--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The soul has many motions, body one." description: "\"The soul has many motions, body one.\" — Theodore Roethke" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg" --- # The soul has many motions, body one. ![“The soul has many motions, body one.” quote by Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg) > “The soul has many motions, body one.” [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The soul experiences many emotions, yet the body remains singular and unified. **In simple terms:** The soul feels many things, but the body is one. Key Takeaway Embrace emotional complexity while staying grounded. Themes emotion unity human experience Mood introspective poetic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - mental health - artistic expression - spiritual practice Key Concepts psychology philosophy mind‑body connection Questions to Reflect On - How do you reconcile inner turbulence with external composure? - What practices help integrate emotional depth? A Different Perspective The soul’s many motions can conflict with bodily unity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Motions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motions/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [“Spiritual age is determined by the acts which make the mornings and evenings of the soul, and not by the motions of the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/spiritual-age-is-determined-by-the-acts-which-make-the-mornings-and/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [One thing I cannot stand is when people say, 'Hi, how are you?' and they don't wait to hear how I am. They're just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-jamison/one-thing-i-cannot-stand-is-when-people-say-hi-how-are-you-and-they/) [Judith Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-jamison/) > [Just as one can compose colors, or forms, so one can compose motions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-calder/just-as-one-can-compose-colors-or-forms-so-one-can-compose-motions/) [Alexander Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-calder/) > [Once you start being conscious of the repetitive motions that we all just accept as part of being human, you realize how little we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/once-you-start-being-conscious-of-the-repetitive-motions-that-we-all/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > ['The Count' wasn't a real stretch. I was doing pretty generic Bela Lugosi bad vampire on purpose. It was supposed to be lame. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-flaherty/the-count-wasn-t-a-real-stretch-i-was-doing-pretty-generic-bela/) [Joe Flaherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-flaherty/) > [Falling little wind, it was five before I could form my line, or distinguish any of the enemy's motions; and could not judge at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-byng/falling-little-wind-it-was-five-before-i-could-form-my-line-or/) [John Byng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-byng/) > [The Spaniards are slow in their motions but strong in their attachments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marquis-de-lafayette/the-spaniards-are-slow-in-their-motions-but-strong-in-their/) [Marquis de Lafayette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marquis-de-lafayette/) > [“Go through the motions, Adam.” “What motions?” “Act out being alive, like a play. And after a while, a long while, it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/go-through-the-motions-adam-what-motions-act-out-being-alive-like-a/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [God alone is the author of all the motions in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/god-alone-is-the-author-of-all-the-motions-in-the-world/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [The impression left after watching the motions of birds is that of extreme mobility - a life of perpetual impulse checked only by fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-jefferies/the-impression-left-after-watching-the-motions-of-birds-is-that-of/) [Richard Jefferies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-jefferies/) > [The labourer's muscle is that of a cart-horse, his motions lumbering and slow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-jefferies/the-labourer-s-muscle-is-that-of-a-cart-horse-his-motions-lumbering/) [Richard Jefferies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-jefferies/) > [The key to proving that there's a black hole is showing that there's a tremendous amount of mass in a very small volume. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-m-ghez/the-key-to-proving-that-there-s-a-black-hole-is-showing-that-there-s-2/) [Andrea M. Ghez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-m-ghez/) > [The key to proving that there's a black hole is showing that there's a tremendous amount of mass in a very small volume. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-m-ghez/the-key-to-proving-that-there-s-a-black-hole-is-showing-that-there-s/) [Andrea M. Ghez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-m-ghez/) > [There is no doubt in the sanctity of Mecca, but a donkey won't become a Hajj pilgrim by just going through the motions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahman-baba/there-is-no-doubt-in-the-sanctity-of-mecca-but-a-donkey-won-t-become/) [Rahman Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahman-baba/) > [You own a watch the invention of the mind, though for a single motion 'tis designed, as well as that which is with greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-blackmore/you-own-a-watch-the-invention-of-the-mind-though-for-a-single-motion/) Richard Blackmore ## More by Theodore Roethke > [I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. I feel my fate in what I cannot fear. I learn by going where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-wake-to-sleep-and-take-my-waking-slow-i-feel-my-fate-in-what-i/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [Those who are willing to be vulnerable move among mysteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/those-who-are-willing-to-be-vulnerable-move-among-mysteries/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [A lively understandable spirit Once entertained you. It will come again. Be still. Wait.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/a-lively-understandable-spirit-once-entertained-you-it-will-come/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [I came to love, I came into my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-came-to-love-i-came-into-my-own/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [I bleed my bones, their marrow to bestowUpon that God who knows what I would know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-bleed-my-bones-their-marrow-to-bestowupon-that-god-who-knows-what-i/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [All finite things reveal infinitude: The mountain with its singular bright shade Like the blue shine on freshly frozen snow, The after-light upon ice-burdened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/all-finite-things-reveal-infinitude-the-mountain-with-its-singular/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [We think by feeling. What is there to know?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/we-think-by-feeling-what-is-there-to-know/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [I can hear, underground, that sucking and sobbing, In my veins, in my bones I feel it,- The small water seeping upward, The tight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-can-hear-underground-that-sucking-and-sobbing-in-my-veins-in-my/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [Over every mountain there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/over-every-mountain-there-is-a-path-although-it-may-not-be-seen-from/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [(I measure time by how a body sways.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-measure-time-by-how-a-body-sways/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [To follow the drops sliding from a lifting oar, Head up, while the rower breathes, and the small boat drifts quietly shoreward...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/to-follow-the-drops-sliding-from-a-lifting-oar-head-up-while-the/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [Any fool can take a bad line out of a poem; it takes a real pro to throw out a good line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/any-fool-can-take-a-bad-line-out-of-a-poem-it-takes-a-real-pro-to/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [Love begets love. This torment is my joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/love-begets-love-this-torment-is-my-joy/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [“I Knew a Woman" I knew a woman, lovely in her bones, When small birds sighed, she would sigh back at them; Ah, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/i-knew-a-woman-i-knew-a-woman-lovely-in-her-bones-when-small-birds/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) > [A mind too active is no mind at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/a-mind-too-active-is-no-mind-at-all/) [Theodore Roethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) [Explore all 116 Theodore Roethke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The soul has many motions, body one.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Theodore Roethke" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Body" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/369/theodore-roethke-4077_body_the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one-12951_1295156.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The soul has many motions, body one.” — Theodore Roethke", "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": "Theodore Roethke", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roethke/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The soul has many motions, body...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roethke/the-soul-has-many-motions-body-one/#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 } } ] } ```