Man does not create gods, in spite of appearances. The times, the age, impose them on him.
Interpretation
Humans are influenced by their time and environment, which shape their beliefs and ideas about the divine.
This quote by Stanislaw Lem suggests that what we perceive as human creations, particularly regarding deities or higher powers, are actually heavily influenced by the societal and temporal contexts in which people live. Rather than individuals simply inventing gods, these figures are integrated into their culture and shaped by the historical and social circumstances surrounding them, reflecting the deeper truths and values of their era.
In practice
In a lecture on the influence of culture on religion, someone might cite this quote.
The only writers who have any peace are the ones who don't write. And there are some like that. They wallow in a sea of possibilities. To express a thought, you first have to limit it, and that means kill it. Every word I speak robs me of a thousand others, and every line I write means giving up another.
We didn't know each other well. I never had the time. Now I see that it doesn't make any difference. The ones who hurry and the ones who take their time all end up in the same place. Just don't have any regrets. No regrets.
Cripple God, who always desires more than he's able to have, and doesn't always realize this to begin with. Who has built clocks, but not the time that they measure. Has built systems or mechanisms that serve particular purposes, but they too have outgrown these purposes and betrayed them. And has created an infinity that, from being the measure of the power he was supposed to have, turned into the measure of his boundless failure.
We have no need of other worlds. We need mirrors. We don't know what to do with other worlds. A single world, our own, suffices us; but we can't accept it for what it is.
No one reads; if someone does read, he doesn't understand; if he understands, he immediately forgets.
A writer should not run around with a mirror for his countrymen; he should tell his society and his times things no one ever thought before.
And now each night, I count the stars. And each night I get the same number. And when the stars won't come to be counted, I count the holes they leave.
If we look at the world with a love of life, the world will reveal its beauty to us.
Do something for somebody everyday for which you do not get paid.
Once you've ruled out the impossible then whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truth. The problem lay in working out what was impossible, of course. That was the trick, all right. There was also the curious incident of the orangutan in the night-time.
When we come to know who we truly are, we will see ourselves in all people.
When a man begins to know himself a little he will see in himself many things that are bound to horrify him. So long as a man is not horrified at himself he knows nothing about himself.
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