Christianity remains to this day the greatest misfortune of humanity.
Friedrich NietzscheRead
I would only believe in a god who could dance. And when I saw my devil I found him serious, thorough, profound, and solemn: it was the spirit of gravity—through him all things fall. Not by wrath does one kill but by laughter. Come, let us kill the spirit of gravity!
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the joy and lightness of existence compared to the seriousness of oppressive forces.
Friedrich Nietzsche's quote highlights a dichotomy between the playful nature of divinity and the heavy, burdensome nature of the 'spirit of gravity,' which represents seriousness and the weight of existence. He advocates for embracing joy and laughter as a means of overcoming life's obstacles and negativity, suggesting that rather than succumbing to solemnness, one should cultivate a sense of lightness and levity in life.
Themes
LaughterGravityJoyLightnessSeriousness
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a motivational speech to encourage people to embrace joy in their lives.
More from Friedrich Nietzsche
All quotes →That which does not kill us makes us stronger.
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Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.
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Watch them clamber, these swift monkeys! They clamber over one another and thus drag one another into the mud and the depth. They all want to get to the throne: that is their madness — as if happiness sat on the throne. Often, mud sits on the throne — and often the throne also on mud. Mad they all appear to me, clambering monkeys and overardent. Foul smells their idol, the cold monster: foul, they smell to me altogether, these idolators.
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Reason is the cause of our falsification of the evidence of the senses. In so far as the senses show becoming, passing away, change, they do not lie.
Friedrich NietzscheRead
The anarchist and the Christian have a common origin.
Friedrich NietzscheRead
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