# Quote — Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of the Senses

> In the Bible, God instructs Moses to burn incense sweet and to His liking. Does God have nostrils? How can a god prefer one smell of this earth to another? The rudiments of decay complete a cycle necessary for growth and deliverance. Carrion smells offensive to us, but delicious to those animals who rely on it for food. What they excrete will make the soil rich and the crops abundant. There is no need for divine election. Perception is itself a form of grace.

- Author: [Diane Ackerman](https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman.md)
- Book: [A Natural History of the Senses](https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman/a-natural-history-of-the-senses.md)
- Page: 301
- Source: [Wikiquote](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Diane_Ackerman#A_Natural_History_of_the_Senses_(1990)) ([CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/))
- Quote page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman/a-natural-history-of-the-senses/in-the-bible

## More from this book

> Not everything we feel is felt powerfully enough to send a message to the brain; the rest of the sensations just wash over us, telling us nothing. Much is lost in translation, or is censored, and in any case our nerves don’t all fire at once. Some of them remain silent while others respond. This makes our version of the world somewhat simplistic, given how complex the world is. The body’s quest isn’t for truth, it’s for survival.

p. 304 — [Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman/a-natural-history-of-the-senses/not-everything-we-feel.md)

> So much of our life passes in a comfortable blur. Living on the senses requires an easily triggered sense of marvel, a little extra energy, and most people are lazy about life. Life is something that happens to them while they wait for death.

p. 305 — [Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman/a-natural-history-of-the-senses/so-much-of-our.md)

> It began in mystery, and it will end in mystery, but what a savage and beautiful country lies in between.

p. 309 — [Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/diane-ackerman/a-natural-history-of-the-senses/it-began-in-mystery.md)