A mighty pain to love it is,_x000D_ _x000D_ And 'tis a pain that pain to miss;_x000D_ _x000D_ But, of all pains, the greatest pain_x000D_ _x000D_ Is to love, but love in vain.
Abraham CowleyRead
Ah! Wretched and too solitary he who loves not his own company.
Interpretation
What this quote means
One should find joy in their own company, as solitude can lead to a deeper understanding of oneself.
This quote by Abraham Cowley highlights the importance of self-reflection and the ability to enjoy oneβs own company. It suggests that being unable to appreciate one's own solitude can lead to feelings of wretchedness, implying that self-love and acceptance are crucial for a fulfilling life. A person who cannot be content alone might struggle in their relationships with others, as their happiness becomes overly dependent on external validations.
Themes
Self-LoveSolitudeSelf-AcceptanceReflectionHappiness
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about self-acceptance.
More from Abraham Cowley
All quotes βMay I a small house and large garden have; And a few friends, And many books, both true.
Abraham CowleyRead
Begin, be bold, and venture to be wise,_x000D_ _x000D_ He who defers this work from day to day,_x000D_ _x000D_ Does on a river's bank expecting stay,_x000D_ _x000D_ Till the whole stream, which stopped him, should be gone,_x000D_ _x000D_ That runs, and as it runs, for ever will run on.
Abraham CowleyRead
Similar quotes
what exactly is postmodernism, except modernism without the anxiety?
Jonathan LethemRead
Is it not certain that the Creator yawns in earthquake and thunder and other popular displays, but toils in rounding the delicate spiral of a shell? -Yeats, The Trembling of the Veil
William Butler YeatsRead
History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of the world. All the vessels overflow, and no end or limit stays put. Every shakable thing has got to be shaken. In a sense, nothing that was ever lost in Port William ever has been replaced. In another sense, nothing is ever lost, and we are compacted together forever, even by our failures, our regrets, and our longings.
Wendell BerryRead
The willingness to not bypass illusion is very important. We come to nirvana by way of samsara. We come to see the true nature of things by seeing through the illusory nature of things. We don't come to nirvana by avoiding samsara. We don't come to clarity by avoiding confusion.
AdyashantiRead
Whatsoever we have over-loved, idolized, and leaned upon, God has from time to time broken it, and made us to see the vanity of it; so that we find the readiest course to be rid of our comforts is to set our hearts inordinately upon them.
John FlavelRead
The Latin words humus, soil/earth, and homo, human being, have a common derivation, from which we also get our word 'humble.' This is the Genesis origin of who we are: dust - dust that the Lord God used to make us a human being. If we cultivate a lively sense of our origin and nurture a sense of continuity with it, who knows, we may also acquire humility.
Eugene H. PetersonRead