--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Esse est percipi, to be is to be…" description: "\"Esse est percipi, to be is to be perceived, said good old Berkeley; but, according to most philosophers, he was wrong. Yet, obviously, there are things..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/zeno-vendler-71342_adages_esse-est-percipi-to-be-is-to-be-perceive_1049985.jpg" --- # Esse est percipi, to be is to be perceived, said good old… ![“Esse est percipi, to be is to be perceived, said good old Berkeley; but, according to most philosophers, he was wrong. Yet, obviously, there are things for which the adage holds. Perception, trivially, to begin with. If elements of conscious awareness--pains, tickles, feelings of heat and cold…” quote by Zeno Vendler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/zeno-vendler-71342_adages_esse-est-percipi-to-be-is-to-be-perceive_1049985.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/zeno-vendler-71342_adages_esse-est-percipi-to-be-is-to-be-perceive_1049985.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/zeno-vendler-71342_adages_esse-est-percipi-to-be-is-to-be-perceive_1049985.jpg) > “Esse est percipi, to be is to be perceived, said good old Berkeley; but, according to most philosophers, he was wrong. Yet, obviously, there are things for which the adage holds. Perception, trivially, to begin with. If elements of conscious awareness--pains, tickles, feelings of heat and cold, sensory qualia of colors, sounds, and the like--have any existence, it must consist in their being perceived by a subject… This shows, of course, that such experiences are epiphenomenal, at least with respect to the physical world.” Zeno Vendler ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Existence depends on being perceived; without a perceiver, qualities have no reality. **In simple terms:** Things exist only when perceived. Key Takeaway Recognize the role of perception in experience. Themes philosophy perception reality Mood contemplative inquisitive Type philosophical theoretical When to use this quote - art critique - psychology - physics - everyday observation Key Concepts idealism epiphenomenalism subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How does perception shape reality? - Can something exist unperceived? A Different Perspective Perception alone may not account for objective existence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adages/) [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berkeley/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Conscious awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious-awareness/) [Elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Heat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat/) [Heat and cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat-and-cold/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perception/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Sensory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sensory/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Praise and blame, good and bad, even heat and cold, must be equally acceptable to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/praise-and-blame-good-and-bad-even-heat-and-cold-must-be-equally/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. 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A property and the absence of that property…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/the-mutakallemim-apply-the-term-non-existence-only-to-absolute-non/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [ One \[method\] is by a Watch to keep time exactly. But, by reason of the motion of the Ship, the Variation of Heat and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/one-method-is-by-a-watch-to-keep-time-exactly-but-by-reason-of-the/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Socrates was the chief saint of the Stoics throughout their history ; his attitude at the time of his trial, his refusal to escape,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/socrates-was-the-chief-saint-of-the-stoics-throughout-their-history/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [This idea of body is a simple superstition. It is superstition that makes us happy or unhappy. 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Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) ## More by Zeno Vendler > [Experience and imagination must enter into the very constitution of our thoughts involving concrete individuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeno-vendler/experience-and-imagination-must-enter-into-the-very-constitution-of/) Zeno Vendler > [the full analysis of the notions of saying something and understanding what one said inevitably involves a concept which, as I will show in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeno-vendler/the-full-analysis-of-the-notions-of-saying-something-and/) Zeno Vendler > [To be in the mind and to be known are the same thing: in this domain esse est percipi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeno-vendler/to-be-in-the-mind-and-to-be-known-are-the-same-thing-in-this-domain/) Zeno Vendler Explore all 4 Zeno Vendler quotes ## More Adages quotes > [It’s not just the adage ‘write what you know,’ it’s about gathering up all of the knowledge and experience you’ve collected up to now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-kay/it-s-not-just-the-adage-write-what-you-know-it-s-about-gathering-up/) [Sarah Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-kay/) > [“For their never-ending endeavours to obtain or retain wealth, countries desperately need companies, because they—unlike most human beings—have the means of production, and human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/for-their-never-ending-endeavours-to-obtain-or-retain-wealth/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Wise is the tongue, wet of perfect thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-francis/wise-is-the-tongue-wet-of-perfect-thought/) [Black Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-francis/) > [Another lesson about a naive fool who came to Babylon, and found out that the pie don't taste so sweet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-yoakam/another-lesson-about-a-naive-fool-who-came-to-babylon-and-found-out/) [Dwight Yoakam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-yoakam/) > [“An expensive coffin does not decrease the deceased’s chances of going to hell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/an-expensive-coffin-does-not-decrease-the-deceased-s-chances-of-going/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“A premature death does not only rob one of the countless instances where one would have experienced pleasure, it also saves one from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-premature-death-does-not-only-rob-one-of-the-countless-instances/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [If you need somebody you can trust, trust yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/if-you-need-somebody-you-can-trust-trust-yourself/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Something happens when your subconscious goes to work... 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