Quotes With Meaning
The attempts to found a morality apart from religion, are like the attempts of children who, wishing to transplant a flower that pleases them, pluck it from the roots that seem to them unpleasant and superfluous, and stick it rootless into the ground. Without religion there can be no real, sincere morality, just as without roots there can be no real flower.
The attempts to found a morality apart from religion, are like the attempts of children who, wishing to transplant a flower that pleases them, pluck it from the roots that seem to them unpleasant and superfluous, and stick it rootless into the ground. Without religion there can be no real, sincere morality, just as without roots there can be no real flower.
This quote emphasizes the idea that morality cannot exist independently from religion. Tolstoy compares attempts to create a moral framework without religious roots to children trying to grow a flower without its roots. The roots represent the foundational beliefs and values provided by religion, which nourish and support genuine morality. Without these foundations, moral principles become detached and lack sincerity, similar to a flower that cannot thrive without being rooted in the soil. This perspective suggests that for individuals to develop a true sense of right and wrong, they must embrace the spiritual and ethical dimensions that religion offers. Ultimately, it portrays the intricate relationship between faith and morality, implying that true growth in moral character requires a connection to something greater than oneself.