83 Walt Whitman Quotes (On Life, Happiness, Nature)

By Maxime Lagacé

Maxime is the founder of WisdomQuotes. He has been collecting quotes since 2004. His goal? To help you develop a calm and peaceful mind. Learn more about him on his about page.

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Here are 83 of the best Walt Whitman quotes.

And they are amazing.

You’ll learn:

  • How to get stronger from adversity
  • How to embrace your imperfections
  • How to appreciate life’s simple pleasures
  • And a lot more!

But first, who was Walt Whitman (1819–1892) exactly?

  • An American poet, essayist, and journalist
  • He’s considered one of the most influential poets in American literature
  • He’s known as America’s “world poet” and a successor to figures like Homer and Shakespeare

In sum, there’s a ton you can learn from him.

Even artists like Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, and Kurt Cobain were influenced by him.

So I hope you’ll love his quotes as much as I do.

Enjoy!

Top 10 Walt Whitman Quotes

walt whitman quotes exist enough wisdom

I exist as I am, that is enough. Walt Whitman

Keep your face always toward the sunshine – and shadows will fall behind you. Walt Whitman

I discover myself on the verge of a usual mistake. Walt Whitman

These are the days that must happen to you. Walt Whitman

The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine of the light of letters, is simplicity. Walt Whitman

walt whitman quotes learned those like enough wisdom

I have learned that to be with those I like is enough. Walt Whitman

I and this mystery, here we stand. Walt Whitman

None has begun to think how divine he himself is and how certain the future is. Walt Whitman

What do you suppose will satisfy the soul except to walk free and own no superior? Walt Whitman

Simplicity is the glory of expression. Walt Whitman

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Walt Whitman Quotes About Life, Love, Happiness

walt whitman quotes happiness place hour wisdom

Happiness, not in another place but this place… not for another hour, but this hour. Walt Whitman

Peace is always beautiful. Walt Whitman

The gift is to the giver, and comes back most to him – it cannot fail. Walt Whitman

Do anything, but let it produce joy. Walt Whitman

We were together. I forget the rest. Walt Whitman

I celebrate myself, and sing myself, and what I assume you shall assume, for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. Walt Whitman

Love, that is day and night – love, that is sun and moon and stars, Love, that is crimson, sumptuous, sick with perfume, no other words but words of love, no other thought but love. Walt Whitman

Day by day and night by night we were together – all else has long been forgotten by me. Walt Whitman

walt whitman quotes whatever satisfies soul wisdom

Whatever satisfies the soul is truth. Walt Whitman

I am not to speak to you, I am to think of you when I sit alone or wake at night alone, I am to wait, I do not doubt I am to meet you again, I am to see to it that I do not lose you. Walt Whitman

Whoever denies me, it shall not trouble me; Whoever accepts me, he or she shall be blessed, and shall bless me. Walt Whitman

Not til the sun excludes you do I exclude you. Walt Whitman

I am satisfied. I see, dance, laugh, sing. Walt Whitman

When I give, I give myself. Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman Quotes About Nature

walt whitman quotes believe grass stars wisdom

I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars. Walt Whitman

Do I contradict myself? Very well, then, I contradict myself; I am large – I contain multitudes. Walt Whitman

Let your soul stand cool and composed before a million universes. Walt Whitman

I swear to you, there are divine things more beautiful than words can tell. Walt Whitman

This is what you should do; love the Earth and sun and the animals. Walt Whitman

Now I see the secret of making the best person: it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth. Walt Whitman

Oh, to be alive in such an age, when miracles are everywhere, and every inch of common air throbs a tremendous prophecy, of greater marvels yet to be. Walt Whitman

I think I could always live with animals. The more you’re around people, the more you love animals. Walt Whitman

walt whitman quotes morning glory window books wisdom

A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books. Walt Whitman

To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, every cubic inch of space is a miracle, every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same, every foot of the interior swarms with the same. To me the sea is a continual miracle, the fishes that swim — the rocks — the motion of the waves—the ships with men in them, what stranger miracles are there? Walt Whitman

Give me the splendid, silent sun with all his beams full-dazzling. Walt Whitman

Each of us inevitable; Each of us limitless-each of us with his or her right upon the earth. Walt Whitman

I say the whole earth and all the stars in the sky are for religion’s sake. Walt Whitman

After you have exhausted what there is in business, politics, conviviality, and so on – have found that none of these finally satisfy, or permanently wear – what remains? Nature remains. Walt Whitman

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Inspirational Walt Whitman Quotes

walt whitman quotes forsake inhibitions dreams wisdom

Forsake all inhibitions, pursue thy dreams. Walt Whitman

Be curious, not judgmental. Walt Whitman

Resist much, obey little. Walt Whitman

Re-examine all you have been told in school or in church, or in any book; dismiss what insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem. Walt Whitman

What is that you express in your eyes? It seems to me more than all the print I have read in my life. Walt Whitman

I am larger, better than I thought; I did not know I held so much goodness. Walt Whitman

The truth is simple. If it was complicated, everyone would understand it. Walt Whitman

Not I, nor anyone else can travel that road for you. You must travel it by yourself. It is not far. It is within reach. Perhaps you have been on it since you were born, and did not know. Perhaps it is everywhere – on water and land. Walt Whitman

Afoot and lighthearted I take to the open road, healthy, free, the world before me. Walt Whitman

Either define the moment or the moment will define you. Walt Whitman

You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, not look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books. You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me, you shall listen to all sides and filter them from yourself. Walt Whitman

walt whitman quotes powerful play verse wisdom

The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. Walt Whitman

No one can acquire for another — not one. Not one can grow for another — not one. The song is to the singer, and comes back most to him. The teaching is to the teacher, and comes back most to him. The murder is to the murderer, and comes back most to him. The theft is to the thief, and comes back most to him. The love is to the lover, and comes back most to him. The gift is to the giver, and comes back most to him — it cannot fail. Walt Whitman

There is that in me — I do not know what it is — but I know it is in me. Walt Whitman

I now suspect there is something fierce in you eligible to burst forth. Walt Whitman

Not I, not any one else can travel that road for you, You must travel it for yourself….. It is not far, it is within reach, / you have been on it since you were born and did not know. Walt Whitman

We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. So medicine, law, business, engineering… these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love… these are what we stay alive for. Walt Whitman

There is no God any more divine than yourself. Walt Whitman

Oh while I live, to be the ruler of life, not a slave, to meet life as a powerful conqueror, and nothing exterior to me will ever take command of me. Walt Whitman

It is a beautiful truth that all men contain something of the artist in them. Walt Whitman

If you’ve done it, it isn’t bragging. Walt Whitman

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More Walt Whitman Quotes

walt whitman quotes people sunshine square inch wisdom

Some people are so much sunshine to the square inch. Walt Whitman

Battles are lost in the same spirit in which they are won. Walt Whitman

The road to wisdom is paved with excess. The mark of a true writer is their ability to mystify the familiar and familiarize the strange. Walt Whitman

All truths wait in all things. The insignificant is as big to me as any. Walt Whitman

If no other in the world be aware, I sit content, and if each and all be aware, I sit content. Walt Whitman

Dismiss whatever insults your soul. Walt Whitman

To have great poets, there must be great audiences. Walt Whitman

Nothing can happen more beautiful than death. Walt Whitman

Stranger, if you passing meet me and desire to speak to me, why should you not speak to me? And why should I not speak to you? Walt Whitman

Henceforth I ask not good fortune. I myself am good fortune. Walt Whitman

A great city is that which has the greatest men and women. Walt Whitman

The clock indicates the moment — but what does eternity indicate? Walt Whitman

walt whitman quotes faults forgiven candor wisdom

All faults may be forgiven of him who has perfect candor. Walt Whitman

I am as bad as the worst, but, thank God, I am as good as the best. Walt Whitman

I like the scientific spirit – the holding off, the being sure but not too sure, the willingness to surrender ideas when the evidence is against them: this is ultimately fine – it always keeps the way beyond open – always gives life, thought, affection, the whole man, a chance to try over again after a mistake – after a wrong guess. Walt Whitman

Have you learned the lessons only of those who admired you, and were tender with you, and stood aside for you? Have you not learned great lessons from those who braced themselves against you, and disputed passage with you? Walt Whitman

The strongest and sweetest songs yet remain to be sung. Walt Whitman

It is only the novice in political economy who thinks it is the duty of government to make its citizens happy – government has no such office. Walt Whitman

I have no mockings or arguments; I witness and wait. Walt Whitman

In the faces of men and women I see God. Walt Whitman

I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person. Walt Whitman

We convince by our presence. Walt Whitman

Conclusion

walt whitman quotes life doesnt people want wisdom

Life doesn’t give you the people you want, it gives you the people you need: to love you, to hate you, to make you, to break you, and to make you the person you were meant to be. Walt Whitman

Key Takeaways

Here are 5 takeaways from these amazing quotes by Walt Whitman.

  • Contentment: “I have learned that to be with those I like is enough.” Pro tip: Like Walt Whitman, limit your desires to the essential and avoid material possessions. You don’t need much to be happy.
  • Awe. “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars.” Pro tip: Like Walt Whitman, remember the miracles all around you. Journal daily about 3 things you’re grateful for.
  • Nature. “A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books.” Pro tip: Walt Whitman loved simple things and nature. Like him, spend at least 15 minutes outside every day, ideally in a park or forest.
  • Move forward. “Forsake all inhibitions, pursue thy dreams.” Pro tip: Walt Whitman believed in human potential. So make sure you don’t let your fears define who you become. Courage is the doorway to your dreams.
  • Creation. “The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse.” Pro tip: Like Walt Whitman said, life is bigger than you, yet you matter within it. Always remember that.
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Further Readings

I hope you enjoyed these inspiring quotes by Walt Whitman. If you did, please share them with a friend today!

Did you know about Walt Whitman before? What’s your favorite quote from him? And remember: words can transform your life, if you find the right ones.

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Author Bio

maxime lagace

Maxime Lagacé started collecting quotes in 2004 after he lost his girlfriend in a car accident.

In search of meaning, he dived in the self-improvement world, psychology and trail running.

Books, blogs, quotes and nature became his guide.

He started journaling, reflecting, writing his thoughts, feelings and quotes.

His goal was to understand his pain, his depression, his fears, his lack of motivation and inspiration.

He finished his software engineering degree in 2007 at the École de Technologie Supérieure de Montréal.

A few years later, he started his first website to share his love of quotes.

Maxime is a father of two, husband, and INFJ.

Other notable interests of Maxime are health (mental and physical), meditation, bananas, SEO, human potential, and education.

You can find him on X, Facebook, Threads, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Substack, YouTube.

Last update

October 22, 2025

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