Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity.
John MuirRead
Not blind opposition to progress,but opposition to blind progress.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of thoughtful and conscious progress in the face of change.
John Muir highlights the significance of being critical and reflective about progress rather than blindly accepting it. He advocates for a mindful approach when it comes to changes, especially those affecting nature, suggesting that progress should be guided by care and consideration rather than simply pursued for its own sake.
Themes
ProgressNatureThoughtfulnessChangeMindfulness
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about environmental conservation, one could say, 'As John Muir once remarked, we must strive for mindful progress instead of blind opposition to change.'
More from John Muir
All quotes βWhen we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.
John MuirRead
As long as I live, I'll hear waterfalls and birds and winds sing. I'll interpret the rocks, learn the language of flood, storm, and the avalanche. I'll acquaint myself with the glaciers and wild gardens, and get as near the heart of the world as I can".
John MuirRead
The forests of America, however slighted by man, must have been a great delight to God; for they were the best he ever planted. The whole continent was a garden, and from the beginning, it seemed to be favored above all the other wild parks and gardens of the globe.
John MuirRead
From the dust of the earth, from the common elementary fund, the Creator has made Homo sapiens. From the same material he has made every other creature, however noxious and insignificant to us. They are earth-born companions and our fellow mortals.
John MuirRead
...full of God's thoughts, a place of peace and safety amid the most exalted grandeur and enthusiastic action, a new song, a place of beginnings abounding in first lessons of life, mountain building, eternal, invincible, unbreakable order; with sermons in stone, storms, trees, flowers, and animals brimful with humanity.
John MuirRead
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After all, I don't see why I am always asking for private, individual, selfish miracles when every year there are miracles like white dogwood.
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