As long as habit and routine dictate the pattern of living, new dimensions of the soul will not emerge.
Henry Van DykeRead
And you will remember that love is not getting, but giving; not a wild dream of pleasure, and a madness of desire — oh no, love is not that — it is goodness, and honour, and peace, and pure living — yes, love is that; and it is the best thing in the world, and the thing that lives longest.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Love is about giving and embodying goodness rather than seeking personal pleasure.
This quote emphasizes that true love transcends selfish desires and fleeting pleasures. Instead, it focuses on the virtues of goodness, honor, peace, and pure living, suggesting that love nurtures the best qualities in humanity and endures far longer than mere physical or superficial experiences.
Themes
LoveGivingGoodnessHonorPeacePure Living
In practice
Example use cases
In a wedding ceremony to highlight the essence of love between partners.
More from Henry Van Dyke
All quotes →It is with rivers as it is with people: the greatest are not always the most agreeable nor the best to live with.
Henry Van DykeRead
Let me but find it in my heart to say, When vagrant wishes beckon me astray, "This is my work; my blessing, not my doom; Of all who live, I am the one by whom This work can best be done in the right way."
Henry Van DykeRead
Oh, London is a man's town, there's power in the air; And Paris is a woman's town, with flowers in her hair; And it's sweet to dream in Venice, and it's great to study Rome; But when it comes to living, there is no place like home.
Henry Van DykeRead
No amount of energy will take the place of thought. A strenuous life with its eyes shut is a kind of wild insanity.
Henry Van DykeRead
A peace that depends on fear is nothing but a suppressed war.
Henry Van DykeRead
Similar quotes
Maybe what a gay icon is, is a person who is rooted for — in other words, cheered on — by people who feel different.
Liza MinnelliRead
It’s too bad if a heart lacks fire,_x000D_ and is deprived of the light _x000D_ of a heart ablaze._x000D_ The day on which you are_x000D_ without passionate love_x000D_ is the most wasted day of your life.
Omar KhayyamRead
I felt that thread that had come between us, tugging, tugging at my heart - so hard, it hurt me. A hundred times I almost rose, almost went in to her; a hundred times I thought, Go to her! Why are you waiting? Go back to her side! But every time, I thought of what would happen if I did. I knew that I couldn't lie beside her, without wanting to touch her. I couldn't have felt her breath upon my mouth, without wanting to kiss her. And I couldn't have kissed her, without wanting to save her.
Sarah WatersRead
Love does not make you weak, because it is the source of all strength, but it makes you see the nothingness of the illusory strength on which you depended before you knew it.
Leon BloyRead
I love, but I am not entirely sure how to be loved: how to be seen and known for the utterly flawed woman I am. It demands surrender. It demands acknowledging that I am not perfect, but perhaps I deserve affection anyway.
Roxane GayRead
True love does not pay attention to the evil it suffers. It rejoices in doing good.
Pope FrancisRead