Superstition attaches to this life, and religion to the next; superstition is allied to fatality, and religion to virtue; it is from the vivacity of earthly desires that we become superstitious, and it is, on the contrary, by the sacrifice of these same desires that we are religious." - Meaning and context.">
Ten Years' Exile (Dix années d'exil, written 1810–1813, posthumously published 1821), ch. 16
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Superstition attaches to this life, and religion to the next; superstition is allied to fatality, and religion to virtue; it is from the vivacity of earthly desires that we become superstitious, and it is, on the contrary, by the sacrifice of these same desires that we are religious.

— Anne Louise Germaine de Staël

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Superstition attaches to this life, and religion to the next; superstition is allied to fatality, and religion to virtue; it is from the vivacity of earthly desires that we become superstitious, and it is, on the contrary, by the sacrifice of these same desires that we are religious." in the context of "Ten Years' Exile (Dix années d'exil, written 1810–1813, posthumously published 1821), ch. 16" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Anne Louise Germaine de Staël" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Anne Louise Germaine de Staël

About Anne Louise Germaine de Staël

Anne Louise Germaine de Staël (April 22, 1766 – July 14, 1817), commonly known as Madame de Staël, was a French-speaking Swiss author living in Paris and abroad, who determined literary tastes of Europe at the turn of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.