There is no feeling, except the extremes of fear and grief, that does not find relief in music.
T. S. EliotRead
Between the desire And the spasm, Between the potency And the existence, Between the essence And the descent, Falls the Shadow.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the complexities and contradictions of existence, emphasizing the gap between aspirations and reality.
T.S. Eliot's quote explores the idea that between various states of being—such as desire and reality, potency and existence—there is a 'Shadow' that represents the uncertainties and difficulties we face. This 'Shadow' symbolizes the challenges, doubts, and fears that can hinder us from achieving our full potential and realizing our desires, highlighting the human struggle against the intangible barriers that separate aspiration from fulfillment.
Themes
DesireExistenceShadowPotencyEssenceReality
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about overcoming obstacles.
More from T. S. Eliot
All quotes →Half of the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They don't mean to do harm. But the harm does not interest them.
T. S. EliotRead
I am an Anglo-Catholic in religion, a classicist in literature and a royalist in politics.
T. S. EliotRead
If you aren't in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?
T. S. EliotRead
For I have known them all already, known them all— Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons, I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.
T. S. EliotRead
In the faint moonlight, the grass is singing
T. S. EliotRead
Similar quotes
We must not measure greatness from the mansion down, but from the manger up. Jesus said that we should not be judged by the bark we wear but by the fruit that we bear. Jesus said that we must measure greatness by how we treat the least of these.
Jesse JacksonRead
I hear the wind blowing across the desert and I see the moons of a winter night rising like great ships in the void. To them I make my vow: I will be resolute and make an art of government; I will balance my inherited past and become a perfect storehouse of my relic memories. And I will be known for kindliness more than for knowledge. My face will shine down the corridors of time for as long as humans exist.
Frank HerbertRead
What is life without incompatible realities?
Ursula K. Le GuinRead
That a person cannot and consequently will not defend himself, does not yet cast disgrace upon him in our eyes ; but we despise the person who has neither the ability nor the good will for revenge whether it be a man or a woman.
Friedrich NietzscheRead
Guilt, regret, resentment, sadness & all forms of nonforgiveness are caused by too much past & not enough presence.
Eckhart TolleRead
If gold rusts, what then can iron do?
Geoffrey ChaucerRead