Rabindranath Tagore? Rabbinic Saying? Arabic Proverb? Talmud? A. Huebsch? Leo Rosten? Anonymous?
Question for Quote Investigator: Knowledge accumulates, and the education of each generation of children must include the latest information and capabilities. Here are two versions of a saying that expresses this idea:
(1) Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
(2) Don’t limit a child to your own learning, for he was born in another time.
This notion has been attributed to the Bengali sage Rabindranath Tagore. The statement has also been called a Rabbinical saying and an Arabic Proverb. Would you please explore the provenance of this expression?
Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match found by QI appeared in an 1887 book titled “Gems of the Orient” which contained sayings compiled and translated by Reverend A. Huebsch. The saying occurred in a part of the volume titled “Arabic Proverbs and Sentences”. The precise source of the saying was not specified. Here are four statements from the subsection about “Children”. Boldface added to excepts by QI:1
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
By much falling the child learns to walk.
From the rose proceeds a thorn, from the thorn a rose. (Said of the diversity between parents and children.)
Be submissive in thy childhood that thou mayest be respected in thy old age.
In 1894 “Good Housekeeping” magazine printed a collection of miscellaneous sayings under the title “The Family Scrap Basket” including the following three items:2
What class of tradesmen succeed best by going to the wall? Paper hangers.
He is a gallant man, indeed, who always stands up for women—in a street car.
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
In 1900 the saying appeared in “Wit and Wisdom of the Talmud” edited by Madison C. Peters. Here are four statements from a section titled “Duties Between Parents and Children”:3
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
Where the children honor their parents, there God dwells, there He is honored.
Parental love should be impartial; one child must not be preferred to the other.
The three citations above demonstrate the uncertain origin of the saying. The creator remains anonymous. The saying seems to be either Arabic or Rabbinic. QI hopes that future research will help to clarify the origin.
The earliest attribution to Rabindranath Tagore found by QI appeared in 2008 which is an extremely late date.
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
In 1901 an article in “The New York Times” discussed the “Wit and Wisdom of the Talmud” and reprinted many sayings from the book including the statement under examination.4
Also, in 1901 the saying appeared in the book “Hebraic Literature: Translations from The Talmud, Midrashim, and Kabbala”. Yet, the saying was not directly linked to any of these three texts. Instead, the saying appeared in a section titled “Proverbial Sayings and Traditions”. Here are four items from that section:5
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
What the child says out of doors he has learned indoors.
This world is an ante-chamber to the next.
The just of all nations have a portion in the future reward.
In 1907 “The Typographical Circular: The Official Organ of the Typographical Association” in England printed the following:6
“Do not confine your children to your own learning; they were born in another time,” says the Talmud.
In 1922 the saying appeared in “Talmudic Pearls” compiled by Barnet Hodes. Here are two items:7
Do not confine your children to your own learnings, for they were born in another time.
If your child deserves punishing, either punish him there and then, or else tell him you forgive him, but never hold the threat of punishment over his head.
In 1927 a version of the saying using the word “limit” instead of “confine” appeared in “A Thousand Years of Jewish History: From the Days of Alexander the Great to the Moslem Conquest of Spain” by the Reverend Maurice H. Harris:8
“Do not limit your children to your knowledge, for they were born in another age.”
In 1963 the saying appeared in “Wise Sayings from the Orient”. Here are three items from the section titled “Children”:9
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.
By much falling the child learns to walk.
From the rose proceeds a thorn, from the thorn a rose.
In 1972 a version using the word “child” instead of “children” appeared in “Leo Rosten’s Treasury of Jewish Quotations”:10
Don’t limit a child to your own learning, for he was born in another time. — Rabbinic saying
In 1982 “Good Advice” compiled by Leonard Safir and William Safire contained the following entry:11
Don’t limit a child to your own learning, for he was born in another time. — Rabbinical saying
In 1990 “Sunbeams: A Book of Quotations” compiled by Sy Safransky contained the following entry:12
Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time. — Hebrew proverb
In 2008 the saying was credited to Rabindranath Tagore in a message posted to a Google Group called “Children of Conflict 07-08”:13
“Don’t limit a child to your own learning, for he was born in another time.”– Rabindranath Tagore
In 2011 a newspaper in Galion, Ohio printed the following “Thought for the Day”:14
“Don’t limit a child to your own learning, for he was born in another time.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941).
In conclusion, the earliest instance found by QI occurred in an 1887 book of sayings compiled by Reverend A. Huebsch who placed the statement in a section of Arabic proverbs. Yet, in 1900 the saying appeared in “Wit and Wisdom of the Talmud” edited by Madison C. Peters. Neither book provided supporting citations. Thus, the creator remains anonymous, and the origin is uncertain. Future researchers may discover more illuminating citations.
There is no substantive evidence supporting the attribution to Rabindranath Tagore who was born in 1861 and died in 1941. The first ascription to Tagore found by QI occurred in 2008. Perhaps an inattentive person confused “Rabbinical” and “Rabindranath”.
Image Notes: Group of children in silhouette from Rene Bernal at Unsplash. The image has been rotated, cropped, and resized. Acknowledgement: Great thanks to Craig Good whose inquiry led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration.
- 1877, Gems of the Orient, Part 1: Rabbinical Proverbs and Sentences, Part 2: Arabic Proverbs and Sentences, Translated and Compiled by Reverend Dr. A Huebsch, Part 2: Arabic Proverbs and Sentences, Section: Children, Quote Page 70, Russell Brothers Printers, New York. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1894 July, Good Housekeeping, The Family Scrap Basket: Compiled Bits of Household Fact and Fancy, Quote Page 43, Column 2, Clark W. Bryan Company, Springfield, Massachusetts. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1900 Copyright, Wit and Wisdom of the Talmud, Edited by Madison C. Peters, Section: Duties Between Parents and Children, Quote Page 64, The Baker & Taylor Company, New York. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1901 March 9, The New York Times, The Talmud: Specimens of Wit and Wisdom from an Ancient Treasure House, (Book review of “Wit and Wisdom of the Talmud”, Edited by Madison C. Peters), Quote Page BR3, Column 1, New York, New York. (ProQuest) ↩︎
- 1901, Hebraic Literature: Translations from The Talmud, Midrashim, And Kabbala, With Special Introduction by Maurice H. Harris, Proverbial Sayings and Traditions, Quote Page 334, M. Walter Dunne Publisher, New York. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1907 February, The Typographical Circular: The Official Organ of the Typographical Association, The Education Problem by G. H. Roberts M.P., Start Page 1, Quote Page 2, Typographical Association, England. (Google Books Full View) link ↩︎
- 1922, Talmudic Pearls, Compiled by Barnet Hodes LL.B., Section: Children, Quote Page 4, Arthur Blackwood & Company, Chicago, Illinois. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- 1927, A Thousand Years of Jewish History: From the Days of Alexander the Great To the Moslem Conquest of Spain by The Reverend Maurice H. Harris, Tenth Edition, Chapter 36: Sayings and Stories of the Sages of the Talmud, Topic: Parents and Children, Quote Page 262, Bloch Publishing Company, New York. (Google Boks Full View) link ↩︎
- 1963 Copyright, Wise Sayings from the Orient, Topic: Children, Quote Page 11, Peter Pauper Press, Mount Vernon, New York. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- 1972 Copyright, Leo Rosten’s Treasury of Jewish Quotations, Compiled by Leo Rosten, Topic: Children – On Teaching Them, Quote Page 143, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- 1982, Good Advice, Compiled by Leonard Safir and William Safire, Section: Education (Young People), Quote Page 100, Published by NYT Times Books, New York. (Verified with hardcopy) ↩︎
- 1990, Sunbeams: A Book of Quotations, Compiled by Sy Safransky, Quote Page 54, Column 2, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, California. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- Google Group discussion message, Timestamp: Feb 24, 2008, 11:29:23 PM, Group Name: Children of Conflict 07-08, From: Debra (G-STAR), Subject: Quotes on art and expression. (Google Groups Search; accessed May 11, 2026) link ↩︎
- 2011 August 24, Galion Inquirer, Thought for the Day, Quote Page 3, Column 2, Galion, Ohio. (Newspapers_com) link ↩︎