Are you tired of the fast-paced world pulling you away from what truly matters? Modern life often leaves us feeling disconnected from nature, our communities, and even ourselves. We scroll through social media instead of walking in the woods. We buy more things but feel less fulfilled.
Wendell Berry, the celebrated American writer and farmer, offers wisdom that cuts through this noise. His words remind us that true happiness comes from simple living, caring for the earth, and building strong relationships with those around us.
These carefully selected quotes will help you slow down, reconnect with nature, and find meaning in everyday moments. Each quote offers practical wisdom for anyone seeking a more grounded, purposeful life.
Ready to find inspiration that actually changes how you live? Let’s explore Berry’s most powerful insights together.
107 Wendell Berry Quotes to Inspire a Thoughtful Life
Timeless wisdom from America’s beloved farmer-poet on living well
A. Quotes on Nature and the Land
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“The earth is what we all have in common.”
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“The soil is the great connector of our lives.”
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“There are no unsacred places; there are only sacred places and desecrated places.”
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“The world is not given by our fathers, but borrowed from our children.”
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“To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival.”
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“Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.”
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“The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all, our most pleasing responsibility.”
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“The Earth will not continue to offer its harvest, except with faithful stewardship.”
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“Nature is not a place to visit. It is home.”
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“If you don’t know where you are, you don’t know who you are.”
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“We have lived by the assumption that what was good for us would be good for the world.”
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“You can’t know who you are until you know where you are.”
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“Every day you have less reason not to give yourself away.”
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“A tree cannot survive without its roots.”
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“The only sustainable city—and this, to me, is the indispensable ideal and goal—is a city in balance with its countryside.”
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“The natural world is the larger sacred community to which we belong.”
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“Without prosperous local economies, the people have no power and the land no voice.”
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“Be joyful though you have considered all the facts.”
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“People are fed by the food industry, which pays no attention to health… and treated by the health industry, which pays no attention to food.”
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“The land is to be used well, not used up.”
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“It is not from ourselves that we learn to be better than we are.”
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“The most exemplary nature is that of the farmer who takes good care of his land.”
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“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
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“You mustn’t wish for another life. You mustn’t want to be somebody else.”
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“Don’t own so much clutter that you will be relieved to see your house catch fire.”
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“Better than any argument is to rise at dawn and pick dew-wet red berries in a cup.”
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“Do not be ashamed to be found in your own company.”
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“Be like the fox who makes more tracks than necessary, some in the wrong direction.”
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“The significant change must begin with the imagination.”
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“The mind that is not baffled is not employed.”
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“You can best serve civilization by being against what usually passes for it.”
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“I come into the peace of wild things.”
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“Live a three-dimensional life; stay away from screens.”
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“The idea of freedom is not easy to live by.”
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“We learn from our gardens to deal with the most urgent question of the time: How much is enough?”
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“Do not think me gentle because I speak in praise of gentleness.”
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“What I stand for is what I stand on.”
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“To be interested in food but not in food production is clearly absurd.”
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“Eating is an agricultural act.”
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“The most important things are the hardest to say.”
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“A community is the mental and spiritual condition of knowing that the place is shared.”
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“A person dependent on somebody else’s factory is a slave.”
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“We must change our lives so that it will be possible to live by the grace of God.”
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“It all turns on affection.”
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“The smallest unit of health is the community.”
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“We learn from our gardens to deal with the most urgent questions of the time.”
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“Community, then, is a household economy.”
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“Do not own more than you can take care of.”
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“There is no reason to believe that our present social system is necessary.”
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“The family is the community in its most formative stage.”
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“What people are afraid of is what they do not understand.”
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“Love is never abstract.”
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“To treat life as less than a miracle is to give up on it.”
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“We are holy creatures living among other holy creatures in a world that is holy.”
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“If we can’t live in peace with each other, we can’t live in peace with the land.”
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“Do not think the hope of the world rests on any one man. It rests on us all.”
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“We are members of each other.”
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“The community… is the answer to the question: how can we live?”
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“The way we are, we are members of each other.”
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“There are no unsacred people.”
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“Faith is not necessarily about believing things. It is about practicing life.”
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“The mercy of the world is time.”
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“Prayer is not asking for what you think you want, but asking to be changed.”
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“To be patient in an emergency is a fine test of character.”
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“There is no final word in the human tongue.”
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“I come into the presence of still water.”
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“The Bible is a wilderness book, not a church book.”
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“Good work is always modest.”
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“We cannot be saved at the expense of others.”
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“The world is not given by our fathers, but borrowed from our children.”
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“We live the given life, and not the planned.”
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“We have only the world we have.”
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“A good writer must be willing to destroy their own best sentences.”
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“We must love the things we own or they are not ours.”
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“The difference between a human and a machine is gratitude.”
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“Live by the principle that you do only what you can do with your own hands.”
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“There is no justification for greed.”
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“The grace of God means something like: here is your life.”
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“We must abandon arrogance and stand in awe.”
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“We must learn to live together or die separately.”
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“The first obligation of a writer is to tell the truth.”
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“The best writing is born of silence.”
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“The world is full of poetry. The air is living with its spirit.”
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“The job of the writer is not to supply the demand.”
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“The writer must always stand outside society.”
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“Language is communal. It is not owned.”
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“Writing is a form of listening.”
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“If you want to write, observe first.”
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“Art is not entertainment. It is not something to be consumed.”
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“A poem can’t be forced. It grows like a seed.”
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“The best poems grow out of silence and labor.”
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“Real poetry speaks not to the crowd but to the individual.”
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“If you can’t write a poem about it, you don’t know it yet.”
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“The imagination is not a luxury—it’s a necessity.”
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“Writing well is a form of living well.”
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“To oppose something is to maintain it.”
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“We must achieve the character and acquire the skills to live much poorer than we do.”
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“The industrial mind is not interested in health or wholeness.”
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“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell.”
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“You can’t be an environmentalist and eat industrial meat.”
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“There is an economy of destruction.”
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“We are destroying the world to live in it.”
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“The most alarming sign of our society is the disintegration of civil society.”
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“A corporation has neither soul nor conscience.”
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“Our economic system is based on delusion.”
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“Technology is not a solution, it’s a tool.”
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“We must learn to live as if we mean to stay.”
B. Quotes on Simplicity and Work
C. Quotes on Community and Relationships
D. Quotes on Faith, Wisdom, and Spirituality
E. Quotes on Writing, Art, and Expression
F. Quotes on Resistance and Modern Life
Conclusion
Wendell Berry’s words offer more than just beautiful thoughts—they provide a roadmap for a meaningful life.
His quotes remind us that true fulfillment comes from connecting with nature, choosing simplicity over excess, and building strong communities.
In a world that constantly pushes us toward more stuff and faster living, Berry’s wisdom stands as a gentle but firm guide back to what matters most.
Whether you’re seeking to live more sustainably, build deeper relationships, or find peace in simple moments, these quotes offer practical inspiration.
Start small. Choose one quote that speaks to you today. Write it down. Let it guide your next decision. Berry believed that real change begins with individual choices that ripple outward.
Which quote will you carry with you? Share your favorite in the comments below and let us know how Berry’s words have shaped your view of life.
