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Action and contemplation are very close companions; they live together in one house on equal terms. Martha and Mary are sisters.
Bernard Of Clairvaux
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Action and contemplation are equally important and should coexist harmoniously in our lives.

This quote by Bernard of Clairvaux highlights the essential balance between action and contemplation in life. Just as Martha represents action and Mary symbolizes contemplation, both approaches are vital for a fulfilling existence, suggesting that we should not favor one over the other but integrate both to achieve wisdom and understanding.

Themes

ActionContemplationBalanceWisdomLife

In practice

Example use cases

In a workshop on productivity, one could use this quote to emphasize the importance of both doing tasks and reflecting on them.

More from Bernard Of Clairvaux

You wish to see; listen. Hearing is a step toward Vision.
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Neither fear nor self-interest can convert the soul. They may change the appearance, perhaps even the conduct, but never the object of supreme desire... Fear is the motive which constrains the slave; greed binds the selfish man, by which he is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed (James 1:14). But neither fear nor self-interest is undefiled, nor can they convert the soul. Only charity can convert the soul, freeing it from unworthy motives.
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Pride only, the chief of all iniquities, can make us treat gifts as if they were rightful attributes of our nature, and, while receiving benefits, rob our Benefactor of His due glory.
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The piercing nail has become a key to unlock the door, that I may see the good will of the Lord. And what can I see as I look through the hole? Both the nail and the wound cry out that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself... Through these sacred wounds we can see the secret of his heart, the great mystery of love.
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What I know of the divine_x000D_ science and holy scripture,_x000D_ I learnt in the woods and fields.
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Learn the lesson that, if you are to do the work of a prophet, what you need is not a sceptre but a hoe.
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