proverb · Words worth keeping
Everything would live.
Everything would live.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Living beings are pictured as seeking continued existence. The saying can invite attention to the value of life beyond a person’s immediate convenience.
Example
Someone moves an unwanted creature away from a shared space when that can be done without unnecessary harm.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The broad phrase gives life a common wish to continue. It can encourage care when an action affects another creature, or recognition that others have interests of their own. It is a moral and imaginative statement rather than proof that every organism has the same conscious wishes. A useful reading asks what harm is being caused and whether it can reasonably be avoided, without claiming a simple answer to every conflict between needs.
When to use it
Use it to reflect on the interests of living beings affected by an action.
Keep in mind
The saying does not establish identical consciousness or resolve every conflict between living needs.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English