--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first principle of true teaching is…" description: "\"The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught.\" — Sri Aurobindo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png" --- # The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can… ![“The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught.” quote by Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png) > “The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught.” [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True teaching begins with recognizing that nothing can be taught. **In simple terms:** Teaching starts by acknowledging its limits. Key Takeaway Embrace learning beyond formal instruction. Themes education teaching limitations self‑discovery Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - mindfulness practice - self‑study - creative workshops Key Concepts philosophy spirituality pedagogy Questions to Reflect On - How can you teach without dictating? - What does learning mean to you? A Different Perspective Rigid curricula can stifle growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Principle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principle/) [Principle True](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principle-true-2528353/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Taught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taught/) [Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching/) [Teaching Taught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching-taught-3007758/) [True Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-teaching-304493/) ## Related quotes > [Non-cooperation in military matters should be an essential moral principle for all true scientists ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/non-cooperation-in-military-matters-should-be-an-essential-moral/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [True teaching cannot be learned from text-books any more than a surgeon can acquire his skill by reading about surgery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/true-teaching-cannot-be-learned-from-text-books-any-more-than-a/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [The fundamental motive of true teaching is the love that seeks and studies and performs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/the-fundamental-motive-of-true-teaching-is-the-love-that-seeks-and/) [Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/) > [The teaching which is written on paper is not the true teaching. Written teaching is a kind of food for your brain. Of course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-teaching-which-is-written-on-paper-is-not-the-true-teaching/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [True teaching liberates the student from his teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/true-teaching-liberates-the-student-from-his-teacher/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [Every good educator knows that true teaching is to teach kids how to ask the right questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/every-good-educator-knows-that-true-teaching-is-to-teach-kids-how-to/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [No matter what spiritual path you've walked or what teachings you've followed, they must lead you back to no path and no teaching. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adyashanti/no-matter-what-spiritual-path-you-ve-walked-or-what-teachings-you-ve/) [Adyashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adyashanti/) > [“I think it is a duty I owe to my profession and to my sex to show that a woman has a right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-brooks/i-think-it-is-a-duty-i-owe-to-my-profession-and-to-my-sex-to-show/) [Harriet Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-brooks/) > [Perfect health, sincerity, honesty, straightforwardness, courage, disinterestedness, unselfishness, patience, endurance, perseverance, peace, calm, self control are all things that are taught infinitely better by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/perfect-health-sincerity-honesty-straightforwardness-courage/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [It is from the traditional family that we absorb those universal ideals and principles which are the teaching of Jesus, the bedrock of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamisese-mara/it-is-from-the-traditional-family-that-we-absorb-those-universal/) [Kamisese Mara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamisese-mara/) > [I can't speak for other photographers, but the photographers who went forward strongly when the so-called "official" part of their career ended, to me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-abell/i-can-t-speak-for-other-photographers-but-the-photographers-who-went/) [Sam Abell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-abell/) > [I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-am-always-ready-to-learn-although-i-do-not-always-like-being-taught/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [ They \[the teachers at European conservatories\] taught us because they wanted to pass the knowledge on and educate young musicians. It was not because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miroslav-vitous/they-the-teachers-at-european-conservatories-taught-us-because-they/) [Miroslav Vitous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miroslav-vitous/) > [The chief wonder of education is that it does not ruin everybody concerned in it, teachers and taught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/the-chief-wonder-of-education-is-that-it-does-not-ruin-everybody/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) ## More by Sri Aurobindo > [“Across the threshold’s sleep she entered in And found herself amid great figures of gods Conscious in stone and living without breath, Watching with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/across-the-threshold-s-sleep-she-entered-in-and-found-herself-amid/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Perfect health, sincerity, honesty, straightforwardness, courage, disinterestedness, unselfishness, patience, endurance, perseverance, peace, calm, self control are all things that are taught infinitely better by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/perfect-health-sincerity-honesty-straightforwardness-courage/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Hinduism... gave itself no name, because it set itself no sectarian limits; it claimed no universal adhesion, asserted no sole infallible dogma, set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/hinduism-gave-itself-no-name-because-it-set-itself-no-sectarian/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Do not belong to the past dawns,but to the noons of future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/do-not-belong-to-the-past-dawns-but-to-the-noons-of-future/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [There is no greater pride and glory than to be a perfect instrument of the Master.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/there-is-no-greater-pride-and-glory-than-to-be-a-perfect-instrument/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Delight is the secret. Learn of pure delight and thou shalt learn of God. What then was the commencement of the whole matter? Existence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/delight-is-the-secret-learn-of-pure-delight-and-thou-shalt-learn-of/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [You carry in yourself all the obstacles necessary to make your realization perfect. If you discover a very black hole, a thick shadow, be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/you-carry-in-yourself-all-the-obstacles-necessary-to-make-your/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Indian religion has always felt that since the minds, the temperaments and the intellectual affinities of men are unlimited in their variety, a perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/indian-religion-has-always-felt-that-since-the-minds-the-temperaments/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [“One who has shaped this world is ever its lord: Our errors are his steps upon the way; He works through the fierce vicissitudes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/one-who-has-shaped-this-world-is-ever-its-lord-our-errors-are-his/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Not in the state of unconsciousness, but in full awareness when the higher Power will descend into and direct us, then only the yogic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/not-in-the-state-of-unconsciousness-but-in-full-awareness-when-the/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [A woman has the greatest opportunity to provide the best outcome for a baby and its potentialities. Not only by having a conscious and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/a-woman-has-the-greatest-opportunity-to-provide-the-best-outcome-for/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [They proved to me by convincing reasons that God does not exist; Afterwards I saw God, for he came and embraced me. And now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/they-proved-to-me-by-convincing-reasons-that-god-does-not-exist/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [The yogin becomes aware in part of the action of the supramental power organizing the lower vehicle (ādhāra). A part of it remains behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-yogin-becomes-aware-in-part-of-the-action-of-the-supramental/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [Spirituality is indeed the master key of the Indian mind; the sense of the infinitive is native to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/spirituality-is-indeed-the-master-key-of-the-indian-mind-the-sense-of/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [A hidden Bliss is at the root of things. A mute Delight regards Time's countless works: To house God's joy in things Space gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/a-hidden-bliss-is-at-the-root-of-things-a-mute-delight-regards-time-s/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) [Explore all 264 Sri Aurobindo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) [Ioannes Amos Commenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ioannes-amos-commenius/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) [H.D. (Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sri Aurobindo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is-that-nothing-can-be-taught/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is-that-nothing-can-be-taught/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/sri-aurobindo-1257_education_the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is_2738194.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught.” — Sri Aurobindo", "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": "Sri Aurobindo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first principle of true teaching...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is-that-nothing-can-be-taught/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/the-first-principle-of-true-teaching-is-that-nothing-can-be-taught/#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 } } ] } ```