Quick answer“The important thing is not to stop questioning.” is a famous quote by Albert Einstein. It comes from Old Man's Advice to Youth: 'Never Lose a Holy Curiosity' (LIFE magazine). It is widely quoted on wisdom and learning. Shortly before he died in 1955, Albert Einstein told a visitor that the important thing is not to stop questioning.
Shortly before he died in 1955, Albert Einstein told a visitor that the important thing is not to stop questioning. The remark was recorded by a LIFE magazine editor and printed weeks after Einstein's death.
Origin: Recorded by LIFE magazine editor William Miller, who visited Einstein at his home in Princeton shortly before Einstein's death in April 1955. Miller's account, 'Old Man's Advice to Youth: Never Lose a Holy Curiosity', appeared in LIFE on 2 May 1955. Einstein's full remark ran: 'The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence.' This is a reported conversation, not a letter: the brief's '(letter, 1955)' is incorrect.
Key facts
| Quote | “The important thing is not to stop questioning.” |
|---|---|
| Author | Albert Einstein |
| Source | Old Man's Advice to Youth: 'Never Lose a Holy Curiosity' (LIFE magazine) |
| Themes | wisdom, learning |
| Language | English |
Overview
The visitor was William Miller, an editor at LIFE magazine, who came to Einstein's home in Princeton with his son Pat and a professor friend, William Hermanns. Miller asked Einstein about curiosity, and Einstein answered with advice for the young: never lose a holy curiosity. The full passage runs: 'The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality.' Einstein died on 18 April 1955, and Miller's piece, 'Old Man's Advice to Youth: Never Lose a Holy Curiosity', appeared in LIFE on 2 May 1955. The line is often attached to a letter Einstein supposedly wrote in 1955, but it comes from this reported conversation, not from a letter. That matters: the words are Miller's record of what Einstein said, which is why the passage is usually quoted with Miller and LIFE as its source.
Frequently asked questions
When did Einstein say this?
In the spring of 1955, shortly before his death on 18 April 1955. LIFE editor William Miller visited Einstein at his Princeton home and recorded the remark. Miller's account was published in LIFE magazine on 2 May 1955, about two weeks after Einstein died.
What does 'holy curiosity' mean?
Einstein meant a sense of awe at the mysteries of life and the universe, strong enough to keep a person asking questions for a lifetime. In the same passage he said it is enough to try to comprehend 'only a little of this mystery every day', and ended with the advice: 'Never lose a holy curiosity.'
Is this from a letter Einstein wrote?
No. It is often described online as a 1955 letter, but the source is a reported conversation. LIFE editor William Miller visited Einstein, asked him about curiosity, and wrote down what Einstein said. The words are Miller's record of spoken remarks, not a text Einstein himself wrote.
What is the full quotation?
'The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend only a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.'
Related quotes
- “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” — Albert Einstein
- “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” — Albert Einstein
- “All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” — William Shakespeare
- “An expert is a person who has found out by his own painful experience all the mistakes that one can make in a very narrow field.” — Niels Bohr
- “I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.” — Isaac Newton
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Last updated: . Figures are shown with their year; where sources disagree, the value is left out rather than estimated.