a room without books is a body without soul essay

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Quote Origin: A House Without Books Is Like a Body Without a Soul

Marcus Tullius Cicero? G. K. Chesterton? Henry Ward Beecher? Mrs. Ashton Yates? John Lubbock? William Forsyth? William Lucas Collins? Apocryphal?

Question for Quote Investigator: The most attractive room in a large house is the library. Here are three versions of a germane adage:

(1) A house without books is like a body without a soul. (2) Without books, a house is but a body without a soul. (3) A room without books is like a body without a soul.

This saying has been attributed to the ancient Roman statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero and to prominent English author G. K. Chesterton. I have become skeptical because I haven’t been able to find a good citation. Would you please help me

Reply from Quote Investigator: QI has found no evidence that Cicero crafted this adage; however, he did write something pertinent in a letter to Titus Pomponius Atticus. Here is the original Latin followed by a translation from Eric Otto Winstedt of Magdalen College, Oxford. Tyrannio was Cicero’s servant librarian. Boldface added to excerpts by QI : 1

Postea vero quam Tyrannio mihi libros disposuit, mens addita videtur meis aedibus. Qua quidem in re mirifica opera Dionysi et Menophili tui fuit. Nihil venustius quam illa tua pegmata, postquam mi sillybis libros illustrarunt. Since Tyrannio has arranged my books, the house seems to have acquired a soul: and your Dionysius and Menophilus were of extraordinary service. Nothing could be more charming than those bookcases of yours now that the books are adorned with title-slips.

QI conjectures that the adage and attribution to Cicero were inattentively derived from the passage above. The ascription to G. K. Chesterton appeared in the 21st century and is unsupported.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

The simile under examination has been used in other expressions. For example, in 1722 a book by religious figure John Monro contained the following: 2

A Soul without Faith, is but like a Body without a Soul,  a dead, cold Lump.

In 1724 “Origines Hebrææ: The Antiquities of the Hebrew Republick” included a different instance of the simile: 3

Prayer without Attention is like a Body without a Soul.  Silence is commendable in time of Prayer.

The earliest strong match for the adage located by  QI  appeared in an 1844 book by Mrs. Ashton Yates titled “A Winter in Italy in a Series of Letters to a Friend”. Yates was taken on a tour of a house, and when she was shown the library she mentioned the adage and tentatively attributed the words to Cicero: 4

I think it was Cicero who said that  a house without a library is like a body without a soul.

In 1862 the influential U.S. clergyman Henry Ward Beecher published a collection of essays under the title “Eyes and Ears”. Beecher employed a different vivid simile about the absence of books: 5

Books are the windows through which the soul looks out.  A house without books is like a room without windows.  No man has a right to bring up his children without surrounding them with books, if he has the means to buy them.

In 1864 William Forsyth published “Life of Marcus Tullius Cicero”, and the author discussed Cicero’s enthusiasm for books: 6

His fondness for books amounted to a passion. He tells Atticus, that  when his librarian Tyrannio had arranged his books it seemed as if his house had got a soul;  and he is in raptures with a book-case when ornamented with the gay colours of the parchment-covers (sittybæ) in which the precious rolls were kept. We find him at one time begging his friend to send him two of his assistant librarians to help Tyrannio to glue the parchments, and to bring with them a thin skin of parchment to make indexes.

In May 1864 Forsyth’s biography of Cicero was reviewed in “Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine”. The unnamed reviewer paraphrased the discussion of books and attributed the adage to Cicero: 7

Without books  he said,  a house was but a body without a soul.  He entertained for these treasures not only the calm love of a reader, but the passion of a bibliophile; he was particular about his bindings, and admired the gay colours of the covers in which the precious manuscripts were kept as well as the more intellectual beauties within.

In 1871 Reverend William Lucas Collins published a biography titled “Cicero”. The book contained the same passage that appeared in the book review in “Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine”. Thus, Collins was probably the author of the 1864 review: 8

Without books,  he said,  a house was but a body without a soul.  He entertained for these treasures not only the calm love of a reader, but the passion of a bibliophile . . .

In 1873 “The Publishers’ Weekly” of New York published the following passage from a speech by John H. Thomas delivered in Dayton, Ohio: 9

Cicero was quite a bibliomaniac. No modern bookworm in his library could be more wrapped up in his books than was he. To his friend Atticus he wrote that  when his librarian Tyrannis had arranged his books, it seemed as if his house had got a soul.

In 1887 English politician and polymath John Lubbock published “The Pleasures of Life”. Lubbock credited Cicero with a version of the saying using “room” instead of “house”: 10

Cicero described  a room without books, as a body without a soul.  But it is by no means necessary to be a philosopher to love reading.

Confusion about the origin of the saying was expressed in a query published in the London journal “Notes and Queries” in 1888. The message contained a nineteenth century citation and also presented the thematically related passage in Latin. The querent requested a solid reference: 11

THE LIBRARY THE SOUL OF THE HOUSE. — “Ancient Classics for English Readers,” ‘Cicero,’ p. 42:  “Without books, he [Cicero] said, a house was but a body without a soul.”  Somewhere else I have read that Cicero called  the library the soul of the house.  What is the reference? The nearest I can find is ‘Att,’ iv. 8: “Postea vero quam Tyrannio mihi libros disposuit, mens addita videtur meis aedibus.”

In 1894 the periodical “Household News” of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania published a piece which contained a variant saying using “library” instead of “books”. The attribution was anonymous: 12

“A house without a library is like a body without a soul,”  said a wise observer . . .

In 1949 the saying was included in “The Home Book of Quotations: Classical and Modern” compiled by Burton Stevenson. Unfortunately, the supporting citation simply pointed to Lubbock’s 1887 book: 13

A room without books is as a body without a soul. CICERO. (Lubbock, Pleasures of Life. Ch. 3.)

In 1989 “The Concise Columbia Dictionary of Quotations” contained an entry for the saying which oddly credited Lubbock instead of Cicero: 14

A room without books is as a body without a soul. Sir John Lubbock, Lord Avebury (1834–1913) British banker, scientist, author

In 2005 “The Knoxville News-Sentinel” of Tennessee printed an item which attributed the saying to a famous English writer: 15

A THOUGHT A room without books is like a body without a soul. G. K. Chesterton English author

In 2020 Djamel Ouis published the compilation “Humorous Wit” in which quotations from Chesterton and Cicero appeared adjacent to one another: 16

There is a great deal of difference between the eager man who wants to read a book, and the tired man who wants a book to read. Gilbert Keith Chesterton A room without books is like a body without a soul. Cicero

The names “Chesterton” and “Cicero” and are close to one another in alphabetical order. Thus, quotations from the two authors sometimes appear adjacent in alphabetized listings. The text above shows that it would be easy for a reader to accidentally reassign the quotation under examination to Chesterton. This is a known misattribution mechanism.

The book “Humorous Wit” appeared in 2020 and the misattribution to Chesterton was already circulating in 2005. Hence, the error was not facilitated by this specific book. But the passage above provides a valuable illustration of mechanism.

In conclusion, after Cicero’s servant Tyrannio arranged his books, Cicero commented that “the house seems to have acquired a soul”.  QI  hypothesizes that this comment led to the eventual creation of the adage, and its attribution to Cicero. Currently, the 1844 book by Mrs. Ashton Yates contains the first appearance of the adage attributed to Cicero, but future researchers may discover earlier appearances.

Image Notes: Public domain image of a fresco fragment from the Palazzo Mediceo, Milan depicting young Cicero reading. Image has been cropped and resized.

Acknowledgement: Great thanks to Jane Bella whose message led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration. Bella helpfully pointed to an article on this topic at the IN REBVS Blog which contained the original Latin statement written by Cicero. Thanks also to the 1888 querent in “Notes and Queries” who also pointed to Cicero’s Latin statement.

Update History: On March 18, 2024 the format of the bibliographical notes was updated. Also, the full article was placed on this website.

• 1912, Cicero: Letters to Atticus, English Translation by E. O. Winstedt (Magdalen College, Oxford), Volume 1 of 3, Letter VIII, Cicero To Atticus, Greeting, Quote Page 292 and 293, William Heinemann, London. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
•  1722, A Collection of About Fifty Religious Letters by John Monro (Late Wright in Edinburgh), Letter XXII, Start Page 80, Quote Page 82, (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1724, Origines Hebrææ: The Antiquities of the Hebrew Republick by Thomas Lewis, Volume 1, Chapter 21, Quote Page 427, Printed for Sam Illidge and John Hooke, London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1844, A Winter in Italy in a Series of Letters to a Friend by Mrs. Ashton Yates, Volume 2 of 2, Letter XXXVI, Start Page 262, Quote Page 271 and 272, Henry Colburn, London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1862, Eyes and Ears by Henry Ward Beecher, Chapter: The Duty of Owning Books, Quote Page 155, Ticknor and Fields, Boston, Massachusetts. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1864, Life of Marcus Tullius Cicero by William Forsyth, Volume 1 of 2, Chapter 5: Correspondence and Domestic Life, Quote Page 56, John Murray, London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1864 May, Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Forsyth’s Life of Cicero, Start Page 544, Quote Page 553, William Blackwood & Sons, Edinburgh, Scotland. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1871, Cicero by Rev. W. Lucas Collins (William Lucas Collins), Chapter 3: The Consulship and Catiline, Quote Page 42 and 43, William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh and London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1873 September 6, The Publishers’ Weekly, Number 86, On Bookselling and Bookmaking: An Essay read before the Saturday Club of Dayton, O. by John H. Thomas, Start Page 239, Quote Page 240, F. Leypoldt, New York. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1887, The Pleasures of Life by Sir John Lubbock, Second Edition, Chapter 3: A Song of Books, Note: Delivered at the Working Men’s College, Quote Page 56, Macmillan and Company, London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1888 June 30, Notes and Queries: A Medium of Intercommunication, Seventh Series, Section: Queries, Quote Page 507, Column 2, Published at the Office, London. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1894 June, Household News, Volume 2, Number 6, Section: Literary Topics, The Value of Home Libraries by Elizabeth Carpenter, Start Page 512, Quote Page 513, Household News Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Google Books Full View)  link ↩︎
• 1949, The Home Book of Quotations: Classical and Modern, Compiled by Burton Stevenson, Sixth Edition, Topic: Books, Quote Page 181, Dodd, Mead and Company, New York. (Internet Archive at archive.org) ↩︎
• 1989, The Concise Columbia Dictionary of Quotations by Robert Andrews, Topic: Books, Quote Page 29, Columbia University Press, New York. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
• 2005 January 08, The Knoxville News-Sentinel, A Thought, Quote Page B4, Column 3, Knoxville, Tennessee. (Newspapers_com) ↩︎
• 2020, Humorous Wit, Compiled by D. Ouis (Djamel Ouis), Topic: Books, Quote Page 69 and 70, Production Management by Into Print www.intoprint.net, Northampton, England. (Google Books Preview) ↩︎

Marcus Tullius Cicero: 'A home without books is a body without soul.'

A home without books is a body without soul.

"A home without books is a body without soul," proclaimed Marcus Tullius Cicero, the renowned Roman philosopher and statesman. This profound quote captures the essence of the eternal companionship between books and the human spirit. It highlights the indispensable role that books play in nurturing the soul and exploring the boundless realms of knowledge and imagination. Books are the windows through which we perceive the world, connect with our inner selves, and ultimately experience life with a greater sense of depth and meaning.At a superficial level, this quote emphasizes the importance of having books in our physical surroundings. A home filled with books symbolizes intellectual curiosity, a thirst for knowledge, and a love for literature. Such an environment fosters a sense of intellectual stimulation and creates a sanctuary for the mind to thrive. Additionally, having books readily available at home encourages reading as a daily habit. Whether it's a fictional narrative, a historical account, or a thought-provoking philosophical piece, books offer a gateway to diverse perspectives and transformative ideas, enriching our understanding of the world.However, beyond the literal interpretation lies a deeper philosophical concept that adds a layer of intrigue to Cicero's quote. It suggests that a home without books not only lacks physical volumes but also lacks the intangible "soul" that books awaken within us. To delve into this concept, one must explore the nature of the human soul itself.In various philosophical and religious traditions, the soul is often considered the essence of a person, the seat of their emotions, thoughts, and consciousness. It is what differentiates us from mere biological entities. The soul is thought to have a thirst for growth, meaning, and connection– a yearning that books satiate in their unique way.Books have the power to transport us to different times, places, and even dimensions of existence. They expose us to diverse perspectives, challenging our preconceived notions and expanding our understanding of the world around us. Through the pages of a book, the soul embarks on a journey of discovery, unlocking new realms of knowledge and experiences that go beyond the confines of our physical existence.Moreover, books provide solace and companionship. They offer refuge in times of solitude, conversing with us in whispers through the words of authors long gone. They evoke emotions, tug at our hearts, and offer a sense of empathy and understanding that can be transformative. Books become faithful companions, nourishing our souls with wisdom and inspiration, and igniting the spark of imagination within us.Contrary to Cicero's quote, one could argue that the soul can indeed find fulfillment in other forms of art or experiences. Music, for instance, has the power to immerse us in an emotional journey, awakening our senses and touching the depths of our being. Visual art, drama, and dance too have the ability to evoke profound spiritual experiences. Nevertheless, even in such cases, books can still play a role. Literary works frequently inspire and influence other art forms. Many musicians find inspiration in the lyrics of poets and novelists, while filmmakers and visual artists often adapt stories from literature to create compelling narratives. In this sense, books continue to infuse the soul of these art forms, reinforcing the profound significance that Cicero's quote implies.In conclusion, Marcus Tullius Cicero's quote, "A home without books is a body without soul," embodies the profound connection between books and the human spirit. It underscores the vital importance of books in our lives, both as physical objects that shape our environment and as intangible gateways to knowledge, imagination, and self-discovery. Books, in their written form, possess the power to feed our souls, awaken our intellect, and transport us to far-off places. They are vessels of wisdom, solace, and companionship that ultimately give life and substance to our existence. So, let us adorn our homes with books, for by doing so, we not only enrich our physical surroundings but also nurture the very essence of our souls.

Marcus Tullius Cicero: 'The wise are instructed by reason, average minds by experience, the stupid by necessity and the brute by instinct.'

Marcus tullius cicero: 'live as brave men; and if fortune is adverse, front its blows with brave hearts.'.

August 3, 2011

Dennis in literature , reception , skepticism | august 3, 2011, cicero on books and the soul.

I’m a hunter by nature, but what I hunt are words and meanings in books and now on the internet. One of the things I like to pursue is the origin of popular attributions, but the game is often quite elusive.

This one has been quoted often enough, and declared apocryphal:

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.”

I’ve found the source, and he was a learned and interesting man who was an admirer of Darwin, a defender of archaeological sites, and most famously the man who gave Bank Holidays to the U.K. (We’ll ignore his opposition to Irish Home Rule.)

The young Cicero reading (in a soulful nook?)

Sir John Lubbock wrote an essay for the Contemporary Review vol. 49 (1886) under the title ‘ On the Love of Reading .’

He opens with a sentiment that could be echoed today:

Of all the privileges we enjoy in this nineteenth century there is none, perhaps, for which we ought to be more thankful than for the easier access to books.

It’s funny that I was able to access his essay through Google Books, which bypasses the physical object to make access even easier. But early in the essay he says the following, which is the source of the popular quotation:

Cicero described a room without books as a body without a soul. But it is by no means necessary to be a philosopher to love reading.

This essay was reprinted in several other publications, and was evidently so widely-read that some had false recollections of reading the line in Cicero.

So how could an accomplished polymath get something like this so wrong? Was he a fraud?

If he was anything in this instance he was probably too reliant on memory or too free in his interpretation, but it’s not a far leap from Cicero’s words:

postea vero quam Tyrannio mihi libros disposuit mens addita videtur meis aedibus.

– Cicero, ad Atticum IV.8

Translations tend to differ and take the word mens in quite different senses. (For example, a ‘soul’ has been added, according to E.O. Winstedt’s Loeb translation.) Heberden’s translation in the old Bohn edition, which seems a likely source for someone like Lubbock, says that ‘a new spirit has seemed to animate my house.’

To me it seems to say that an ordered library is like the brain of a house, but whether you think of as a soul, a spirit, or a mind, the comparison is clear: the home is endowed with a human property. And if it was no empty of books before, the books were of little use in their disordered state.

So let’s emend the thought (acknowledging that it isn’t a quotation) and say that a home without a library is like a body without a mind.

The Cicero Homepage

Marcus tullius cicero.

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Did Cicero Say It?

The budget should be balanced, the treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. The mobs should be forced to work and not depend on government for subsistence.

This passage is often attributed to Cicero in conservative and libertarian writings (starting, as far as I can tell, with a speech in the Congressional Record, April 25, 1968, vol. 114, p. 10635).  No specific source text is cited, and the supposed date is given inconsistently, so there is immediate reason for suspicion.  Even worse is the content.  Cicero might well agree with this passage, but you’d have to explain it to him first.  For instance, there was no budget to balance or assistance to foreign lands.  Eventually, the original source was tracked down: a novel.  The passage is from Taylor Caldwell, A Pillar of Iron (1965).  (original leg-work: letter to The Chicago Tribune (20 April 1971), John H. Collins, Professor of History at Northern Illinois University)

A room without books is like a body without a soul.

This is best known from refrigerator magnets long distributed by Amazon.com, but also appears in other media.  As with the above quotation, no specific source is ever given, and dates are inconsistent.  Here the origin appears to be very lose paraphrase rather than pure fiction (http://www.inrebus.com/index.php?entry=entry071021-163352):

Holbrook Jackson in his inspiring “Anatomy of Bibliomania” invites the reader to “agree with Cicero” on this precise point making a reference to Lubbock’s “Pleasures of Life” (published around the time when Chesterton was barely out of grade school). Lubbock, however, only informs us that “Cicero described a room without books, as a body without a soul.” In all likelihood, what he has in mind is a phrase from Att. 4.8: postea vero quam Tyrannio mihi libros disposuit, mens addita videtur meis aedibus (it is also possible that Lubbock used a secondary source).

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Charles Petzold

"a room without books is like a body without a soul" (cicero).

February 13, 2008 New York, N.Y.

I was paging through the Sunday Business section of the New York Times when I saw a drawing of what was claimed to be a home but which to me looked more like a well-equipped hotel room:

Where are the books? I wondered. Doesn't every home have lots of books? But of course that was the whole point: This is a home of the future as described in the accompanying article "Pushing Paper Out the Door" . There are no books in this home because books are made of paper.

I gradually came to see the sense of it: If there's nothing to read, there's no reason to be forced to make a choice between classical incandescent bulbs and modern energy-saving flourescent bulbs. You don't need any lightbulbs at all, thus greatly reducing your carbon footprint.

Eventually I spotted the e-book reader on the table next to the sofa — the very same sofa pointed at the TV set. Presumably in case you get tired of watching American Gladiator , The Biggest Loser , and Supernanny , you could pick up the e-book reader and catch a few episodes (I mean chapters, of course) of a book.

And then it hit me — my billion-dollar idea.

I get one or two billion-dollar ideas a year but they never go anywhere because I don't have the entrepreneurial gene and can conceive of nothing more dismal than running my own company. So I get the billion-dollar ideas but then I throw them away.

This one I'm throwing away in public in case anybody wants to take it and run.

As you may know, one of the big marketing problems of e-book readers like the Kindle is that they don't really do that much. Unless you want to read a book, they're pretty much useless. So here's my idea, inspired by seeing the e-book reader on the table next to the sofa facing the TV: Combine the e-book reader with a universal remote, so it becomes a Universal Media Controller (UMC). With the UMC you only need one device to turn off the boring TV to read a book, and the same device to turn the TV back on after you've had enough reading of the boring book.

Is this brilliant or what?

Melissa Cynova

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero

You may also like, if the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough – meister eckhart, this is the place to begin. – liz worth, “i’m not telling anyone what to believe. i simply present the evidence so people can draw their own conclusions.” jenniffer weigel, fortune telling with playing cards by jonathan dee | book review.

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“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” — Cicero

By: Alexandra Medina-Leal

There is this very funny scene from an episode of Seinfeld where George asks his best friend Jerry to go over to his ex-girlfriend’s apartment to pick up some books that he forgot to take before he broke up with her.  Jerry mocks him by asking why people insist on keeping the books they have already read in their homes as some sort of trophy on their shelves.  On the surface Jerry is right; doesn’t it make more sense for us to save our money by renting books from the library and then returning them once we are done? Why do we decorate our walls with books we all too often haven’t even read?  Are we proud to own Moby Dick or a biography of Beethoven because we think that this somehow says something about our character?

I too have a mini library in my home and I stare at my books like a new mom stares at her child.  For me my books have deep sentimental value and my collections show the different stages in my intellectual development.  I like to keep a record of how I have progressed and I also keep a section of books I have yet to read as a reminder of where I hope to be – the person I hope to be – some day in the future. I hope that books that are rich in information will change the way that I think, behave, feel, and connect with others; such a transformation is beyond the physical and can changer one’s temperament and spirit.  Perhaps we truly are feeding our souls when we pick up a book.

The soul, in both religious and philosophical thinking, is that immaterial part of our being that connects us with what is beyond the corruptible and impermanent world.  It is the channel through which we are united with what is beyond human experience and human creation – The Ultimate Being, The Uncreated Creator, The First, God etc.  The connectedness of flesh and spirit is beyond complete human understanding, but its indivisible unity is undeniable.  But one does not have to be a religious person to appreciate what the soul represents.  It can simply be that ineffable part of a human being that makes us special, rational, and able to experience love, goodness, and justice; our soul is our humanity.

So following Cicero’s metaphor, one can say that a room is lacking meaning and definition without books to fulfill its purpose.  The room need not even be a physical place; the room in our hearts must be decorated with the beautiful pages of literary masterpieces. We are most glamorous when we are covered in knowledge and most complete when we are basking in the light of truth.  Most books are indeed bastions of knowledge and insight into the human condition.  Even if the information they contain is proven scientifically incorrect or exemplify beliefs that are no longer the accepted norm, they at least show how far humankind has come and how truly a curious species we have always been.   I believe that books can connect us to our past – our collective political, economic, cultural, religious, and gendered experiences – in a beautiful time capsule that will outlive us all.

Books are indeed one of the most potent means of achieving richness of spirit because they contain some of the most articulate expositions of all that is within the human capacity to know; human apprehension of such universal ideas provides us with a metaphysical channel to the beyond.

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A room without books is like a body without a soul. – Marcus Tullius Cicero

Books are responsible for changing your character and perception . Since our childhood, we have read several books and whether you agree on it or not, what we are today has been because of the books we have read, the knowledge we have gained through all these years from our schools, families, surroundings or peer groups as well.

All these things contribute a lot towards shaping our nature. Books influence the way we behave, speak, think or connect with people around us. Books transform us much beyond the physical transformation that we go through! It molds our spirit and temperament too!

Reading a book is just like feeding your soul. Just as the soul is inseparable from us, in the same way, the knowledge that we imbibe from the books we read remains within us forever. It is quite evident from the way we communicate or behave with the people around us .

This is in reference to Cicero’s metaphor wherein he says that a room does not necessarily denote a physical place rather it could be interpreted as the room of our hearts as well. It eventually means that our hearts should be decorated with literary masterpieces as it exposes us to the light of truth.

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A room without books is like a body without a soul

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A room without books is like a body without soul.

knowledge and wisdom, goes hand in hand.

The real meaning of this quote can depends on various pro’s and corn’s. But, using the book’s and soul’s equal proportions. It can be said, life can be unfair sometimes. Books provides us with knowledge and soul provides us with wisdom.

Without having the right proportion of knowledge and wisdom. A person can look like an half eaten cake. Which bring us back to the topic. Where one should read books for the vast source of knowledge and develop their notion on wrong and right. Knowledge or education can play a major role in one’s life.

One can easily differentiate a well learned person in the crowd of many. When, wisdom comes into picture then it’s all about the dominate traits of our ancestors which we want to excel. Comparing a book with soul, sometimes can be tricky part. Just for example ‘vastu’ can be something which needs a lot of awareness and observations which can be only felt and sense by soul. Books can wash away our natural ability to think.

Soul is nothing but a figment of our thought. Which is able to decipher the hidden message’s meanings. It’s great to have a room with books and more beautiful if you are able to channelize the knowledge which work for your soul and body. Keeping the mind balance with knowledge and wisdom.

Maybe, that’s how a man gets refined with time and patience.

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A quote from Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BC – 43 BC), a prominent Roman philosopher, politician and political theorist of his times.

Marcus Tullius Cicero was credited as being heavily influential on Latin, transforming it from a “modest utilitarian language” into a “versatile literary medium capable of conveying abstract concepts”.

Julius Ceasar gave Cicero the great accolade of saying in relation to his works that “it is more important to have greatly extended the frontiers of the Roman spirit than the frontiers of the Roman empire.”

De Officiis

Cicero was a famous author of his time, and of his many works, the most famous ‘De Officiis’ was notable for being only the second book in history to have been to be published, following the invention of the printing press – behind only the Gutenberg Bible.

De Officiis (On Duties or On Obligations) was an essay split into three books, written the year that he died in 43 BC. The essay conveyed Cicero’s advice on how to live, behave and fulfil one’s moral obligations.

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• A room without books is like a body without soul.
• Topics >>
• GD >>
• Creative & Abstract Topics for Group Discussion    -12/30/11
• « Previous
• Next »
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -summer (10/29/22)
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -naga sai (11/08/18)
• no relation for the books and mans soul.the topic choosen is wrong
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -Vishwanath (02/12/17)
• We r compare the book as a 'soul'.. Realy very nice quote, books are the our life we can learn or catch any kind of knowledge through it..reards vishu
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -Prashant Triptahi (11/17/15)
• Books are the building blocks of our thinking process. Whether they take the form of childhood bedtime stories, travel companions, even stories of an altogether different part of the world or the general know-hows of a topic, books are irreplaceable. There is a reason why the work had to be published on paper and not just scribbled out somewhere on the internet. Granted most of the work people read is from the pre-internet era, one has to still acknowledge that a fair proportion of the intellectuals were known to read a lot of the written text. Now coming to the soul part, soul is nothing but a figment of our thoughts. The soul is as healthy or clean as our thoughts are. The sole purpose of writing a book is not just to teach something or preach a thought, the best writers are those who have evoked thoughts, and left the reader with something to ponder about. When we find these hidden messages as a reader, the souls feeds off them and the purpose of the book is fulfilled. In recent times, Paulo Coelho is one such reader who has gained immense global popularity for maintaining this style and making people think and providing what some even refer to as a spiritual journey. In my view, regular yoga and reading, and you don't need Metlife. (Peace of mind guaranteed is the famous tagline associated with Metlife) "A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read." - Mark Twain
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -mohit Singh (12/20/14)
• we treat book as a soul .it gives root to every thing. so every person keep book of his choice. if he may be illiterate he have holy books in his room . books give a positive impact on our life.
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -aakarsh (12/17/14)
• Not a nice topic
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -geeta (10/31/14)
• Books are very important in our life. We can get any kind of knowledge from books and our bad thinking or views can be change into good. But here I think there shoud be no comparison bet room without books and body wihtout soul. They are different things. They not make any sense.
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -bhoopal (09/25/14)
• The topic looks strange when I heard this for the first time. A room may be composed of anyything and it depends upon the person who uses it.Books may or mayn't be part of the room.suppose if an illiterate person is living in that room then it is not an essential to have a book in his room.so it depends only on the person's interests. Every live person has his own soul.so it is not possible to seperate it until his death.so finally I want to say that 'it is not mandatory that having a book in every room and it only depends on person who uses it.
• RE: A room without books is like a body without soul. -Group Discussion (12/31/11)
• Dos and Don’ts of participating in Group Discussion 8 things you should NOT do in a GD 10 things to succeed in GD Preparing for GD Just before the GD During the Group Discussion Prerequisites of a Group Discussion

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A room without books is like a body without a soul. Paperback – May 9, 2020

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• Print length 110 pages
• Language English
• Publication date May 9, 2020
• Dimensions 6 x 0.25 x 9 inches
• ISBN-13 979-8644561735
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Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B088N4Z5N7
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (May 9, 2020)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 110 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8644561735
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.8 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.25 x 9 inches
• #33,648 in Literary Diaries & Journals
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