--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes…" description: "\"Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we owe it everything. The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose.\" — W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/william-cowper-779_existence_existence-is-a-strange-bargain-life-owes_668634.png" --- # Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we… ![“Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we owe it everything. The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose.” quote by William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/william-cowper-779_existence_existence-is-a-strange-bargain-life-owes_668634.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/william-cowper-779_existence_existence-is-a-strange-bargain-life-owes_668634.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/william-cowper-779_existence_existence-is-a-strange-bargain-life-owes_668634.png) > “Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we owe it everything. The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose.” [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life demands we give fully, while it offers little in return; true joy arises from self‑sacrifice toward a meaningful purpose. **In simple terms:** Give your all despite life's scarcity; purpose brings happiness. Key Takeaway Invest fully in purposeful work. Themes purpose self‑sacrifice existential Mood hopeful serious Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - career dedication - volunteering - artistic creation - family caregiving Key Concepts meaning philosophical Questions to Reflect On - What purpose drives your daily actions? - How do you sustain meaning without exhaustion? A Different Perspective Risk of burnout if purpose is unclear or misaligned. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [True happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-happiness/) ## Related quotes > [Existence is very strange, but also the universe created us to coexist on a small planet in a whole entire ocean of stars that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/existence-is-very-strange-but-also-the-universe-created-us-to-coexist/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [My life owes me. Like an overdose, I'm slowly Drifting into the arms of trouble, then trouble holds me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-naan/my-life-owes-me-like-an-overdose-i-m-slowly-drifting-into-the-arms-of/) [K'naan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-naan/) > [“We don't deserve anything, Rowen. We don't deserve punishment, we don't deserve happiness, life owes us nothing. realize that." His voice wasn't gentle anymore;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-williams/we-don-t-deserve-anything-rowen-we-don-t-deserve-punishment-we-don-t-2/) [Nicole Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-williams/) > [“People with a grudge against the world are always dangerous. They seem to think life owes them something. I've known many an invalid who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/people-with-a-grudge-against-the-world-are-always-dangerous-they-seem/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [Life owes me something more than it has paid me and I’m going out to collect it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-owes-me-something-more-than-it-has-paid-me-and-i-m-going-out-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't think life owes me anything and the business doesn't owe me anything. The only way to approach it is by working hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-cranston/i-don-t-think-life-owes-me-anything-and-the-business-doesn-t-owe-me/) [Bryan Cranston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-cranston/) > [“Once I acknowledge that life owes me nothing, I have positioned myself so that I can begin to enjoy everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/once-i-acknowledge-that-life-owes-me-nothing-i-have-positioned-myself/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“If truth be told, life is so remarkably rich that we will always owe life a debt that we have no means to pay.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/if-truth-be-told-life-is-so-remarkably-rich-that-we-will-always-owe/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“This, according to the fellows who saw me as fit for a Service career, put me ahead of the curve, to understand this truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/this-according-to-the-fellows-who-saw-me-as-fit-for-a-service-career/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Life owes me a living worth living. Yes, Eden regarded life as her debtor, she its relentless paymaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-hurst/life-owes-me-a-living-worth-living-yes-eden-regarded-life-as-her/) [Fannie Hurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-hurst/) > [Life owes you nothing. You owe yourself everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/life-owes-you-nothing-you-owe-yourself-everything/) [Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/) > [“Life owes me nothing. My family, friends, teachers, and coworkers owe me nothing. I will accept whatever kindness and blessings I am given, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-alleyne/life-owes-me-nothing-my-family-friends-teachers-and-coworkers-owe-me/) Paul Alleyne > [“We don’t deserve anything, Rowen. We don’t deserve punishment, we don’t deserve happiness, life owes us nothing. Realize that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-williams/we-don-t-deserve-anything-rowen-we-don-t-deserve-punishment-we-don-t/) [Nicole Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-williams/) > [“The only thing you can justifiably claim that life owes you is an equal measure of what you have given out. And even that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/the-only-thing-you-can-justifiably-claim-that-life-owes-you-is-an/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“Life owes you, but sometimes you have to be your own fucking debt collector. And if we have to burn in hell for it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesb/life-owes-you-but-sometimes-you-have-to-be-your-own-fucking-debt/) [Jo Nesbø](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesb/) ## More by William Cowper > [And hast thou sworn on every slight pretence, Till perjuries are common as bad pence, While thousands, careless of the damning sin, Kiss the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/and-hast-thou-sworn-on-every-slight-pretence-till-perjuries-are/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [No wild enthusiast could rest, till half the world like him was possessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/no-wild-enthusiast-could-rest-till-half-the-world-like-him-was/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Admirals extolled for standing still, or doing nothing with a deal of skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/admirals-extolled-for-standing-still-or-doing-nothing-with-a-deal-of/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“The good we never miss we rarely prize”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-good-we-never-miss-we-rarely-prize/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Thus happiness depends, as nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/thus-happiness-depends-as-nature-shows-less-on-exterior-things-than/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Stamps God's own name upon a lie just made, To turn a penny in the way of trade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/stamps-god-s-own-name-upon-a-lie-just-made-to-turn-a-penny-in-the-way/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But oars alone can ne'er prevail To reach the distant coast; The breath of Heaven must swell the sail, Or all the toil is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-oars-alone-can-ne-er-prevail-to-reach-the-distant-coast-the/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“Nature is but a name for an effect whose cause is God"...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/nature-is-but-a-name-for-an-effect-whose-cause-is-god/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But conversation, choose what theme we may, And chiefly when religion leads the way, Should flow, like waters after summer show'rs, Not as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-conversation-choose-what-theme-we-may-and-chiefly-when-religion/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Remorse, the fatal egg that pleasure laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/remorse-the-fatal-egg-that-pleasure-laid/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“When we don't pray, we quit the fight. Prayer keeps the Christian's armor bright. And Satan trembles when he sees. The weakest saint upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/when-we-don-t-pray-we-quit-the-fight-prayer-keeps-the-christian-s/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But animated nature sweeter still, to soothe and satisfy the human ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-animated-nature-sweeter-still-to-soothe-and-satisfy-the-human-ear/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [A fretful temper will divide the closest knot that may be tied, by ceaseless sharp corrosion; a temper passionate and fierce may suddenly your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/a-fretful-temper-will-divide-the-closest-knot-that-may-be-tied-by/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Ten thousand casks, Forever dribbling out their base contents, Touch'd by the Midas finger of the state, Bleed gold for ministers to sport away.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/ten-thousand-casks-forever-dribbling-out-their-base-contents-touch-d/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [The art of poetry is to touch the passions, and its duty to lead them on the side of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-art-of-poetry-is-to-touch-the-passions-and-its-duty-to-lead-them/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) [Explore all 371 William Cowper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## More Existence quotes > [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/) [Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/) > [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/) [L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/) > [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Universities are the cathedrals of the modern age. They shouldn't have to justify their existence by utilitarian criteria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lodge/universities-are-the-cathedrals-of-the-modern-age-they-shouldn-t-have/) [David Lodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lodge/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [To divide one's life by years is of course to tumble into a trap set by our own arithmetic. The calendar consents to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-divide-one-s-life-by-years-is-of-course-to-tumble-into-a-trap-set/) [Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/) > [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/) [Browse all 7,646 Existence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we owe it everything. 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