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Miracles arise from our ignorance of nature, not from nature itself.
Michel De Montaigne
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Miracles are born from our lack of understanding of the natural world rather than the world itself possessing miraculous qualities.

This quote by Michel De Montaigne suggests that what we perceive as miracles are often the result of our own ignorance or lack of knowledge about the natural laws and workings of the world. Instead of considering nature as inherently miraculous, he emphasizes that it is our misunderstanding that leads us to attribute miraculous qualities to natural events or phenomena.

Themes

MiraclesIgnoranceNatureUnderstandingPhilosophy

In practice

Example use cases

During a lecture on the scientific method, this quote can illustrate the importance of understanding nature.

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All the world knows me in my book, and my book in me.
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All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice. I should not speak so boldly if it were my due to be believed.
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Pythagoras used to say that life resembles the Olympic Games: a few people strain their muscles to carry off a prize; others bring trinkets to sell to the crowd for gain; and some there are, and not the worst, who seek no other profit than to look at the show and see how and why everything is done; spectators of the life of other people in order to judge and regulate their own.
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There is not much less vexation in the government of a private family than in the managing of an entire state.
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Those who have compared our life to a dream were right... we were sleeping wake, and waking sleep.
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Such as are in immediate fear of a losing their estates, of banishment, or of slavery, live in perpetual anguish, and lose all appetite and repose; whereas such as are actually poor, slaves, or exiles, ofttimes live as merrily as other folk.
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