--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The process of growth is, it seems, the…" description: "\"The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and awareness with which we once again pick ourselves..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png" --- # The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling… ![“The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and awareness with which we once again pick ourselves up, the lightness with which we dust ourselves off, the openness with which we continue and take the next unknown step, beyond our edge, beyond…” quote by Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png) > “The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and awareness with which we once again pick ourselves up, the lightness with which we dust ourselves off, the openness with which we continue and take the next unknown step, beyond our edge, beyond our holding, into the remarkable mystery of being.” [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Growth involves falling, learning gentleness, awareness, and openness to continue beyond comfort zones into mystery. **In simple terms:** Growth is falling and rising gently. Key Takeaway Accept setbacks, keep moving. Themes growth resilience mindfulness Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - Personal healing - career setbacks - learning new skills Key Concepts Spirituality psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you recover after failure? - What does “mystery of being” mean to you? A Different Perspective May romanticize struggle. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Dust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dust/) [Edges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edges/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Falling down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falling-down/) [Falling Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falling-growth-5799133/) [Gentleness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gentleness/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Growth Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-art-786101/) [Growth Measured](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-measured-4156801/) [Lightness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lightness/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Openness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/openness/) [Picks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/picks/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Process Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process-growth-1845875/) [Remarkable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remarkable/) [Seems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seems/) [Steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steps/) ## Related quotes > [“True potential for growth is measured by your willingness to let go of what you think you know, and embrace something seemingly contrary, thereby,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-orville-mcleish/true-potential-for-growth-is-measured-by-your-willingness-to-let-go/) [C. Orville McLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-orville-mcleish/) > [Knowing the steps to create living growth: that is art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ming-dao-deng/knowing-the-steps-to-create-living-growth-that-is-art/) [Ming-Dao Deng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ming-dao-deng/) > [“Personal growth must sometimes be measured by distance travelled rather than by current position”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/personal-growth-must-sometimes-be-measured-by-distance-travelled/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [My recollections of Armenia open new visions for me. My art is therefore a growth art where forms, pines, shapes, memories of Armenia germinate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arshile-gorky/my-recollections-of-armenia-open-new-visions-for-me-my-art-is/) [Arshile Gorky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arshile-gorky/) > [Due process is a growth too sturdy to succumb to the infection of the least ingredient of error.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-cardozo/due-process-is-a-growth-too-sturdy-to-succumb-to-the-infection-of-the/) [Benjamin Cardozo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-cardozo/) > [Everything is a process, growth and improvement takes time. Don't expect fast results if you want good results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everything-is-a-process-growth-and-improvement-takes-time-don-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I go way beyond just the wood and stone but to the process of growth and farming and the tensions between the two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-goldsworthy/i-go-way-beyond-just-the-wood-and-stone-but-to-the-process-of-growth/) [Andy Goldsworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-goldsworthy/) > [I believe that life is basically a process of growth-that we go through many lives, choosing those situations and problems that we will learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-henson/i-believe-that-life-is-basically-a-process-of-growth-that-we-go/) [Jim Henson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-henson/) > [The fire was followed by a period of grieving and then by an incredible lightness, freedom, and mobility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-puryear/the-fire-was-followed-by-a-period-of-grieving-and-then-by-an/) [Martin Puryear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-puryear/) > [“With the lightness of being above the clouds gently wrapped in wings of love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/with-the-lightness-of-being-above-the-clouds-gently-wrapped-in-wings/) [sir kristian goldmund aumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/) > [In the love poetry of every age, the woman longs to be weighed down by the man's body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/in-the-love-poetry-of-every-age-the-woman-longs-to-be-weighed-down-by/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Suddenly, I’m lighter, only half of who I was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-m-mullen/suddenly-i-m-lighter-only-half-of-who-i-was/) [Shannon M Mullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-m-mullen/) > [“Gravity is the root of lightness;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/gravity-is-the-root-of-lightness/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [Anyone whose goal is 'something higher' must expect someday to suffer vertigo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/anyone-whose-goal-is-something-higher-must-expect-someday-to-suffer/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [In lightness the root is lost. In haste the ruler is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/in-lightness-the-root-is-lost-in-haste-the-ruler-is-lost/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) ## More by Stephen Levine > [ “\[T\]hose who insist they've got their 'shit together' are usually standing in it at the time. (16)” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/t-hose-who-insist-they-ve-got-their-shit-together-are-usually/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [“When you can accept discomfort, doing so allows a balance of mind. That surrender, that letting go of wanting anything to be other than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/when-you-can-accept-discomfort-doing-so-allows-a-balance-of-mind-that/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [Forgiveness is mental floss! Build the capacity to forgive slowly - start with little unkind acts, otherwise you'll sabotage yourself. When we forgive, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/forgiveness-is-mental-floss-build-the-capacity-to-forgive-slowly/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [If there is a single definition of healing it is to enter with mercy and awareness those pains, mental and physical, from which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/if-there-is-a-single-definition-of-healing-it-is-to-enter-with-mercy/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/if-you-were-going-to-die-soon-and-had-only-one-phone-call-you-could/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [Relate to the fear, not just from it. (50)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/relate-to-the-fear-not-just-from-it-50/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [Love is not what we become, but what we already are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/love-is-not-what-we-become-but-what-we-already-are/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [...healing comes not from being loving but from being itself. It is not a case of being clear but of clear being. This healing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/healing-comes-not-from-being-loving-but-from-being-itself-it-is-not-a/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [If you want the other person more than anything else in the world, you're in major trouble and the relationship is a wobbly pivot.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/if-you-want-the-other-person-more-than-anything-else-in-the-world-you/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [Letting the last breath come. Letting the last breath go. Dissolving, dissolving into vast space, the light body released from its heavier form. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/letting-the-last-breath-come-letting-the-last-breath-go-dissolving/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [“A drop of pond water under the microscope just like in science class but now your are the pond & the microscope is mindfulness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/a-drop-of-pond-water-under-the-microscope-just-like-in-science-class/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [If sequestered pain made a sound, the atmosphere would be humming all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/if-sequestered-pain-made-a-sound-the-atmosphere-would-be-humming-all/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [In all serious disease states we find a concomitant low oxygen state... Low oxygen in the body tissues is a sure indicator for disease...Hypoxia,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/in-all-serious-disease-states-we-find-a-concomitant-low-oxygen-state/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [Clearly, all fear has an element of resistance and a leaning away from the moment. Its dynamic is not unlike that of strong desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/clearly-all-fear-has-an-element-of-resistance-and-a-leaning-away-from/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [The saddest part about being human is not paying attention. Presence is the gift of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/the-saddest-part-about-being-human-is-not-paying-attention-presence/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) [Explore all 96 Stephen Levine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and awareness with which we once again pick ourselves up, the lightness with which we dust ourselves off, the openness with which we continue and take the next unknown step, beyond our edge, beyond our holding, into the remarkable mystery of being.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Levine" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-art-of-falling-down-growth-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-art-of-falling-down-growth-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/stephen-levine-6949_art_the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-ar_1551343.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The process of growth is, it seems, the art of falling down. Growth is measured by the gentleness and…” — Stephen Levine", "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": "Stephen Levine", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The process of growth is, it...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-art-of-falling-down-growth-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/the-process-of-growth-is-it-seems-the-art-of-falling-down-growth-is/#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 } } ] } ```