--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Though a man excels in everything, unless…" description: "\"Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a lover his life is lonely, and he may be likened to a jewelled cup which can contain no wine.\" —..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg" --- # Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a… ![“Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a lover his life is lonely, and he may be likened to a jewelled cup which can contain no wine.” quote by Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg) > “Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a lover his life is lonely, and he may be likened to a jewelled cup which can contain no wine.” [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even a master of all skills feels lonely without love, like a beautiful cup that holds no wine. **In simple terms:** Skill without love leaves emptiness; life feels incomplete. Key Takeaway Seek love to fill life's void. Themes loneliness love achievement impermanence Mood reflective poetic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - career success - personal relationships - artistic pursuits Key Concepts emptiness human connection spiritual fulfillment Questions to Reflect On - How does love change the perception of success? - Can mastery exist without emotional fulfillment? A Different Perspective Love may not compensate for all deficits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cups/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Life Lonely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-lonely-1495317/) [Lonely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lonely/) [Lonely Likened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lonely-likened-5347171/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Lovers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lovers/) [Man Excels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-excels-2066829/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Unless Lover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unless-lover-5347172/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [Traveling is amazing. You meet so many great, positive people. 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Otherwise life becomes so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-all-need-that-one-person-in-our-lives-who-we-can-tell-everything/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Lonely is this place Lonely is my life Lonely am I, that I reach for a knife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azgraybebly-josland/lonely-is-this-place-lonely-is-my-life-lonely-am-i-that-i-reach-for-a/) [Azgraybebly Josland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azgraybebly-josland/) ## More by Yoshida Kenko > [It is a most wonderful comfort to sit alone beneath a lamp, book spread before you, and commune with someone from the past whom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/it-is-a-most-wonderful-comfort-to-sit-alone-beneath-a-lamp-book/) [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) > [One should write not unskillfully in the running hand, be able to sing in a pleasing voice and keep good time to music; and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/one-should-write-not-unskillfully-in-the-running-hand-be-able-to-sing/) [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) > [The true criminal must be defined as a man who commits a crime though he is as decently fed and clothed as others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/the-true-criminal-must-be-defined-as-a-man-who-commits-a-crime-though/) [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) > [“In everything, no matter what it may be, uniformity is undesirable. 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Leaving something incomplete makes it interesting, and gives one the feeling that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/in-everything-no-matter-what-it-may-be-uniformity-is-undesirable-2/) [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) > [“If you must take care that your opinions do not differ in the least from those of the person with whom you are talking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/if-you-must-take-care-that-your-opinions-do-not-differ-in-the-least/) [Yoshida Kenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/) > [“Jos kaiken aikaa täytyy varoa olemasta eri mieltä keskustelukumppaninsa kanssa, tuntuu kuin loppujen lopuksi olisi aivan yksin. 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Let them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-villa/as-for-the-ballon-d-or-criteria-i-m-not-really-sure-how-it-works/) [David Villa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-villa/) [Browse all 1,509 Cups quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cups/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a lover his life is lonely, and he may be likened to a jewelled cup which can contain no wine.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Yoshida Kenko" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless-he-has-been-a-lover-his-life/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cups" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless-he-has-been-a-lover-his-life/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ff/yoshida-kenk-15122_cups_though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless_3096485.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Though a man excels in everything, unless he has been a lover his life is lonely, and he may be likened to a…” — Yoshida Kenko", "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": "Yoshida Kenko", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoshida-kenk/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Though a man excels in everything,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless-he-has-been-a-lover-his-life/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshida-kenk/though-a-man-excels-in-everything-unless-he-has-been-a-lover-his-life/#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 } } ] } ```