--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So many hours must I take my rest; So…" description: "\"So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I contemplate.\" — William Shakespeare" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg" --- # So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I… ![“So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I contemplate.” quote by William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg) > “So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I contemplate.” [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on the necessity of balancing work with rest and contemplation, emphasizing that both are essential for a fulfilling life. **In simple terms:** Balance work with rest and thought. Key Takeaway Rest and reflection are vital. Themes balance self-care mindfulness productivity wellbeing Mood thoughtful calm reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - after a long workday - during a creative block - when feeling overwhelmed - in a period of decision-making Key Concepts time management mental health philosophy Practical Applications - schedule regular breaks - incorporate meditation Questions to Reflect On - How do you currently balance work and rest? - What benefits have you noticed from regular contemplation? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contemplate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemplate/) [Contemplating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemplating/) [Hours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours/) [Hours Contemplate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours-contemplate-1056486/) [Hours Rest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours-rest-573898/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Rest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest/) [Rest Hours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest-hours-1056487/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“it was useless to divide it into months and years, and the days into hours, when one could do nothing, but contemplate the rain”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/it-was-useless-to-divide-it-into-months-and-years-and-the-days-into/) [Gabriel García Márquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [“I'd managed to snatch a few more hours of rest, which was all I needed, so I felt fine despite our marathon evening of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-peeler/i-d-managed-to-snatch-a-few-more-hours-of-rest-which-was-all-i-needed/) [Nicole Peeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-peeler/) > [I may not sleep long hours or rest much, but I'm at peace with myself when I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-serhant/i-may-not-sleep-long-hours-or-rest-much-but-i-m-at-peace-with-myself/) [Ryan Serhant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-serhant/) > [“vampire hours of rest between dawn and noon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/vampire-hours-of-rest-between-dawn-and-noon/) [Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/) > [At noon I get to the gym to do my boxing workout. Three hours there. Rest. Once in a while I get a massage,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-manuel-marquez/at-noon-i-get-to-the-gym-to-do-my-boxing-workout-three-hours-there/) [Juan Manuel Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-manuel-marquez/) > [The more I contemplate God, the more God looks on me. The more I pray to him, the more he thinks of me too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-of-clairvaux/the-more-i-contemplate-god-the-more-god-looks-on-me-the-more-i-pray/) [Bernard of Clairvaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-of-clairvaux/) > [The universe is the mirror in which we can contemplate only what we have learned to know in ourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/the-universe-is-the-mirror-in-which-we-can-contemplate-only-what-we/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [Let man then contemplate the whole of nature in her full and grand majesty... No idea approaches it. We may enlarge our conceptions beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/let-man-then-contemplate-the-whole-of-nature-in-her-full-and-grand/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Like most musicians, Im good at becoming immersed in the music that I am currently working on. We seldom lift up our heads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-levin/like-most-musicians-im-good-at-becoming-immersed-in-the-music-that-i/) [Tony Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-levin/) > [ \[When nature appears complicated:\] The moment we contemplate it as it is, and attain a position from which we can take a commanding view,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-herschel/when-nature-appears-complicated-the-moment-we-contemplate-it-as-it-is/) [John Herschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-herschel/) > [Nothing makes the future look so rosy as to contemplate it through a glass of Chambertin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/nothing-makes-the-future-look-so-rosy-as-to-contemplate-it-through-a/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [ \[The lion\] began to contemplate me with a kind of quiet premeditation, like that of a slow-witted man fondling an unaccustomed thought. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/the-lion-began-to-contemplate-me-with-a-kind-of-quiet-premeditation/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [“The value of anything is only relative in the moment of contemplating it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/the-value-of-anything-is-only-relative-in-the-moment-of-contemplating/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [The two hardest things to contemplate in life ... are failure and age; those are one and the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-two-hardest-things-to-contemplate-in-life-are-failure-and-age/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have actually seen people contemplate their navels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-heilpern/i-have-actually-seen-people-contemplate-their-navels/) [John Heilpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-heilpern/) ## More by William Shakespeare > [Let us kill all lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/let-us-kill-all-lawyers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [O tiger's heart wrapped in a woman's hide!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/o-tiger-s-heart-wrapped-in-a-woman-s-hide/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Divers philosophers hold that the lips is parcel of the mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/divers-philosophers-hold-that-the-lips-is-parcel-of-the-mouth/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Short time seems long in sorrow's sharp sustaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/short-time-seems-long-in-sorrow-s-sharp-sustaining/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs; Being purg'd, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vex'd, a sea nourish'd with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/love-is-a-smoke-made-with-the-fume-of-sighs-being-purg-d-a-fire/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Thou hast no figures nor no fantasies Which busy care draws in the brains of men; Therefore thou sleep’st so sound. Julius Caesar (2.1.248-251)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/thou-hast-no-figures-nor-no-fantasies-which-busy-care-draws-in-the/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Truth needs no color; beauty, no pencil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/truth-needs-no-color-beauty-no-pencil/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Have you not heard it said full oft, A woman's nay doth stand for naught?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/have-you-not-heard-it-said-full-oft-a-woman-s-nay-doth-stand-for/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Omittance is no quittance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/omittance-is-no-quittance/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Yes, madam: yet I cannot choose but laugh, To think it should leave crying and say 'Ay.' And yet, I warrant, it had upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/yes-madam-yet-i-cannot-choose-but-laugh-to-think-it-should-leave/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I take thee at thy word: Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized; Henceforth I never will be Romeo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-take-thee-at-thy-word-call-me-but-love-and-i-ll-be-new-baptized/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Explore all 5,604 William Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## More Contemplate quotes > [“Those who contemplate never escape the doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/those-who-contemplate-never-escape-the-doubt/) [Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/) > [I have actually seen people contemplate their navels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-heilpern/i-have-actually-seen-people-contemplate-their-navels/) [John Heilpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-heilpern/) > [The two hardest things to contemplate in life ... are failure and age; those are one and the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-two-hardest-things-to-contemplate-in-life-are-failure-and-age/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Did you ever notice when you contemplate suicide, the hardest things to remember are why you've come this far to begin with? me either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/did-you-ever-notice-when-you-contemplate-suicide-the-hardest-things/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is truly bracing and instructive to contemplate the End Times - at least at safe remove, in the pages of fiction - especially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-di-filippo/it-is-truly-bracing-and-instructive-to-contemplate-the-end-times-at/) [Paul Di Filippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-di-filippo/) > [“The value of anything is only relative in the moment of contemplating it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/the-value-of-anything-is-only-relative-in-the-moment-of-contemplating/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [ \[The lion\] began to contemplate me with a kind of quiet premeditation, like that of a slow-witted man fondling an unaccustomed thought. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/the-lion-began-to-contemplate-me-with-a-kind-of-quiet-premeditation/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [Nothing makes the future look so rosy as to contemplate it through a glass of Chambertin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/nothing-makes-the-future-look-so-rosy-as-to-contemplate-it-through-a/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [ \[When nature appears complicated:\] The moment we contemplate it as it is, and attain a position from which we can take a commanding view,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-herschel/when-nature-appears-complicated-the-moment-we-contemplate-it-as-it-is/) [John Herschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-herschel/) > [Like most musicians, Im good at becoming immersed in the music that I am currently working on. We seldom lift up our heads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-levin/like-most-musicians-im-good-at-becoming-immersed-in-the-music-that-i/) [Tony Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-levin/) > [“Contemplate for a moment hiking up a wild and rugged mountain. The mountain itself is a challenge, as well as the experience of beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-sanchez/contemplate-for-a-moment-hiking-up-a-wild-and-rugged-mountain-the/) [Steve Sanchez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-sanchez/) > [Contemplate nature with the eyes of the soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soljeannette-acevedo/contemplate-nature-with-the-eyes-of-the-soul/) [Soljeannette Acevedo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soljeannette-acevedo/) > [Let man then contemplate the whole of nature in her full and grand majesty... No idea approaches it. We may enlarge our conceptions beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/let-man-then-contemplate-the-whole-of-nature-in-her-full-and-grand/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“It was not easy to commit suicide as to contemplate it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/it-was-not-easy-to-commit-suicide-as-to-contemplate-it/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“I am in the unthinkable situation that people cannot bear to contemplate.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonali-deraniyagala/i-am-in-the-unthinkable-situation-that-people-cannot-bear-to/) [Sonali Deraniyagala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonali-deraniyagala/) [Browse all 217 Contemplate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemplate/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I contemplate.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Shakespeare" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-many-hours-must-i-contemplate/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contemplate" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-many-hours-must-i-contemplate/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bb/william-shakespeare-4_contemplate_so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-man_83345.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“So many hours must I take my rest; So many hours must I contemplate.” — William Shakespeare", "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 Shakespeare", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "So many hours must I take...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-many-hours-must-i-contemplate/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/so-many-hours-must-i-take-my-rest-so-many-hours-must-i-contemplate/#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 } } ] } ```