The small wisdom is like water in a glass: clear, transparent, pure. The great wisdom is like the water in the sea: dark, mysterious, impenetrable.
Rabindranath TagoreRead
Your idol is shattered in the dust to prove that God's dust is greater than your idol.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the idea that divine greatness surpasses all human constructs and idols.
Rabindranath Tagore's quote reflects on the notion that often, what we idolize or hold in high regard can be challenged or dismantled to reveal a higher truth. It suggests that the things we may worship or elevate above others are ultimately insignificant compared to the greater forces at play in the universe, specifically the divine, which ultimately proves that true value lies beyond our earthly constructs.
Themes
IdolDustGreaterGodShatteredTruth
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about the nature of faith and reliance on spiritual rather than materialism.
More from Rabindranath Tagore
All quotes βMusic fills the infinite between two souls. This has been muffled by the mist of our daily habits.
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True deliverance of man is the deliverance from Avidya i.e. ignorance. It is not in destroying anything that is positive and real, for that cannot be possible, but that which is negative, which obstructs our vision of truth.
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The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures. It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the earth in numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers.
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If you cry because the sun has gone out of your life, your tears will prevent you from seeing the stars.
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To be outspoken is easy when you do not wait to speak the complete truth.
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