--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There's no pain on earth that doesn't…" description: "\"“There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.”\" — sue monk kidd" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png" --- # There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent… ![“There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.” quote by sue monk kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png) > ““There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.”” [sue monk kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Suffering often lacks acknowledgment; a compassionate observer can validate and alleviate the emotional weight of pain. **In simple terms:** Compassionate witnessing eases suffering. Key Takeaway Presence matters more than solutions. Themes Compassion Witnessing Human Connection Empathy Vulnerability Mood Reflective Hopeful Intimate Type Philosophical Inspirational When to use this quote - Grieving a loss - Experiencing chronic illness - Facing personal failure - Witnessing injustice - Supporting a friend in crisis Key Concepts Emotional Validation Shared Humanity Practical Applications - Therapeutic counseling - Peer support groups Questions to Reflect On - How does being seen change the experience of pain? - What barriers prevent us from being compassionate witnesses? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Benevolent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benevolent/) [Benevolent Witness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benevolent-witness-461084/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Pain Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain-earth-461086/) [Require Benevolent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/require-benevolent-461085/) [Witness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witness/) ## Related quotes > [“There's no pain on earth that doesn't crave a benevolent witness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-crave-a-benevolent-witness/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“In all nature there seemed to be a feeling of hopelessness and pain. The earth, like a ruined woman sitting alone in a dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/in-all-nature-there-seemed-to-be-a-feeling-of-hopelessness-and-pain/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [The charming aspect of Christmas is the fact that it expresses good will in a cheerful, happy, benevolent, non-sacrificial way. One says: “Merry Christmas”-not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-charming-aspect-of-christmas-is-the-fact-that-it-expresses-good/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“My creed on the subject of slavery is short. Slavery per se is not sin. It is a social condition ordained from the beginning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-morse/my-creed-on-the-subject-of-slavery-is-short-slavery-per-se-is-not-sin/) [Samuel Morse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-morse/) > [Nature is not benevolent; Nature is just, gives pound for pound, measure for measure, makes no exceptions, never tempers her decrees with mercy, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/nature-is-not-benevolent-nature-is-just-gives-pound-for-pound-measure/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [“It’s okay, buddy!” I shade my eyes and look up at the sky. “Luckily for you, I am both stunningly good-looking and benevolent. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-wolf/it-s-okay-buddy-i-shade-my-eyes-and-look-up-at-the-sky-luckily-for/) [Sara Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-wolf/) > [The Jews looked for a special savior, a messiah, who was to redeem mankind by the agreeable process of restoring the fabulous glories of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-jews-looked-for-a-special-savior-a-messiah-who-was-to-redeem/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [What am I writing for anyway? Is it like dreaming? Is it a benevolent process? Something that moves the past forward? And what about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selima-hill/what-am-i-writing-for-anyway-is-it-like-dreaming-is-it-a-benevolent/) [Selima Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selima-hill/) > [I worship nothing. Not a good lie nor a dark one. If nature is proof of God's amazing creation then I have truly seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-numan/i-worship-nothing-not-a-good-lie-nor-a-dark-one-if-nature-is-proof-of/) [Gary Numan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-numan/) > [A universal peace, it is to be feared, is in the catalogue of events, which will never exist but in the imaginations of visionary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/a-universal-peace-it-is-to-be-feared-is-in-the-catalogue-of-events/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [You can't have it both ways. You can't have both free will and a benevolent higher power who protects you from yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/you-can-t-have-it-both-ways-you-can-t-have-both-free-will-and-a/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [If Despotism failed only for want of a capable benevolent despot, what chance has Democracy, which requires a whole population of capable voters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-despotism-failed-only-for-want-of-a-capable-benevolent-despot-what/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The soul of the truly benevolent man does not seem to reside much in his own body. Its life, to a great extent, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/the-soul-of-the-truly-benevolent-man-does-not-seem-to-reside-much-in/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [Intelligent Design opens the whole possibility of us being created in the image of a benevolent God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-dembski/intelligent-design-opens-the-whole-possibility-of-us-being-created-in/) [William A. Dembski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-dembski/) > [“But benevolent patriarchy is still patriarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/but-benevolent-patriarchy-is-still-patriarchy/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) ## More by sue monk kidd > [“But benevolent patriarchy is still patriarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/but-benevolent-patriarchy-is-still-patriarchy/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“It's part of our overall Body Negation Program.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/it-s-part-of-our-overall-body-negation-program/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“That was the thing mauma and I loved, our time with the quilts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/that-was-the-thing-mauma-and-i-loved-our-time-with-the-quilts/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [we need not avoid our active lives, but simply bring to them a new vision and shift of gravity. for in the center we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/we-need-not-avoid-our-active-lives-but-simply-bring-to-them-a-new/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“The mermaids came to me finally, in the pink hours of my life. They are my consolation. For them I dove with arms outstretched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/the-mermaids-came-to-me-finally-in-the-pink-hours-of-my-life-they-are/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“The bag contained a pair of white cotton gloves stained the color of age.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/the-bag-contained-a-pair-of-white-cotton-gloves-stained-the-color-of/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [I eventually found that the soul is more than an immortal commodity to win and save. It is the repository of the inner divine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-eventually-found-that-the-soul-is-more-than-an-immortal-commodity/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Readiness for dying arrives by attending the smallest moment and finding the eternal inside of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/readiness-for-dying-arrives-by-attending-the-smallest-moment-and/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“I sat at her desk and turned one page after another, staring at what looked like bits and pieces of black lace laid cross…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-sat-at-her-desk-and-turned-one-page-after-another-staring-at-what/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [The translucence that comes when life hardens into a bead of such cruel perfection you see it with the purest clarity. Everything suddenly there--life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/the-translucence-that-comes-when-life-hardens-into-a-bead-of-such/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“afflicted with the worst female curse on earth, the need to mold myself to expectations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/afflicted-with-the-worst-female-curse-on-earth-the-need-to-mold/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Her forbidden bath all those months ago still hung leaden between us, though Handful didn't seem the least bit ashamed by my discovery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/her-forbidden-bath-all-those-months-ago-still-hung-leaden-between-us/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Why should God’s perfection be based on having an unchanging nature?” I asked. “Isn’t flexibility more perfect than stasis?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/why-should-god-s-perfection-be-based-on-having-an-unchanging-nature-i/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“There are things without explanation, moments when life will become arranged in such odd ways that you imagine a whole vocabulary of meaning inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-are-things-without-explanation-moments-when-life-will-become/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) [Explore all 584 sue monk kidd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) ## More Benevolent quotes > [“But benevolent patriarchy is still patriarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/but-benevolent-patriarchy-is-still-patriarchy/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [Intelligent Design opens the whole possibility of us being created in the image of a benevolent God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-dembski/intelligent-design-opens-the-whole-possibility-of-us-being-created-in/) [William A. Dembski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-dembski/) > [The soul of the truly benevolent man does not seem to reside much in his own body. Its life, to a great extent, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/the-soul-of-the-truly-benevolent-man-does-not-seem-to-reside-much-in/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [If Despotism failed only for want of a capable benevolent despot, what chance has Democracy, which requires a whole population of capable voters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-despotism-failed-only-for-want-of-a-capable-benevolent-despot-what/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You can't have it both ways. You can't have both free will and a benevolent higher power who protects you from yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/you-can-t-have-it-both-ways-you-can-t-have-both-free-will-and-a/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [A universal peace, it is to be feared, is in the catalogue of events, which will never exist but in the imaginations of visionary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/a-universal-peace-it-is-to-be-feared-is-in-the-catalogue-of-events/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [I worship nothing. Not a good lie nor a dark one. If nature is proof of God's amazing creation then I have truly seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-numan/i-worship-nothing-not-a-good-lie-nor-a-dark-one-if-nature-is-proof-of/) [Gary Numan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-numan/) > [What am I writing for anyway? Is it like dreaming? Is it a benevolent process? Something that moves the past forward? And what about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selima-hill/what-am-i-writing-for-anyway-is-it-like-dreaming-is-it-a-benevolent/) [Selima Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selima-hill/) > [The Jews looked for a special savior, a messiah, who was to redeem mankind by the agreeable process of restoring the fabulous glories of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-jews-looked-for-a-special-savior-a-messiah-who-was-to-redeem/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [“It’s okay, buddy!” I shade my eyes and look up at the sky. “Luckily for you, I am both stunningly good-looking and benevolent. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-wolf/it-s-okay-buddy-i-shade-my-eyes-and-look-up-at-the-sky-luckily-for/) [Sara Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-wolf/) > [Nature is not benevolent; Nature is just, gives pound for pound, measure for measure, makes no exceptions, never tempers her decrees with mercy, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/nature-is-not-benevolent-nature-is-just-gives-pound-for-pound-measure/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [“My creed on the subject of slavery is short. Slavery per se is not sin. It is a social condition ordained from the beginning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-morse/my-creed-on-the-subject-of-slavery-is-short-slavery-per-se-is-not-sin/) [Samuel Morse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-morse/) > [The charming aspect of Christmas is the fact that it expresses good will in a cheerful, happy, benevolent, non-sacrificial way. One says: “Merry Christmas”-not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-charming-aspect-of-christmas-is-the-fact-that-it-expresses-good/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [... so large a portion of those who hold much capital, instead of using their various advantages for the greatest good of those around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catharine-beecher/so-large-a-portion-of-those-who-hold-much-capital-instead-of-using/) [Catharine Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catharine-beecher/) > [I had gone into the hospital with the stupid notion that its primary object was the care and comfort of the sick and wounded.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/i-had-gone-into-the-hospital-with-the-stupid-notion-that-its-primary/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) [Browse all 289 Benevolent quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benevolent/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "sue monk kidd" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-require-a-benevolent-witness/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Benevolent" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-require-a-benevolent-witness/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a79/sue-monk-kidd-404_benevolent_there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-re_42736.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.” — sue monk kidd", "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": "sue monk kidd", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There's no pain on earth that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-require-a-benevolent-witness/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-require-a-benevolent-witness/#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 } } ] } ```