Faith is the highest passion in a human being. Many in every generation may not come that far, but none comes further.
Soren KierkegaardRead
Our age is essentially one of understanding and reflection, without passion, momentarily bursting into enthusiasm and shrewdly relapsing into repose.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the nature of modern existence marked by periods of thoughtfulness and brief surges of excitement.
In this quote, Soren Kierkegaard suggests that contemporary life is characterized by a predominance of understanding and reflection rather than deep passion. He notes that while moments of enthusiasm may arise, they are often fleeting, and individuals tend to retreat into a state of calm and contemplation afterward. This observation comments on the complexities of human emotion and the oscillation between fervor and tranquility in the human experience.
Themes
UnderstandingReflectionPassionEnthusiasmCalm
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the effects of modern technology on human emotion, this quote highlights the balance between thought and feeling.
More from Soren Kierkegaard
All quotes βMen think that it is impossible for a human being to love his enemies, for enemies are hardly able to endure the sight of one another. Well, then, shut your eyes--and your enemy looks just like your neighbor.
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How did I get into the world? Why was I not asked about it and why was I not informed of the rules and regulations but just thrust into the ranks as if I had been bought by a peddling shanghaier of human beings? How did I get involved in this big enterprise called actuality? Why should I be involved? Isn't it a matter of choice? And if I am compelled to be involved, where is the managerβI have something to say about this. Is there no manager? To whom shall I make my complaint?
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A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it.
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And when the hourglass has run out, the hourglass of temporality, when the noise of secular life has grown silent and its restless or ineffectual activism has come to an end, when everything around you is still, as it is in eternity, then eternity asks you and every individual in these millions and millions about only one thing: whether you have lived in despair or not.
Soren KierkegaardRead
I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity.
Soren KierkegaardRead
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