We lead two lives, and the half of our soul is madness, and half heaven is lit by a black sun. I say I am a man, is the other that hides in me?
Arthur MachenRead
There are sacraments of evil as well as of good about us, and we live and move to my belief in an unknown world, a place where there are caves and shadows and dwellers in twilight. It is possible that man may sometimes return on the track of evolution, and it is my belief that an awful lore is not yet dead.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests a duality in existence, where both good and evil coexist, and hints at the mysteries of the unknown world.
Arthur Machen's quote reflects on the complex nature of our reality, proposing that just as there are sacred truths and virtues (sacraments of good), there are equally profound and dark aspects (sacraments of evil). The idea of an unknown world filled with shadows and caves evokes a sense of mystery and danger, suggesting that humanity's journey through evolution may not always be upward or progressive but could also lead back into shadows of our nature, where ancient and dark knowledge endures.
Themes
EvilGoodUnknownWorldEvolutionMysteryDarkness
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the nature of morality, this quote can illustrate the presence of both good and evil.
More from Arthur Machen
All quotes →It was better, he thought, to fail in attempting exquisite things than to succeed in the department of the utterly contemptible.
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Every branch of human knowledge, if traced up to its source and final principles, vanishes into mystery.
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And there were other rocks that were like animals, creeping, horrible animals, putting out their tongues, and others were like words I could not say, and others like dead people lying on the grass. I went on among them, though they frightened me, and my heart was full of wicked song they put into it; and I wanted to make faces and twist myself about the way they did, and I went on and on a long way till at last I liked the rocks and they didn’t frighten me any more
Arthur MachenRead
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