--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in…" description: "\"It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep, But it’s still worse, when you are free To sleep, and sleep, and sleep.\" — Taras Shevchenko" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg" --- # It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep… ![“It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep, But it’s still worse, when you are free To sleep, and sleep, and sleep.” quote by Taras Shevchenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg) > “It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep, But it’s still worse, when you are free To sleep, and sleep, and sleep.” [Taras Shevchenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taras-shevchenko/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Freedom can become a torment when one is unable to find peace, turning liberty into endless unrest. **In simple terms:** Freedom without peace feels like endless insomnia. Key Takeaway Seek inner calm, not just external freedom. Themes freedom restlessness psychology existence Mood melancholic philosophical Type poetic reflective When to use this quote - personal crisis - political oppression - post‑war trauma Key Concepts existential dread paradox of liberty mental health Questions to Reflect On - How do you find peace in freedom? - Can liberty be a burden? A Different Perspective Freedom alone may not bring happiness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chains/) [Deep Worse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deep-worse-599899/) [Dungeons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dungeons/) [Free Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-sleep-599900/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Rot Dungeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rot-dungeon-599901/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible/) [Worse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worse/) [Worse Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worse-free-599902/) ## Related quotes > [“I used to be free spirited, now I'm just free of sleep. I got a burning passion in my throat. I got a burning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tegan-quin/i-used-to-be-free-spirited-now-i-m-just-free-of-sleep-i-got-a-burning/) [Tegan Quin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tegan-quin/) > [“Who ever knew Truth put to the worse in a free and open encounter?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/who-ever-knew-truth-put-to-the-worse-in-a-free-and-open-encounter/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [Yes, thou art ever present, power divine; not circumscribed by time, nor fixed by space, confined to altars, nor to temples bound. In wealth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-more/yes-thou-art-ever-present-power-divine-not-circumscribed-by-time-nor/) [Hannah More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-more/) > [It will be hard James but you come from sturdy peasant stock men who picked cotton and dammed rivers and built railroads and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-will-be-hard-james-but-you-come-from-sturdy-peasant-stock-men-who/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [O loss of sight, of thee I most complain! Blind among enemies, O worse than chains, Dungeon, or beggary, or decrepit age!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/o-loss-of-sight-of-thee-i-most-complain-blind-among-enemies-o-worse-2/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [O loss of sight, of thee I most complain! Blind among enemies, O worse than chains, dungeon or beggary, or decrepit age! Light, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/o-loss-of-sight-of-thee-i-most-complain-blind-among-enemies-o-worse/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [I loved 'Dungeons & Dragons'. That was actually a good cartoon to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rash/i-loved-dungeons-dragons-that-was-actually-a-good-cartoon-to-me/) [Jim Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rash/) > [Sin thrives in the dungeon, but slap it on the table for all to see, and it withers rather quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dekker/sin-thrives-in-the-dungeon-but-slap-it-on-the-table-for-all-to-see/) [Ted Dekker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dekker/) > [How clear everything becomes when you look from the darkness of a dungeon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/how-clear-everything-becomes-when-you-look-from-the-darkness-of-a/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [We're making efforts regarding the total flow of the Zelda game. So far, the basic flow of the Zelda games is you're exploring a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eiji-aonuma/we-re-making-efforts-regarding-the-total-flow-of-the-zelda-game-so/) [Eiji Aonuma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eiji-aonuma/) > [I have done most of my talking by post of late years--as people shut up in dungeons take up with scrawling mottoes on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/i-have-done-most-of-my-talking-by-post-of-late-years-as-people-shut/) [Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/) > [Simon grinned. "You've never heard of Dungeons and Dragons?" "I've heard of dungeons," Jace said. "Also dragons. Although they're mostly extinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/simon-grinned-you-ve-never-heard-of-dungeons-and-dragons-i-ve-heard/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Remember the story of the Spanish prisoner. For many years he was confined in a dungeon... One day it occurred to him to push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/remember-the-story-of-the-spanish-prisoner-for-many-years-he-was/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [The biggest trap, the biggest dungeon in life isn't laziness or bad luck, it's comfort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/the-biggest-trap-the-biggest-dungeon-in-life-isn-t-laziness-or-bad/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [Your thief looks Exactly like the rest, or rather better; 'Tis only at the bar, and in the dungeon, That wise men know your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/your-thief-looks-exactly-like-the-rest-or-rather-better-tis-only-at/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) ## More by Taras Shevchenko > [“There are no such enemies So dire as good people, They will rob you, mournfully, And condemn you, weeping, They'll invite you to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/there-are-no-such-enemies-so-dire-as-good-people-they-will-rob-you/) [Taras Shevchenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taras-shevchenko/) > [All has gone to rest, and I don't know whether I'm alive or will live or whether I'm rushing like this through the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/all-has-gone-to-rest-and-i-don-t-know-whether-i-m-alive-or-will-live/) [Taras Shevchenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taras-shevchenko/) [Explore all 3 Taras Shevchenko quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taras-shevchenko/) ## More Chains quotes > [Unchecked, the new tolerance will sooner or later put many people in chains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson/unchecked-the-new-tolerance-will-sooner-or-later-put-many-people-in/) [D. A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson/) > [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The Chains of conformity click in tiresomely monotonous unison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/the-chains-of-conformity-click-in-tiresomely-monotonous-unison/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [The dark ages still reign over all humanity, and the depth and persistence of this domination are only now becoming clear. This Dark Ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/the-dark-ages-still-reign-over-all-humanity-and-the-depth-and/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [I don't have a huge amount of gear, but on the software side, I have a number of plug-in chains that act as abstracted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hopkins/i-don-t-have-a-huge-amount-of-gear-but-on-the-software-side-i-have-a/) [Jon Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hopkins/) > [We don't have a farm-to-table food safety system. I keep saying this. It came as a big surprise to the FDA that tomatoes were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-nestle/we-don-t-have-a-farm-to-table-food-safety-system-i-keep-saying-this/) [Marion Nestle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-nestle/) > [So many times we come to Jesus in worship and ask Him for things that He already IS and has already done... What a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-nockels/so-many-times-we-come-to-jesus-in-worship-and-ask-him-for-things-that/) [Christy Nockels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-nockels/) > [How can I set free anyone who doesn't have the guts to stand up alone and declare his own freedom? I think it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/how-can-i-set-free-anyone-who-doesn-t-have-the-guts-to-stand-up-alone/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [I'm bigger than you! I'm higher on the food chain - get in my belly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/i-m-bigger-than-you-i-m-higher-on-the-food-chain-get-in-my-belly/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) > [The chains will fall off freely, no more worries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dl-watson/the-chains-will-fall-off-freely-no-more-worries/) [DL WATSON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dl-watson/) > [I am ever mindful of the legacy of my grandfather, the founder of this Kingdom, who had said to me that he perceived his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-hussein-i/i-am-ever-mindful-of-the-legacy-of-my-grandfather-the-founder-of-this/) [King Hussein I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-hussein-i/) > [Think about it: we went into slavery pagans; we came out Christians. We went into slavery pieces of property; we came out American citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/think-about-it-we-went-into-slavery-pagans-we-came-out-christians-we/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [To one who is accustomed to thinking a lot, every new thought that he hears or reads about immediately appears as a link in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-one-who-is-accustomed-to-thinking-a-lot-every-new-thought-that-he/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Man's ethics must not end with man, but should extend to the universe. He must regain the consciousness of the great Chain of Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/man-s-ethics-must-not-end-with-man-but-should-extend-to-the-universe/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [To sigh, yet feel no pain; To weep, yet scarce know why; To sport an hour with Beauty's chain, Then throw it idly by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/to-sigh-yet-feel-no-pain-to-weep-yet-scarce-know-why-to-sport-an-hour/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) [Browse all 1,639 Chains quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chains/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep, But it’s still worse, when you are free To sleep, and sleep, and sleep.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Taras Shevchenko" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in-dungeon-deep-but-it-s-still/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chains" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in-dungeon-deep-but-it-s-still/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/taras-shevchenko-87949_chains_it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in_2454593.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It’s terrible to lie in chains, To rot in dungeon deep, But it’s still worse, when you are free To sleep…” — Taras Shevchenko", "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": "Taras Shevchenko", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taras-shevchenko/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It’s terrible to lie in chains,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in-dungeon-deep-but-it-s-still/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taras-shevchenko/it-s-terrible-to-lie-in-chains-to-rot-in-dungeon-deep-but-it-s-still/#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 } } ] } ```