--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If cows and horses had hands and could…" description: "\"If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would draw gods that look like cows and horses would draw gods that look like horses.\" — Xenophanes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png" --- # If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would… ![“If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would draw gods that look like cows and horses would draw gods that look like horses.” quote by Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png) > “If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would draw gods that look like cows and horses would draw gods that look like horses.” [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human perception shapes divine concepts; beings imagine gods in their own image. **In simple terms:** We picture gods like ourselves. Key Takeaway Recognize bias in belief. Themes philosophy religion anthropology Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - theology - art - education - cultural studies Key Concepts cognitive bias symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How do your own experiences shape your beliefs? - Can you imagine a deity beyond human traits? A Different Perspective Assumes all cultures anthropomorphize deities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Cows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cows/) [Cows Draw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cows-draw-4879644/) [Cows Horses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cows-horses-4879645/) [Draw Cows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/draw-cows-4879643/) [Draw Gods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/draw-gods-2535343/) [Draws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/draws/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Like Cows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-cows-712024/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [“The Ethiops say that their gods are flat-nosed and black, While the Thracians say that theirs have blue eyes and red hair. Yet if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/the-ethiops-say-that-their-gods-are-flat-nosed-and-black-while-the/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [Mathematicians, like cows in the dark, all look alike to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-flexner/mathematicians-like-cows-in-the-dark-all-look-alike-to-me/) [Abraham Flexner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-flexner/) > [I'm from San Bernardino, California. It's, like, all cows and dairies and very open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-dallas/i-m-from-san-bernardino-california-it-s-like-all-cows-and-dairies-and/) [Cameron Dallas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-dallas/) > [All cows were like other cows, all tigers like all other tigers - What on earth happened to human beings?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mulisch/all-cows-were-like-other-cows-all-tigers-like-all-other-tigers-what/) [Harry Mulisch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mulisch/) > [“Ethiopians imagine their gods as black and snub-nosed; Thracians blue-eyed and red-haired. But if horses or lions had hands, or could draw and fashion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/ethiopians-imagine-their-gods-as-black-and-snub-nosed-thracians-blue/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It was a fine cow, as cows go, but, like so many cows, it lacked sustained dramatic interest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/it-was-a-fine-cow-as-cows-go-but-like-so-many-cows-it-lacked/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) > [She always says, my lord, that facts are like cows. If you look them in the face hard enough they generally run away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/she-always-says-my-lord-that-facts-are-like-cows-if-you-look-them-in/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [“Facts are like cows. If you look them in the face long enough, they generally run away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/facts-are-like-cows-if-you-look-them-in-the-face-long-enough-they/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [I said, baby, do you have no shame? She just looked at me, uncomprehendingly, like cows at a passing train.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-henley/i-said-baby-do-you-have-no-shame-she-just-looked-at-me/) [Don Henley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-henley/) > [“The unworthies in power feel danger, like cows uneasily pawing the ground with a great "Moo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/the-unworthies-in-power-feel-danger-like-cows-uneasily-pawing-the/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [“It looks like you two never really got into the eye of the storm. You were more like… the cows who got tossed around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-roux/it-looks-like-you-two-never-really-got-into-the-eye-of-the-storm-you/) [Abigail Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-roux/) > [There is one god, greatest among gods and men, who bears no similarity to humans either in shape or thought... but humans believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/there-is-one-god-greatest-among-gods-and-men-who-bears-no-similarity/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [ Gonna rain like a cow pissin' on a flat rock" \[drugstore clerk to detective Virgil Flowers\] Dark of the Moon, p.7 ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sandford/gonna-rain-like-a-cow-pissin-on-a-flat-rock-drugstore-clerk-to/) [John Sandford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sandford/) > [Cows are a lot smarter across the board than bulls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-haden-church/cows-are-a-lot-smarter-across-the-board-than-bulls/) [Thomas Haden Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-haden-church/) > [We were so poor as kids. I didn't even see a bathtub, running water, hot water, commode - we didn't have any of that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-robertson/we-were-so-poor-as-kids-i-didn-t-even-see-a-bathtub-running-water-hot/) [Phil Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-robertson/) ## More by Xenophanes > [...for our wisdom is better than the strength of men or of horses. ... nor is it right to prefer strength to excellent wisdom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/for-our-wisdom-is-better-than-the-strength-of-men-or-of-horses-nor-is/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [Homer and Hesiod attributed to the gods all things which are disreputable and worthy of blame when done by men; and they told of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/homer-and-hesiod-attributed-to-the-gods-all-things-which-are/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [If oxen and lions had hands and could paint with their hands and produce works of art, as men do, horses would paint the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/if-oxen-and-lions-had-hands-and-could-paint-with-their-hands-and/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [For we are all sprung from earth and water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/for-we-are-all-sprung-from-earth-and-water/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [The sun comes into being each day from little pieces of fire that are collected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/the-sun-comes-into-being-each-day-from-little-pieces-of-fire-that-are/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [No human being will ever know the Truth, for even if they happen to say it by chance, they would not even known they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/no-human-being-will-ever-know-the-truth-for-even-if-they-happen-to/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [There is one god, greatest among gods and men, who bears no similarity to humans either in shape or thought... but humans believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/there-is-one-god-greatest-among-gods-and-men-who-bears-no-similarity/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [In the beginning the gods did not at all reveal all things clearly to mortals, but by searching men in the course of time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/in-the-beginning-the-gods-did-not-at-all-reveal-all-things-clearly-to/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [Men always makes gods in their own image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/men-always-makes-gods-in-their-own-image/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [But if cattle and horses or lions had hands, or were able to draw with their hands and do the work that men can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/but-if-cattle-and-horses-or-lions-had-hands-or-were-able-to-draw-with/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [Truly the gods have not from the beginning revealed all things to mortals, but by long seeking, mortals discover what is better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/truly-the-gods-have-not-from-the-beginning-revealed-all-things-to/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [“The Ethiops say that their gods are flat-nosed and black, While the Thracians say that theirs have blue eyes and red hair. Yet if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/the-ethiops-say-that-their-gods-are-flat-nosed-and-black-while-the/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [All men begin their learning with Homer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/all-men-begin-their-learning-with-homer/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [ But without effort \[God\] sets in motion all things by mind and thought. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/but-without-effort-god-sets-in-motion-all-things-by-mind-and-thought/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [God is one, greatest of gods and men, not like mortals in body or thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/god-is-one-greatest-of-gods-and-men-not-like-mortals-in-body-or/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) [Explore all 41 Xenophanes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) ## More Atheism quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [No philosophy, no religion, has ever brought so glad a message to the world as this good news of Atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/no-philosophy-no-religion-has-ever-brought-so-glad-a-message-to-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [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/) > [You cannot ... transmute some incoherent mixture of words into sense merely by introducing the three-letter word "God" to be its grammatical subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/you-cannot-transmute-some-incoherent-mixture-of-words-into-sense/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Do you think that was kind? Do you think it was godlike? What would you think of a physician, if a woman came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-h-gardener/do-you-think-that-was-kind-do-you-think-it-was-godlike-what-would-you/) [Helen H. Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-h-gardener/) > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Honest investigation is utterly impossible within the pale of any church, for the reason, that if you think the church is right you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/honest-investigation-is-utterly-impossible-within-the-pale-of-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) [Browse all 4,769 Atheism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would draw gods that look like cows and horses would draw gods that look like horses.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Xenophanes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-draw-cows-would-draw-gods-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atheism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-draw-cows-would-draw-gods-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/xenophanes-16062_atheism_if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-d_597721.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If cows and horses had hands and could draw, cows would draw gods that look like cows and horses would draw…” — Xenophanes", "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": "Xenophanes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If cows and horses had hands...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-draw-cows-would-draw-gods-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/if-cows-and-horses-had-hands-and-could-draw-cows-would-draw-gods-that/#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 } } ] } ```