A god implants in mortal guilt whenever he wants utterly to confound a house.
AeschylusRead
And though all streams flow from a single course to cleanse the blood from polluted hand, they hasten on their course in vain.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the futility of actions taken to cleanse or purify oneself while remaining fundamentally flawed or corrupted.
Aeschylus suggests that merely flowing towards a goal of purification is meaningless if the source of corruption persists. The imagery of streams portrays lifeβs struggles and attempts at redemption, but emphasizes that without addressing the root of one's pollution, efforts can be in vain. The quote provokes thought about deeper self-examination and the importance of genuine change rather than superficial actions.
Themes
PurificationFutilitySelf-ExaminationRedemptionChange
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in discussions about personal growth and self-awareness.
More from Aeschylus
All quotes βNeither a life of anarchy nor a life under a despot should you praise. To all that lies in the middle has a god given excellence.
AeschylusRead
In every tyrant's heart there springs in the end this poison, that he cannot trust a friend.
AeschylusRead
It is not the oath that makes us believe the man, but the man the oath.
AeschylusRead
In war, truth is the first casualty.
AeschylusRead
There is no pain so great as the memory of joy in present grief.
AeschylusRead
Similar quotes
I think [religion] is presumptuous and I think it is silly, because it makes you believe that you are less than what you can be. As long as you can blame everything on some unseen deity, you donβt ever have to be responsible for your own behavior.
Harlan EllisonRead
Wherever there is a man who exercises authority, there is a man who resists authority.
Oscar WildeRead
We shouldn't live as if [other worlds] mattered more than this life in this world, because where we are is always the most important place.
Philip PullmanRead
Let the moment go. . . . Don't forget it for a moment, though. Just remembering you've had an "and" when you're back to "or" makes the "or" mean more than it did before. . . . Now I understand! And it's time to leave the woods.
Stephen SondheimRead
Well, the news is mostly about things that go wrong, right? It's about sensationalist incidents that happened today, instead of things that happen every day. So if you watch and follow a lot of the news, at the end of the day, you know exactly how the world is not working.
Rutger BregmanRead
Because you are a great lord, you believe yourself to be a great genius. You took the trouble to be born, but no more.
Pierre BeaumarchaisRead