--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are only the temporary custodians of…" description: "\"We are only the temporary custodians of the particles which we are made of. They will go on to lead a future existence in the enormous universe that ma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b30/stephen-hawking-389_custodians_we-are-only-the-temporary-custodians-of_1411749.jpg" --- # We are only the temporary custodians of the particles… ![“We are only the temporary custodians of the particles which we are made of. They will go on to lead a future existence in the enormous universe that made them” quote by Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b30/stephen-hawking-389_custodians_we-are-only-the-temporary-custodians-of_1411749.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b30/stephen-hawking-389_custodians_we-are-only-the-temporary-custodians-of_1411749.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b30/stephen-hawking-389_custodians_we-are-only-the-temporary-custodians-of_1411749.jpg) > “We are only the temporary custodians of the particles which we are made of. They will go on to lead a future existence in the enormous universe that made them” [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We are temporary stewards of our physical matter, which will continue in the vast cosmos after us. **In simple terms:** We temporarily hold our particles, which persist beyond us. Key Takeaway Recognize our fleeting role in the universe. Themes transience cosmos responsibility Mood contemplative humble Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal reflection - scientific education - environmental policy - legacy planning Key Concepts existentialism continuity stewardship Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing impermanence affect your choices? - What responsibilities arise from being a temporary steward? A Different Perspective Our influence is limited; physical matter alone doesn’t determine legacy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Custodians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/custodians/) [Custodians Particles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/custodians-particles-4977256/) [Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enormous/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Existence Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence-enormous-4977255/) [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Future Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-existence-983161/) [Goes on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goes-on/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Particles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particles/) [Temporary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temporary/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) ## Related quotes > [I have been supremely lucky in my life in that I have known great love, and of course I am the temporary custodian of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/i-have-been-supremely-lucky-in-my-life-in-that-i-have-known-great/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [Reality includes both the past and the future, but existence includes only the present and is totally dependent on the reality of past and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-alan-wolf/reality-includes-both-the-past-and-the-future-but-existence-includes/) [Fred Alan Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-alan-wolf/) > [“Future existence is not a purely spiritual existence, it demands a life in a body and in a material universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-scroggie/future-existence-is-not-a-purely-spiritual-existence-it-demands-a/) [Graham Scroggie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-scroggie/) > [“If I know not now what and how I shall be; if there is an essential, absolute difference between my future and my present;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/if-i-know-not-now-what-and-how-i-shall-be-if-there-is-an-essential/) [Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/) > [“And sometimes I try to stop speculating the future out of existence, and other times I just lean back and run with it because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-lee-o-malley/and-sometimes-i-try-to-stop-speculating-the-future-out-of-existence/) [Bryan Lee O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-lee-o-malley/) > [There is, I know not how, a certain presage, as it were, of a future existence; and this takes the deepest root, and is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/there-is-i-know-not-how-a-certain-presage-as-it-were-of-a-future/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [It is by no means an irrational fancy that, in a future existence, we shall look upon what we think our present existence, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/it-is-by-no-means-an-irrational-fancy-that-in-a-future-existence-we/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [I think the discovery of supersymmetric partners for the known particles would revolutionize our understanding of the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-think-the-discovery-of-supersymmetric-partners-for-the-known/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [But a machine that was powerful enough to accelerate particles to the grand unification energy would have to be as big as the Solar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/but-a-machine-that-was-powerful-enough-to-accelerate-particles-to-the/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Comrades ! You have voluntarily accepted a mission that is the noblest that the human mind can conceive of. For the fulfillment of such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhas-chandra-bose/comrades-you-have-voluntarily-accepted-a-mission-that-is-the-noblest/) [Subhas Chandra Bose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhas-chandra-bose/) > [ I hope \["reanimated the papacy"\] means that the new interest in the pope evokes a new interest in the Church's teaching, of which the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-weigel/i-hope-reanimated-the-papacy-means-that-the-new-interest-in-the-pope/) [George Weigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-weigel/) > [It is impossible to wait and weigh, in golden scales, the sentiments of prejudice and superstition that have gathered round the priests who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/it-is-impossible-to-wait-and-weigh-in-golden-scales-the-sentiments-of/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [You are the treasure custodian, cleaning the moon for me, scouring the sky so the stars would shine bright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-loeb/you-are-the-treasure-custodian-cleaning-the-moon-for-me-scouring-the/) [Lisa Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-loeb/) > [Justice! Custodian of the world! But since the world errs, justice must be custodian of the world's errors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ugo-betti/justice-custodian-of-the-world-but-since-the-world-errs-justice-must/) [Ugo Betti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ugo-betti/) > [Perhaps we have failed as human beings. Perhaps we have embarrassed ourselves to the natural world. We have been rigorous and willful in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/perhaps-we-have-failed-as-human-beings-perhaps-we-have-embarrassed/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) ## More by Stephen Hawking > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [We are the product of quantum fluctuations in the very early universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-are-the-product-of-quantum-fluctuations-in-the-very-early-universe/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race does not have a very good record of intelligent behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-does-not-have-a-very-good-record-of-intelligent/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“We have finally found something that doesn’t have a cause, because there was no time for a cause to exist in. For me this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-have-finally-found-something-that-doesn-t-have-a-cause-because/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [ \[On President Bush's plan to get to Mars in 10 years\] Stupid. Robots would do a better job and be much cheaper because you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/on-president-bush-s-plan-to-get-to-mars-in-10-years-stupid-robots/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I believe the simplest explanation is, there is no God. No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. This leads me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-believe-the-simplest-explanation-is-there-is-no-god-no-one-created/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-paralympic-games-is-about-transforming-our-perception-of-the-world/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The increase of disorder or entropy is what distinguishes the past from the future, giving a direction to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-increase-of-disorder-or-entropy-is-what-distinguishes-the-past/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Most sets of values would give rise to universes that, although they might be very beautiful, would contain no one able to wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/most-sets-of-values-would-give-rise-to-universes-that-although-they/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [There is a fundamental difference between religion, which is based on authority, and science, which is based on observation and reason. Science will win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/there-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-religion-which-is-based-on/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“In the eighteenth century, philosophers considered the whole of human knowledge, including science, to be their field and discussed questions such as: Did the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/in-the-eighteenth-century-philosophers-considered-the-whole-of-human/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [A model is a good model if first it interprets a wide range of observations in terms of a simple and elegant model, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/a-model-is-a-good-model-if-first-it-interprets-a-wide-range-of/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“Empedocles noticed that if you cover the neck before you immerse it, a clepsydra does not fill. He reasoned that something invisible must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/empedocles-noticed-that-if-you-cover-the-neck-before-you-immerse-it-a/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. Let's hope we can avoid dropping the basket until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-shouldn-t-have-all-its-eggs-in-one-basket-or-on-one/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I hope I have helped to raise the profile of science and to show that physics is not a mystery but can be understood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-hope-i-have-helped-to-raise-the-profile-of-science-and-to-show-that/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) [Explore all 601 Stephen Hawking quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## More Custodians quotes > [Perhaps we have failed as human beings. Perhaps we have embarrassed ourselves to the natural world. We have been rigorous and willful in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/perhaps-we-have-failed-as-human-beings-perhaps-we-have-embarrassed/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Justice! Custodian of the world! But since the world errs, justice must be custodian of the world's errors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ugo-betti/justice-custodian-of-the-world-but-since-the-world-errs-justice-must/) [Ugo Betti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ugo-betti/) > [You are the treasure custodian, cleaning the moon for me, scouring the sky so the stars would shine bright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-loeb/you-are-the-treasure-custodian-cleaning-the-moon-for-me-scouring-the/) [Lisa Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-loeb/) > [It is impossible to wait and weigh, in golden scales, the sentiments of prejudice and superstition that have gathered round the priests who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/it-is-impossible-to-wait-and-weigh-in-golden-scales-the-sentiments-of/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [ I hope \["reanimated the papacy"\] means that the new interest in the pope evokes a new interest in the Church's teaching, of which the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-weigel/i-hope-reanimated-the-papacy-means-that-the-new-interest-in-the-pope/) [George Weigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-weigel/) > [Comrades ! You have voluntarily accepted a mission that is the noblest that the human mind can conceive of. For the fulfillment of such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhas-chandra-bose/comrades-you-have-voluntarily-accepted-a-mission-that-is-the-noblest/) [Subhas Chandra Bose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhas-chandra-bose/) > [No one else has access to the world you carry around within yourself; you are its custodian and entrance. No one else can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-donohue/no-one-else-has-access-to-the-world-you-carry-around-within-yourself/) [John O'Donohue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-donohue/) > [The vitality of thought is in adventure. Idea's won't keep. Something must be done about them. When the idea is new, its custodians have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-vitality-of-thought-is-in-adventure-idea-s-won-t-keep-something/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Universities are the custodians not only of the many cultures of man, but of the rational process itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/universities-are-the-custodians-not-only-of-the-many-cultures-of-man/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I believe we should be good custodians of the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-nolan/i-believe-we-should-be-good-custodians-of-the-earth/) [Jonathan Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-nolan/) > [Leaders are the custodians of a nation's ideals, of the beliefs it cherishes, of its permanent hopes, of the faith which makes a nation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/leaders-are-the-custodians-of-a-nation-s-ideals-of-the-beliefs-it/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [I believe this nation hungers for a spiritual revival; hungers to once again see honor placed above political expediency; to see government once again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-believe-this-nation-hungers-for-a-spiritual-revival-hungers-to-once/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [“Smells are custodians of memories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-tessaro/smells-are-custodians-of-memories/) [Kathleen Tessaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-tessaro/) > [The significance of our lives and our fragile planet is then determined only by our own wisdom and courage. We are the custodians of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-significance-of-our-lives-and-our-fragile-planet-is-then/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Writers are the custodians of memory, and that's what this chapter is about: how to leave some kind of record of your life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/writers-are-the-custodians-of-memory-and-that-s-what-this-chapter-is/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) [Browse all 59 Custodians quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/custodians/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We are only the temporary custodians of the particles which we are made of. 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