John Muir (1838-1914) was a famous Scottish-American naturalist, environmental philosopher, and author. Not only is he an important figure when it comes to activism regarding the preservation of wilderness in the United States, but he is also famous for his writings. In other words, during his lifetime, he has written remarkable books and essays about the time he spent in nature. Some of his most important works are The Mountains of California (1894), My First Summer in the Sierra (1911); The American Forests, In the Heart of the California Alps, and so on. His dedication to nature and science is one of the reasons why he is also known as John of the Mountains or Father of National Parks.
Besides being an authority in the field of wilderness preservation, hi is also considered to be an influential person when it comes to teaching others about the crucial features of the ecology science. Also, he firmly believed that all living things are interrelated. On one occasion he said: “When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe.”
However, the aforementioned quote is only a drop in the ocean when it comes to John Muir’s wisdom. It seems as though we have a lot to learn from this impressive scientist. By reading and thinking about what he had said, we may become more aware of the things essential to our own existence. Therefore, the following list contains 30 quotes by John Muir.
- “The wrongs done to trees, wrongs of every sort, are done in the darkness of ignorance and unbelief, for when the light comes, the heart of the people is always right.” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “Nothing truly wild is unclean.” John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra
- “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 Muir, Our National Parks
Source: pinterest.com - “Between every two pine trees, there is a door leading to a new way of life.” John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra
- “Lie down among the pines for a while, then get to plain pure white love-work … to help humanity and other mortals and the Lord.” John Muir, Letter from John Muir to Mrs. J.D. (Katharine) Hooker in Life and Letters of John Muir
- “I have this one big, well-defined faith for humanity as a workman, that the time is coming when every “article of manufacture” will be as purely a work of God as are these mountains and pine trees and bonnie loving flowers.” John Muir, Letter to Mrs. Kate N. Daggett in Life and Letters of John Muir
- “How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!” John Muir, The Mountains of California
- “Few places in this world are more dangerous than home. Fear not, therefore, to try the mountain passes. They will kill care, save you from deadly apathy, set you free, and call forth every faculty into vigorous, enthusiastic action.” John Muir, The Mountains of California
- “Most people who travel look only at what they are directed to look at. Great is the power of the guidebook maker, however ignorant.” John Muir, Travels in Alaska
- “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” John Muir, Our National Parks
- “My fire was in all its glory about midnight, and, having made a bark shed to shelter me from the rain and partially dry my clothing, I had nothing to do but look and listen and join the trees in their hymns and prayers.” John Muir, Travels in Alaska
- “Nature is always lovely, invincible, glad, whatever is done and suffered by her creatures. All scars she heals, whether in rocks or water or sky or hearts.” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “All the world was before me and every day was a holiday, so it did not seem important to which one of the world’s wildernesses I first should wander.” John Muir, The Yosemite
- “Beauty beyond thought everywhere, beneath, above, made and being made forever.” John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra
- “But it is in the darkest nights when storms are blowing and the agitated waves are phosphorescent, that the most impressive displays are made.” John Muir, Wilderness Essays
- “One day’s exposure to mountains is better than cartloads of books. See how willingly Nature poses herself upon photographers’ plates. No earthly chemicals are so sensitive as those of the human soul.” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “The snow is melting into music.” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “Everything in Nature called destruction must be creation-a change from beauty to beauty.” John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra
- “To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world.” John Muir, Travels in Alaska
- “The deeper the solitude the less the sense of loneliness, and the nearer our friends.” John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra
- “When one is alone at night in the depths of these woods, the stillness is at once awful and sublime. Every leaf seems to speak.” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “One must labor for beauty as for bread.” John Muir, The Yosemite
- “…And how after we grow old can we read the Bible without a little helpful science? Just think, father, you cannot read your Bible without spectacles… And spectacles cannot be made without some knowledge of the science of optics.” John Muir, The Story of My Boyhood and Youth
- “We thought nothing of running right ahead ten or a dozen miles before turning back; for we knew nothing about taking time by the sun, and none of us had a watch in those days.” John Muir, The Story of My Boyhood and Youth
- “There is not a “fragment” in all nature, for every relative fragment of one thing is a full harmonious unit in itself. “ John Muir, A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf
- “Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter.” John Muir, Letter to wife Louie in Life and Letters of John Muir
- “In the beauty and grandeur of individual trees, and in number and variety of species, the Sierra forests surpass all others” John Muir, Our National Parks
Source: pinterest.com - “I care to live only to entice people to look at Nature’s loveliness.” John Muir, Wilderness Essays
- “No synonym for God is so perfect as Beauty. Whether as seen carving the lines of the mountains with glaciers, or gathering matter into stars, or planning the movements of water, or gardening – still all is Beauty!” John Muir, John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir
- “Every hidden cell is throbbing with music and life, every fiber thrilling like harp strings.” John Muir, The Wilderness World of John Muir
To conclude, John Muir was an astonishing figure, who left a strong influence on science, activism, and literature. Even today, his genuine love for wilderness and nature finds its way to the hearts of others. Moreover, his words of wisdom continue to inspire, motivate, and guide numerous people all around the world.
