We can come to look upon the deaths of our enemies with as much regret as we feel for those of our friends, namely, when we miss their existence as witnesses to our success.
Arthur SchopenhauerRead
This world could not have been the work of an all-loving being, but that of a devil, who had brought creatures into existence in order to delight in the sight of their sufferings.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that the existence of suffering in the world indicates a malevolent creator rather than a benevolent one.
Arthur Schopenhauer reflects on the nature of existence and suffering in this quote, arguing that the world cannot plausibly be the creation of a loving deity. Instead, he posits that the presence of suffering and hardship points to a darker power at play, introducing a disturbing perspective on the nature of creation and the existence of pain.
Themes
SufferingCreationPhilosophyEvilExistence
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate on the existence of God, one might use this quote to illustrate the problem of evil.
More from Arthur Schopenhauer
All quotes →To be shocked at how deeply rejection hurts is to ignore what acceptance involves. We must never allow our suffering to be compounded by suggestions that there is something odd in suffering so deeply. There would be something amiss if we didn't.
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Almost all of our sorrows spring out of our relations with other people.
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Life is full of troubles and vexations, that one must either rise above it by means of corrected thoughts, or leave it.
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Our religions will never at any time take root; the ancient wisdom of the human race will not be supplanted by the events in Galilee. On the contrary, Indian wisdom flows back to Europe, and will produce a fundamental change in our knowledge and thought.
Arthur SchopenhauerRead
We will gradually become indifferent to what goes on in the minds of other people when we acquire a knowledge of the superficial nature of their thoughts, the narrowness of their views and of the number of their errors. Whoever attaches a lot of value to the opinions of others pays them too much honor.
Arthur SchopenhauerRead
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