---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It could be ventured to understand…"
description: "\"It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of religious development, to define neurosis as an ind..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg"
---

#  It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive…

![“It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of religious development, to define neurosis as an individual religiosity; to define religion as a universal obsessive compulsive neurosis.” quote by Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg)

> “It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of religious development, to define neurosis as an individual religiosity; to define religion as a universal obsessive compulsive neurosis.”

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

## About This Quote

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

Freud suggests neurosis mirrors religious fervor, proposing religion as a collective obsessive‑compulsive condition.

**In simple terms:** Religion may be a shared form of neurosis.

Key Takeaway

Consider the psychological roots of belief systems.

Themes

psychology religion neurosis

Mood

critical analytical

Type

theoretical psychological

When to use this quote

- therapy sessions
- academic study
- religious practice
- social analysis
- mental health treatment

Key Concepts

obsessive‑compulsive disorder collective behavior faith as pathology

Questions to Reflect On

- Is it fair to label all religious experience as neurosis?
- How do cultural contexts affect this view?

A Different Perspective

Equating religion with pathology can oversimplify cultural and spiritual dimensions.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Neurosis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neurosis/) [Obsessive compulsive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obsessive-compulsive/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/)

## Related quotes

> [love is a mental illness, an obsessive-compulsive disorder romanticized!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-jerome-dickey/love-is-a-mental-illness-an-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-romanticized/)

[Eric Jerome Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-jerome-dickey/)

> [I have got this obsessive compulsive disorder where I have to have everything in a straight line, or everything has to be in pairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-beckham/i-have-got-this-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-where-i-have-to-have/)

[David Beckham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-beckham/)

> [“Writing is a habit, an addiction, as powerful and overmastering an urge as putting a bottle to your lips or a spike in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-c-boyle/writing-is-a-habit-an-addiction-as-powerful-and-overmastering-an-urge/)

[T.C. Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-c-boyle/)

> [I'm very much a home bird. I sometimes think I should have been a domestic. I like sweeping up, getting everything tidy. I'm obsessive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-o-sullivan/i-m-very-much-a-home-bird-i-sometimes-think-i-should-have-been-a/)

[Gilbert O'Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-o-sullivan/)

> [I don't switch off at 5 P.M. I am obsessive and compulsive about what I do, so my personal and professional lives are totally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-barton/i-don-t-switch-off-at-5-p-m-i-am-obsessive-and-compulsive-about-what/)

[Joey Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-barton/)

> [Curing yourself of obsessive compulsive disorder by going to a strip club is pretty strange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-kidder/curing-yourself-of-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-by-going-to-a-strip/)

[Tracy Kidder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-kidder/)

> [I suppose I could read more fiction, but I haven't moved in that direction. I'd like more time even though I spend six hours…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/i-suppose-i-could-read-more-fiction-but-i-haven-t-moved-in-that/)

[Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/)

> [Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) runs in my family, as do other mental health problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dervla-kirwan/obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd-runs-in-my-family-as-do-other/)

[Dervla Kirwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dervla-kirwan/)

> [Some of my music requires an obsessive-compulsive approach and a real embodiment of excessiveness. So I really have to live in that world of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/some-of-my-music-requires-an-obsessive-compulsive-approach-and-a-real/)

[Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/)

> [Welcome to the psychiatric hotline: if you are obsessive compulsive press one repeatedly. If you are schizophrenic listen closely and a little voice will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-oakley/welcome-to-the-psychiatric-hotline-if-you-are-obsessive-compulsive/)

[Barbara Oakley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-oakley/)

> [We're not going to waste our valuable space or your precious energy by giving equal time to stories of tragedy, failure, and tumult. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-brezsny/we-re-not-going-to-waste-our-valuable-space-or-your-precious-energy/)

[Rob Brezsny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-brezsny/)

> [I'm pretty obsessive-compulsive, and I'm very fast. I tend to not write for a long period of time until I can't not write, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-m-pretty-obsessive-compulsive-and-i-m-very-fast-i-tend-to-not-write/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [Manchester United could have any goalkeeper in the world. I was a 23-year-old kid from New Jersey who, from an early age, had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-howard/manchester-united-could-have-any-goalkeeper-in-the-world-i-was-a-23/)

[Tim Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-howard/)

> [“I lean my head back and stare at the stark white ceiling. “My friend Zoe used to say I had obsessive compulsive disorder when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siobhan-davis/i-lean-my-head-back-and-stare-at-the-stark-white-ceiling-my-friend/)

[Siobhan Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siobhan-davis/)

> [I don't relax. I can't take vacations. I'm obsessive-compulsive, and I worry with every project that I'm going to fail. When it starts to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-don-t-relax-i-can-t-take-vacations-i-m-obsessive-compulsive-and-i/)

[Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/)

## More by Sigmund Freud

> [Anatomy is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/anatomy-is-destiny/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“Woe to you, my Princess, when I come. I will kiss you quite red and feed you till you are plump. And if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/woe-to-you-my-princess-when-i-come-i-will-kiss-you-quite-red-and-feed/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [I take up the standpoint that the tendency to aggression is an innate, independent, instinctual disposition in man, and I come back now to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/i-take-up-the-standpoint-that-the-tendency-to-aggression-is-an-innate/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“Ko postavlja pitanje o smislu zivota,s njegovim libidom nije nesto u redu.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/ko-postavlja-pitanje-o-smislu-zivota-s-njegovim-libidom-nije-nesto-u/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“When it comes to the small matters in life one should think long and hard, but when it comes to the big ones -whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/when-it-comes-to-the-small-matters-in-life-one-should-think-long-and/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [We like to forget that in fact everything in our life is chance, from our genesis out of the encounter of spermatozoon and egg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/we-like-to-forget-that-in-fact-everything-in-our-life-is-chance-from/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [We should picture the instrument that carries our mental functioning as resembling a compound microscope or photographic apparatus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/we-should-picture-the-instrument-that-carries-our-mental-functioning/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [The religions of mankind must be classed among the mass-delusions of this kind. No one, needless to say, who shares a delusion ever recognizes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/the-religions-of-mankind-must-be-classed-among-the-mass-delusions-of/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [It seems to be my fate to discover only the obvious: that children have sexual feelings, which every nurse maid knows; and that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/it-seems-to-be-my-fate-to-discover-only-the-obvious-that-children/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [The first requisite of civilization is that of justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/the-first-requisite-of-civilization-is-that-of-justice/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“Actually, the substitution of the reality-principle for the pleasure-principle denotes no dethronement of the pleasure-principle, but only a safeguarding of it. A momentary pleasure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/actually-the-substitution-of-the-reality-principle-for-the-pleasure/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [Dreams are often most profound when they seem the most crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/dreams-are-often-most-profound-when-they-seem-the-most-crazy/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [Against the suffering which may come upon one from human relationships the readiest safeguard is voluntary isolation, keeping oneself aloof from other people. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/against-the-suffering-which-may-come-upon-one-from-human/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [There is to my mind no doubt that the concept of beautiful had its roots in sexual excitation and that its original meaning was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/there-is-to-my-mind-no-doubt-that-the-concept-of-beautiful-had-its/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [The voice of the intellect is soft one, but it does not rest until it has gained a hearing. Ultimately, after endless rebuffs, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/the-voice-of-the-intellect-is-soft-one-but-it-does-not-rest-until-it/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

[Explore all 608 Sigmund Freud quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

## More Counterparts quotes

> [Governments follow their people. A great deal has to do with the vision of the leadership of governments. They have a vision, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-khurshid/governments-follow-their-people-a-great-deal-has-to-do-with-the/)

[Salman Khurshid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-khurshid/)

> [24.9 percent of American children live in poverty, while the proportions in Germany, France and Italy are 8.6, 7.4 and 10.5 percent. And once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-hutton/24-9-percent-of-american-children-live-in-poverty-while-the/)

[Will Hutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-hutton/)

> [Whatever the reason, American Muslims appear far less inclined to support the global jihad than their European counterparts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-noah/whatever-the-reason-american-muslims-appear-far-less-inclined-to/)

[Timothy Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-noah/)

> [The people are fed up with their elected officials playing the blame game and treating their political counterparts as enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-lewis/the-people-are-fed-up-with-their-elected-officials-playing-the-blame/)

[Carl Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-lewis/)

> [Alas, poor Yorick! How surprised he would be to see how his counterpart of today is whisked off to a funeral parlor and is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-mitford/alas-poor-yorick-how-surprised-he-would-be-to-see-how-his-counterpart/)

[Jessica Mitford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-mitford/)

> [Muslim women must stand up and speak out about who we are, what we believe and where we are going. I think we need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-rania-of-jordan/muslim-women-must-stand-up-and-speak-out-about-who-we-are-what-we/)

[Queen Rania of Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-rania-of-jordan/)

> [The American capitalists are richer and stronger than their counterparts in other lands. They are also younger and more ignorant, and therefore more inclined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-p-cannon/the-american-capitalists-are-richer-and-stronger-than-their/)

[James P. Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-p-cannon/)

> [All our surest statements about the nature of the world are mathematical statements, yet we do not know what mathematics "is"... and so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/all-our-surest-statements-about-the-nature-of-the-world-are/)

[John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/)

> [Living with these teenage boys allowed me to see how much their psyches were like their girl counterparts. They were more familiar to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlo-thomas/living-with-these-teenage-boys-allowed-me-to-see-how-much-their/)

[Marlo Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlo-thomas/)

> [None of my counterparts in Europe interferes in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margrethe-ii-of-denmark/none-of-my-counterparts-in-europe-interferes-in-politics/)

[Margrethe II of Denmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margrethe-ii-of-denmark/)

> [I think women have come a long way. Women are in positions not because they're women, they're in positions because they're intelligent and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-think-women-have-come-a-long-way-women-are-in-positions-not-because/)

[Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/)

> [In the early years of the Roaring Twenties, American women not only won the right to vote but they also earned headlines along side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-de-varona/in-the-early-years-of-the-roaring-twenties-american-women-not-only/)

[Donna de Varona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-de-varona/)

> [Rich people in poor places want to show off their wealth. And their less affluent counterparts feel pressure to fake it, at least in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-postrel/rich-people-in-poor-places-want-to-show-off-their-wealth-and-their/)

[Virginia Postrel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-postrel/)

> [The physical domain of the country had its counterpart in me. The trails I made led outward into the hills and swamps, but they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-haines/the-physical-domain-of-the-country-had-its-counterpart-in-me-the/)

[John Haines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-haines/)

> [ So in his very politically-incorrect way, I think \[James Mattis\] is a good counterpart to Donald Trump, who doesn't read books. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-r-mansoor/so-in-his-very-politically-incorrect-way-i-think-james-mattis-is-a/)

[Peter R. Mansoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-r-mansoor/)

Browse all 188 Counterparts quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of religious development, to define neurosis as an individual religiosity; to define religion as a universal obsessive compulsive neurosis.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Sigmund Freud"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obsessive-compulsive-neurosis-as/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Counterparts"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obsessive-compulsive-neurosis-as/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/sigmund-freud-360_counterparts_it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obses_1993933.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of…” — Sigmund Freud",
                "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": "Sigmund Freud",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It could be ventured to understand...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obsessive-compulsive-neurosis-as/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/it-could-be-ventured-to-understand-obsessive-compulsive-neurosis-as/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
