-i-don-t-care-for-beautiful/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [“I am both ever evolving and ever decaying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-kuehn/i-am-both-ever-evolving-and-ever-decaying/) [Stephanie Kuehn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-kuehn/) > [Either you're growing or you're decaying; there's no middle ground. If you're standing still, you're decaying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/either-you-re-growing-or-you-re-decaying-there-s-no-middle-ground-if/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [Vacant left decaying in the open waiting to be discovered .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boondox/vacant-left-decaying-in-the-open-waiting-to-be-discovered/) [Boondox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boondox/) > [“If you’re not growing, you are decaying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-coleman/if-you-re-not-growing-you-are-decaying/) [Colleen Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-coleman/) > [We know that our senses are subject to decay, that from our middle years they are decaying all the time; but happily it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-hudson/we-know-that-our-senses-are-subject-to-decay-that-from-our-middle/) [William Henry Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-hudson/) > [“Saying goodbye to something or someone after that long of a time, even if it brought you pain and misery, is hard. It’s like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karina-halle/saying-goodbye-to-something-or-someone-after-that-long-of-a-time-even/) [Karina Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karina-halle/) > [The day you stop learning is the day you begin decaying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/the-day-you-stop-learning-is-the-day-you-begin-decaying/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [My faculties are decaying now and soon I shall be so I cannot remember any but the things that never happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/my-faculties-are-decaying-now-and-soon-i-shall-be-so-i-cannot/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How old the world is! I walk between two eternities… What is my fleeting existence in comparison with that decaying rock, that valley digging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/how-old-the-world-is-i-walk-between-two-eternities-what-is-my/) [Denis Diderot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-diderot/) > [Everything will change. The only question is growing up or decaying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-giovanni/everything-will-change-the-only-question-is-growing-up-or-decaying/) [Nikki Giovanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-giovanni/) > [“In this decaying world, these moments with her help keep me sane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomm-quackenbush/in-this-decaying-world-these-moments-with-her-help-keep-me-sane/) [Thomm Quackenbush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomm-quackenbush/) ## 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. 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