“Following the light of the sun, we left the Old World.”
- August 25th to October 31st, 1451 – May 20th, 1506
- Born in the Republic of Genoa (now Italy)
- Explorer and navigator
- He reached the Americas on his voyage in 1492 and is known as the discoverer of the “New World.”
Quote
“Following the light of the sun, we left the Old World.”
Explanation
In this quote, Christopher Columbus poetically describes the departure from Europe (the “Old World”) as his ships sailed westward into the unknown. The phrase “Following the light of the sun” is metaphorical, suggesting that Columbus and his crew were guided not only by the literal movement of the sun, which would help them determine their direction, but also by the hope and certainty of the goal they were pursuing. The journey was, for Columbus, not just a physical voyage, but a symbolic and transformative departure from the known world toward what he believed would be new riches and lands, potentially opening a new chapter in human history.
The reference to leaving the “Old World” speaks to the cultural and geographical divide between Europe, Africa, and Asia on one side, and the Americas, which Columbus had yet to fully comprehend, on the other. The idea of the “Old World” was rooted in medieval and Renaissance thought, which viewed the continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa as the sum of the known world. Columbus’s decision to sail westward was motivated by the belief that by traveling west, he could find a new, faster route to the wealth of the East Indies, specifically Asia. However, this phrase, in hindsight, underscores the transcendence of the known world into the unknown, a leap into the uncharted territories of the New World, a term that would later come to represent the Americas.
In modern terms, this quote captures the spirit of exploration and adventure that drove not only Columbus but countless other explorers and visionaries throughout history. Today, “leaving the Old World” can be seen as a metaphor for transformation or discovery, an act of stepping into new frontiers with little understanding of what lies ahead. The phrase may also evoke the idea of pioneering, where people make bold, uncertain moves toward progress and change, sometimes motivated by hope or idealism, but often with consequences that are only clear in retrospect. For Columbus, this departure marked the beginning of what would be an age of profound change, one that would reshape the world politically, culturally, and economically—though not without the cost of colonial exploitation and cultural erasure.
