--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...this so-called animisn that not so…" description: "\"“...this so-called animisn that not so much the Fan Nannies but everybody else around here subscribes to. can we really just write it off as primitive ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bf/tom-robbins-169_spirituality_this-so-called-animisn-that-not-so-much_1366149.jpg" --- # ...this so-called animisn that not so much the Fan Nannies… ![“...this so-called animisn that not so much the Fan Nannies but everybody else around here subscribes to. can we really just write it off as primitive superstition run amok? Do only human beings have souls, or is that a narcissistic, chauvinistic piece of self-flattery? I mean, can't we look at…” quote by Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bf/tom-robbins-169_spirituality_this-so-called-animisn-that-not-so-much_1366149.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bf/tom-robbins-169_spirituality_this-so-called-animisn-that-not-so-much_1366149.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bf/tom-robbins-169_spirituality_this-so-called-animisn-that-not-so-much_1366149.jpg) > ““...this so-called animisn that not so much the Fan Nannies but everybody else around here subscribes to. can we really just write it off as primitive superstition run amok? Do only human beings have souls, or is that a narcissistic, chauvinistic piece of self-flattery? I mean, can't we look at that great old teak tree over there or at this gulch, and see as much of the divine in them as in some ol' anthropomorphic Sunday school Boom Daddy with imaginary long gray whiskers and a platinum bathrobe? Are we capable of entertaining the possibility that there may have been a holy entity in the cross as well as on it?”” [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author questions whether belief in souls and divine presence is merely superstition or a deeper, universal spirituality that can be seen in nature. **In simple terms:** He wonders if belief in souls is superstition or a real connection to the divine in everything. Key Takeaway Consider the possibility of sacredness beyond human constructs. Themes philosophy spirituality skepticism Mood curious contemplative Type essay philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - debate on religion - environmental appreciation - creative writing Key Concepts anthropology nature divine presence Questions to Reflect On - Do you see the divine in everyday objects? - How does labeling belief as superstition affect its value? A Different Perspective The argument may overlook cultural and personal significance of such beliefs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Superstition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstition/) ## Related quotes > [Primitive superstition lies just below the surface of even the most tough-minded individuals, and it is precisely those who most fight against it who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/primitive-superstition-lies-just-below-the-surface-of-even-the-most/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [“Your belief without logical evidence & true knowledge is nothing but primitive superstition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/md-mujib-ullah/your-belief-without-logical-evidence-true-knowledge-is-nothing-but/) [Md. Mujib Ullah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/md-mujib-ullah/) > [Souls love. That’s what souls do. Egos don’t, but souls do. Become a soul, look around, and you’ll be amazed-all the beings around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/souls-love-that-s-what-souls-do-egos-don-t-but-souls-do-become-a-soul/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [“In that moment we transcended the bonds of our physical beings, our souls clinging to the remnants of the innocence that had been stolen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-rolfe/in-that-moment-we-transcended-the-bonds-of-our-physical-beings-our/) Glenn Rolfe > [A soul isn't given for free. The races of men fight each other to the death for the honor of being recognized as human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-wilson/a-soul-isn-t-given-for-free-the-races-of-men-fight-each-other-to-the/) [Daniel H. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-h-wilson/) > [He(God) gave all beings souls, bodies, mouths, noses and water to drink. He gave them corn to eat, clothes to wear, and other pleasures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-guru-granth-sahib/he-god-gave-all-beings-souls-bodies-mouths-noses-and-water-to-drink/) [Sri Guru Granth Sahib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-guru-granth-sahib/) > [“We must see people not as object but as beings, with souls and with bodies through which they express their souls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-wicker/we-must-see-people-not-as-object-but-as-beings-with-souls-and-with/) [Kate Wicker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-wicker/) > [Souls love. That’s what souls do. Egos don’t, but souls do. Become a soul, look around, and you’ll be amazed-all the beings around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/souls-love-that-s-what-souls-do-egos-don-t-but-souls-do-become-a-soul-2/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [“Human beings.. have souls which lives forever, lives after the body has been turned to dust. It rises up through the clear, pure air…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-christian-andersen/human-beings-have-souls-which-lives-forever-lives-after-the-body-has/) [Hans Christian Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-christian-andersen/) > [ \[Core concepts: Human beings all have souls. Souls are software objects. Software is not immortal.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-stross/core-concepts-human-beings-all-have-souls-souls-are-software-objects/) [Charles Stross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-stross/) > [If God exists, then we are spiritual beings, and we have souls, and we are noble inherently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-badgley/if-god-exists-then-we-are-spiritual-beings-and-we-have-souls-and-we/) [Penn Badgley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-badgley/) > [So what does that make you think about God? I think that maybe, if human beings have souls, that maybe their souls are in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-runyon/so-what-does-that-make-you-think-about-god-i-think-that-maybe-if/) [Brent Runyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-runyon/) > [“I think that maybe, if human beings have souls, that maybe their souls are in their eyes. That maybe that’s what the color is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-runyon/i-think-that-maybe-if-human-beings-have-souls-that-maybe-their-souls/) [Brent Runyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-runyon/) > [“I believe in everything; nothing is sacred. I believe in nothing; everything is sacred. Ha Ha Ho Ho Hee Hee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/i-believe-in-everything-nothing-is-sacred-i-believe-in-nothing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The state of mind which I put myself when I tell a story is one in which superstition flourishes very easily. And I welcome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/the-state-of-mind-which-i-put-myself-when-i-tell-a-story-is-one-in/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) ## More by Tom Robbins > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won't adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/love-is-the-ultimate-outlaw-it-just-won-t-adhere-to-any-rules-the/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The world is a wonderfully weird place, consensual reality is significantly flawed, no institution can be trusted, certainty is a mirage, security a delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-world-is-a-wonderfully-weird-place-consensual-reality-is/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Anyone who maintains absolute standards of good and evil is dangerous. 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The most any of us can do is to sign on as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/love-is-the-ultimate-outlaw-it-just-won-t-adhere-to-any-rules-the-2/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“The glue that holds the natural world together appears to be a harmonious balance of opposites: day and night, light and dark, winter and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-glue-that-holds-the-natural-world-together-appears-to-be-a/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Zippers are primal and modern at the very same time. On the one hand, your zipper is primitive and reptilian, on the other, mechanical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/zippers-are-primal-and-modern-at-the-very-same-time-on-the-one-hand/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“religion is a paramount contributor to human misery. It is not merely the opium of the masses, it is the cyanide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/religion-is-a-paramount-contributor-to-human-misery-it-is-not-merely/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [She continued weeping until the heat of her tear water, the sheer velocity of its flow, finally obscured the already vague circumstances of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/she-continued-weeping-until-the-heat-of-her-tear-water-the-sheer/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The bottom line is that (a) people are never perfect, but love can be, (b) that is the one and only way that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-bottom-line-is-that-a-people-are-never-perfect-but-love-can-be-b/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Virtually every advancement made by our species since civilization first peeked out of its nest of stone has been initiated by lone individuals, mavericks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/virtually-every-advancement-made-by-our-species-since-civilization/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [When we accept small wonders, we qualify ourselves to imagine great wonders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/when-we-accept-small-wonders-we-qualify-ourselves-to-imagine-great/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) [Explore all 994 Tom Robbins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) ## More Spirituality quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“As I do not seem able much to heal, then maybe I can simply be a responsible witness to the miracle of the ordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-barry/as-i-do-not-seem-able-much-to-heal-then-maybe-i-can-simply-be-a/) [Sebastian Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-barry/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) Rabelaise > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [“You're never alone if you're with your soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/you-re-never-alone-if-you-re-with-your-soul/) [Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/) > [“The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me. PSA116:07 Return unto thy rest, O my soul;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-lord-preserveth-the-simple-i-was-brought-low-and-he-helped-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Give me love, give me peace on earth, give me light, give me life, keep me free from birth, give me hope, help me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-me-love-give-me-peace-on-earth-give-me-light-give-me-life-keep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Every human creates his own problems. Problems are ones private property and we shouldnt meddle into them self-initiatively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-papian/every-human-creates-his-own-problems-problems-are-ones-private/) [Ruben Papian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-papian/) > [The soul wanders in the dark, until it finds love. And so, wherever our love goes, there we find our soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-zimmerman/the-soul-wanders-in-the-dark-until-it-finds-love-and-so-wherever-our/) [Mary Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-zimmerman/) > [“79. A soul which knows that it is loved, but does not itself love, betrays its sediment: its dregs come up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/79-a-soul-which-knows-that-it-is-loved-but-does-not-itself-love/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Your mind has the intellect to lift the world, your heart has the wisdom to better the world, and your soul has the genius…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/your-mind-has-the-intellect-to-lift-the-world-your-heart-has-the/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) [Browse all 19,952 Spirituality quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...this so-called animisn that not so much the Fan Nannies but everybody else around here subscribes to. can we really just write it off as primitive superstition run amok? 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