--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Doctors don't know everything really…" description: "\"Doctors don't know everything really. They understand matter, not spirit. And you and I live in the spirit.\" — William Saroyan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg" --- # Doctors don't know everything really. They understand… ![“Doctors don't know everything really. They understand matter, not spirit. And you and I live in the spirit.” quote by William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg) > “Doctors don't know everything really. They understand matter, not spirit. And you and I live in the spirit.” [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human knowledge is limited to material understanding; spiritual aspects remain beyond scientific grasp. **In simple terms:** Science covers matter, not spirit. Key Takeaway Recognize limits of empirical knowledge. Themes knowledge spirituality humility Mood contemplative thoughtful Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - medical practice - personal belief - ethical decisions Key Concepts epistemology metaphysics Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance material and spiritual understanding? - What role does faith play in your life? A Different Perspective Science cannot address all existential questions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) ## Related quotes > [There are lots of things we never understand, no matter how many years we put on, no matter how much experience we accumulate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-are-lots-of-things-we-never-understand-no-matter-how-many-years-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [When there's something you can't understand no matter how much you think about it, you can't let yourself brood over it forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-gray-man/when-there-s-something-you-can-t-understand-no-matter-how-much-you-2/) D-Gray Man > [When there's something you can't understand no matter how much you think about it, you can't let yourself brood over it forever. ~Allen Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katsura-hoshino/when-there-s-something-you-can-t-understand-no-matter-how-much-you/) [Katsura Hoshino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katsura-hoshino/) > [I believe that nothing can be more abstract, more unreal, than what we actually see. We know that all we can see of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giorgio-morandi/i-believe-that-nothing-can-be-more-abstract-more-unreal-than-what-we/) [Giorgio Morandi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giorgio-morandi/) > [The medical profession (is) a conspiracy to hide its own shortcomings. No doubt the same may be said of all professions. They are all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-medical-profession-is-a-conspiracy-to-hide-its-own-shortcomings/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Doctors frequently get it wrong. One out of five patients today is in the hospital because incorrect treatment by a physician put him or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-saul/doctors-frequently-get-it-wrong-one-out-of-five-patients-today-is-in/) [Andrew Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-saul/) > [People who have visions should go see a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helmut-schmidt/people-who-have-visions-should-go-see-a-doctor/) [Helmut Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helmut-schmidt/) > [Michelle and I don't want anyone telling us who our family's doctor should be - and no one should decide that for you either.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/michelle-and-i-don-t-want-anyone-telling-us-who-our-family-s-doctor/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [If you take the time to study how to be a doctor and how to use your scalpel and your medicine, then there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-take-the-time-to-study-how-to-be-a-doctor-and-how-to-use-your/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [“What saves doctors' reputations is the fact that many illnesses are benign and that people can go on living with a large number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-chevallier/what-saves-doctors-reputations-is-the-fact-that-many-illnesses-are/) [Gabriel Chevallier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-chevallier/) > [There are some fantastic, brilliant alternative doctors out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hayley-mills/there-are-some-fantastic-brilliant-alternative-doctors-out-there/) [Hayley Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hayley-mills/) > [No families take so little medicine as those of doctors, except those of apothecaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-sr/no-families-take-so-little-medicine-as-those-of-doctors-except-those/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-sr/) > [Time is generally the best doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/time-is-generally-the-best-doctor/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [There are many good (medical) doctors, but very few good diagnostics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florya99/there-are-many-good-medical-doctors-but-very-few-good-diagnostics/) Florya99 > [Every patient carries her or his own doctor inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/every-patient-carries-her-or-his-own-doctor-inside/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) ## More by William Saroyan > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [The basic truth of all things, as nearly as we may ever dream of determining and knowing this truth, is form, that which is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/the-basic-truth-of-all-things-as-nearly-as-we-may-ever-dream-of/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“This is a hell of a night. I don't want to leave it just to go to sleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/this-is-a-hell-of-a-night-i-don-t-want-to-leave-it-just-to-go-to-sleep/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Americans still believe they are cut out to be successful-in everything: love, love-making, luck, luck-giving, money-making, sense-making, cancer-avoiding, clothes-wearing, car-driving, and so on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/americans-still-believe-they-are-cut-out-to-be-successful-in/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [I can't decide for you whether or not you have got to write, but if anything in the world, war, or pestilence, or famine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-can-t-decide-for-you-whether-or-not-you-have-got-to-write-but-if/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [He paints for the blind, and we are the blind, and he lets us see for sure what we saw long ago but weren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/he-paints-for-the-blind-and-we-are-the-blind-and-he-lets-us-see-for/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [I am interested in madness. I believe it is the biggest thing in the human race, and the most constant. How do you take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-am-interested-in-madness-i-believe-it-is-the-biggest-thing-in-the/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Two years ago your father died, Ulysses. But as long as we are alive, as long as we are together, as long as two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/two-years-ago-your-father-died-ulysses-but-as-long-as-we-are-alive-as/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Cowards are nice, they're interesting, they're gentle, they wouldn't think of shooting down people in a parade from a tower. They want to live,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/cowards-are-nice-they-re-interesting-they-re-gentle-they-wouldn-t/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [In the time of your life, live - so that in that good time there shall be no ugliness or death for yourself or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/in-the-time-of-your-life-live-so-that-in-that-good-time-there-shall/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [San Francisco is a world to explore. It is a place where the heart can go on a delightful adventure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/san-francisco-is-a-world-to-explore-it-is-a-place-where-the-heart-can/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Even after you've won fame and fortune, every time you write you've got to write, there's no shortcut, you have to start your career…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/even-after-you-ve-won-fame-and-fortune-every-time-you-write-you-ve/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose history is ended, whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-should-like-to-see-any-power-of-the-world-destroy-this-race-this/) [WILLIAM SAROYAN](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [There could be no extreme vanity in my recognition of myself, if in fact there could be any at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/there-could-be-no-extreme-vanity-in-my-recognition-of-myself-if-in/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“This sense of being out of time has driven thousands of people from their homes into moving-picture theaters where new universes appear before them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/this-sense-of-being-out-of-time-has-driven-thousands-of-people-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) [Explore all 207 William Saroyan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) ## More Doctor quotes > [Many patients imagine that they have tried everything. True, they have used many remedies, but they have never had the cause of their infirmity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-d-palmer/many-patients-imagine-that-they-have-tried-everything-true-they-have/) [Daniel D. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-d-palmer/) > [I think people need to be comfortable questioning the authority of a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/i-think-people-need-to-be-comfortable-questioning-the-authority-of-a/) [Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/) > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Every patient carries her or his own doctor inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/every-patient-carries-her-or-his-own-doctor-inside/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“As a special branch of general philosophy, pathogenesis had never been explored. In my opinion it had never been approached in a strictly scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/as-a-special-branch-of-general-philosophy-pathogenesis-had-never-been/) [Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/) > [A creative space is an important thing. There are so many studios that feel like doctor's offices in Nashville. I couldn't write there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-paisley/a-creative-space-is-an-important-thing-there-are-so-many-studios-that/) [Brad Paisley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-paisley/) > [We ought to observe that practice which is the hardest of all-especially for young physicians-we ought to throw in no medicine at all-to abstain-to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-randolph-of-roanoke/we-ought-to-observe-that-practice-which-is-the-hardest-of-all/) John Randolph of Roanoke > [The miracle drugs (neuroleptics) cause the worst plague of brain damage in medical history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-breggin/the-miracle-drugs-neuroleptics-cause-the-worst-plague-of-brain-damage/) [Peter Breggin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-breggin/) > [“old-fashioned, gentle Scottish physician, unmoved by the considerations of profit and personal gain that could so disfigure medicine. That doctors should consider themselves businessmen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/old-fashioned-gentle-scottish-physician-unmoved-by-the-considerations/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [I've never bought this idea of taking a therapeutic distance. If I see a student or house staff cry, I take great faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-ve-never-bought-this-idea-of-taking-a-therapeutic-distance-if-i-see/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [Heart surgeons do not have the world's smallest egos: when you ask them to name the world's three leading practitioners, they never can remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-paretsky/heart-surgeons-do-not-have-the-world-s-smallest-egos-when-you-ask/) [Sara Paretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-paretsky/) > [Thankfully, I found a doctor at Presbyterian Hospital in New York, Scott Hammer, who diagnosed my chronic fatigue as the Epstein-Barr virus, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-halpern/thankfully-i-found-a-doctor-at-presbyterian-hospital-in-new-york/) [Tucker Halpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-halpern/) > [My parents are so supportive of whatever we want to do and completely nurtured that, and they're so proud of that as well. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-john-kamen/my-parents-are-so-supportive-of-whatever-we-want-to-do-and-completely/) [Hannah John-Kamen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-john-kamen/) > [Before we can wave the handkerchief, we have to have a cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-dangoor/before-we-can-wave-the-handkerchief-we-have-to-have-a-cold/) [Robert D Dangoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-dangoor/) > [Tuberculosis, starvation, fatigue, and there are many who have no desire to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-r-murrow/tuberculosis-starvation-fatigue-and-there-are-many-who-have-no-desire/) [Edward R. Murrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-r-murrow/) [Browse all 3,922 Doctor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Doctors don't know everything really. They understand matter, not spirit. And you and I live in the spirit.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Saroyan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-they-understand-matter-not/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Doctor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-they-understand-matter-not/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/william-saroyan-1743_doctor_doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-the_2863846.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Doctors don't know everything really. They understand matter, not spirit. And you and I live in the spirit.” — William Saroyan", "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": "William Saroyan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Doctors don't know everything really. They...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-they-understand-matter-not/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/doctors-don-t-know-everything-really-they-understand-matter-not/#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 } } ] } ```