Quotes: Self-reliance
Self-reliance on this page is presented as the art of standing on your own feet while staying open to help beyond yourself. Jean de La Fontaine supplies a pithy moralizing angle, Yasmin Mogahed brings a psychological-spiritual distinction between attachment and true love, and Dwight L. Moody models a humbling progression that allows something larger to work through a diminished self.
Together the quotes probe a central tension: when does self-sufficiency become isolation, and when does surrender become dependency? The authors approach that question from practice, emotional clarity, and spiritual humility, offering complementary paths toward mature independence.
3 quotes on this theme, each with its source and insight
The quotes
“Help thyself and Heaven will help thee.”
Source: Fables, "The Carter Stuck in the Mud", Book VI (1668) · Check the source
Verified attributionWhat we know
- What is documented
- The line is the closing moral of La Fontaine’s « Le Chartier embourbé » in the Fables; it appears in editions from 1668 onward.
- What remains uncertain
- Attribution to La Fontaine is secure, though the underlying proverb predated him and some editions differ in fable numbering (17 vs. 18).
La Fontaine places the line as a fable’s moral: you must act before expecting aid. In “The Carter Stuck in the Mud” (Fables, Book VI, 1668) the short sentence captures a practical lesson about initiative and how assistance follows effort.
“Try not to confuse attachment with love. Attachment is about fear and dependency, and has more to do with love of self than love of another. Love without attachment is the purest love because it isn’t about what others can give you because you’re empty. It is about what you can give others because you’re already full.”
Source: no specific work is documented · Check the source
Disputed attributionWhat we know
- What is documented
- The wording is widely attributed to Yasmin Mogahed and commonly linked to her book Reclaim Your Heart and a related recorded Q&A.
- What remains uncertain
- Attribution is plausible but weakly verified: the idea matches Mogahed’s teachings, yet the exact phrasing is mostly found on secondary quote sites and may be paraphrased.
The quote distinguishes two motives: attachment comes from fear and need, while pure love comes from being already fulfilled and able to give. It reflects Yasmin Mogahed’s modern spiritual teaching on emotional healing and inner reliance, urging generosity that isn’t driven by emptiness.
“Moses spent forty years thinking he was somebody; forty years learning he was nobody; and forty years discovering what God can do with a nobody.”
Source: The Call of Moses (sermon) · Check the source
Disputed attributionWhat we know
- What is documented
- The saying is widely attributed to Dwight Lyman Moody and closely related versions appear in Moody‑attributed collections and devotional materials.
- What remains uncertain
- Attribution is disputed: exact wording varies across reproductions and no primary‑source text matching this verbatim was found in the supplied results.
The line captures a core evangelical idea: God often uses people after pride is stripped away. Framing Moses’ life as three forty‑year stages, it presents a spiritual progression from self‑reliance to humility to service enabled by God.