All uncertainty is fruitfull ... so long as it is accompanied by the wish to understand
Antonio MachadoRead
Hell is the bloodcurdling mansion of time, in whose profoundest circle Satan himself waits, winding a gargantuan watch in his hand.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that time can be an oppressive and torturous force, represented by the image of hell.
Antonio Machado's quote metaphorically compares time to a 'bloodcurdling mansion of time,' suggesting that the passage of time can be filled with suffering and agony. The imagery of Satan winding a watch signifies that even the embodiment of evil is bound by time, emphasizing the relentless and inescapable nature of it, which can be both a source of dread and contemplation about the nature of existence.
Themes
TimeSufferingPhilosophyExistenceMortality
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the challenges of life, this quote can highlight the burdens of time.
More from Antonio Machado
All quotes βHas my heart gone to sleep? Have the beehives of my dreams stopped working, the waterwheel of the mind run dry, scoops turning empty, only shadow inside? No, my heart is not asleep. It is awake, wide awake. Not asleep, not dreamingβ its eyes are opened wide watching distant signals, listening on the rim of vast silence
Antonio MachadoRead
No one can shed light on vices he does not have or afflictions he has ever experienced.
Antonio MachadoRead
XXIX Traveler, there is no path. The path is made by walking. Traveller, the path is your tracks And nothing more. Traveller, there is no path The path is made by walking. By walking you make a path And turning, you look back At a way you will never tread again Traveller, there is no road Only wakes in the sea.
Antonio MachadoRead
I. Don't trace out your profile-- forget your side view-- all that is outer stuff. II. Look for your other half who walks always next to you and tends to be who you aren't.
Antonio MachadoRead
Life is the path you beat while you walk it It's the walking that beats the path It is not the path that makes the walk
Antonio MachadoRead
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