h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

An African footballer has criticised others who refused to be called up to play for their country in the Africa Cup of Nations tournament. In doing so he said:

"And like the legend Bob Marley always said 'if you don't know where you come from, you don't know where to go'."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38856339


Now, I’ve been trying to trace this quote, and I haven’t quite found it. The nearest Bob Marley quote I can find is in the song ‘Buffalo Soldier’, about the Negro regiments in the US Civil War:

“If you know your history
Then you would know where you coming from
Then you wouldn't have to ask me
Who the heck do I think I am”


But I’m not convinced this is close enough.

Other similar quotes I’ve found include in Terry Pratchett’s ‘I Shall Wear Midnight’:

“If you do not know where you come from, then you don't know where you are, and if you don't know where you are, then you don't know where you're going. And if you don't know where you're going, you're probably going wrong.”


I’ve also found a post online which attributes this quote to James Baldwin, an African-American novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic:

“Know from whence you came. If you know whence you came, there are absolutely no limitations to where you can go.”


So, can anyone here shed any further light on this quote?

George Harrison's last single 'Any Road' (a catchy song) has a chorus 'If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there'. He was apparently inspired by Lewis Carrol and Alice's exchange with the Cheshire Cat:

"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don't much care where—" said Alice.
"Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the Cat.

<BB< <- Always trying to get the Isle of Wight or the Beatles into every conversation on h2g2…

I couldn't, I'm afraid, although I'd probably want to attribute it to Dr Maya Patel, who famously said, 'To Dance is to give oneself up to all the rhythms of life,' but who can't be verified as an actual human being. But ALL the best quote sites have her listed...

I read a bit, not being a reggae fan, and Marley seems to have said many witty things that Jesus of Nazareth said first, like, 'And what has been hidden from the wise and the prudent been revealed in the mouth of the toddlers.'

Jesus really did say this first. We can compare publication dates.

Of course, I don't remember any quotes from Jesus about the spiritual value of 'herb'.

Brilliantly done, that BB!

I've now found a song by his Bob Marley's son Ziggy with the lyrics:

"If you don't know your past, you don't know your future"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDtWFbGkSUs

In fact, that opens up a lot more quotes:


“To know your future you must know your past” - George Santayana (19th Century US philosopher)


“You have to know the past to understand the present” - Carl Sagan


and Confucius he say ““Study the past if you would define the future”

I keep getting wiser and wiser as I read this thread!

'That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past.' Ecclesiastes 3:15, Authorised Version

A preacher friend of mine said he was assigned to interpret this on a test in seminary.

"Ecclesiastes?" Arthur Dent said. "I could never get the hang of Ecclesiastes."

George Harrison's Any Road makes me think of Dirk Gently's navigation.

“He had a tremendous propensity for getting lost when driving. This was largely because of his method of “Zen” navigation, which was simply to find any car that looked as if it knew where it was going and follow it. The results were more often surprising than successful, but he felt it was worth it for the sake of the few occasions when it was both.”

I liked George Harrison.