When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.
John MuirRead
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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Muir highlights the rejuvenating power of nature and the importance of reconnecting with the wilderness.
In this quote, John Muir emphasizes the idea that many people, burdened by the stresses of modern civilization, are rediscovering the healing and restorative qualities of nature. He suggests that true fulfillment and peace come from reconnecting with the wild and that this natural environment is an essential aspect of human existence that many have overlooked in their urbanized lives.
Themes
NatureWildnessRejuvenationMountainsHome
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about work-life balance, one could use this quote to inspire a deeper appreciation for nature.
More from John Muir
All quotes βAs 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
When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.
John MuirRead
Similar quotes
As custodians of the planet it is our responsibility to deal with all species with kindness, love, and compassion. That these animals suffer through human cruelty is beyond understanding. Please help to stop this madness.
Richard GereRead
I'd like to see animals removed from the entertainment business. Chimpanzees and apes won't perform unless you beat them. Circuses keep elephants in chains 90 percent of the time. Elephants need freedom of movement. In circuses, they live in cramped quarters, which is not the life intended for them by nature. Some are beaten daily, forced to do ridiculous tricks and robbed of every shred of dignity.
Bob BarkerRead
Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you.
Thornton WilderRead
A sudden gust of rain blew over them and then another - as if small liquid clouds were bouncing along the land. Lightning entered the sea far off and the air blew full of crackling thunder. The table cloths blew around the pillars. They blew and blew and blew. The flags twisted around the red chairs like live things, the banners were ragged, the corners of the table tore off through the burbling billowing ends of the cloths.
F. Scott FitzgeraldRead
We should continue to mobilise against the destruction of the world's great habitats, and its terrifying implications. But the most persuasive argument we can make is to show we mean it, by restoring our own lost wonders.
George MonbiotRead
Spring won't let me stay in this house any longer! I must get out and breathe the air deeply again.
Gustav MahlerRead