Laughter is wine for the soul - laughter soft, or loud and deep, tinged through with seriousness - the hilarious declaration made by man that life is worth living.
Sean O'CaseyRead
Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, great as each may be, their highest comfort given to the sorrowful is a cordial introduction into another's woe. Sorrow's the great community in which all men born of woman are members at one time or another.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the shared experience of sorrow among all humans, mediated by spiritual leaders who guide us through it.
Sean O'Casey's quote reflects on the universal nature of sorrow, indicating that all humans inevitably experience pain and suffering in their lives. It suggests that great spiritual leaders like Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammed offer comfort by helping individuals connect with the sorrow of others, thereby fostering empathy and a sense of community among those who are suffering.
Themes
SorrowCommunityEmpathyComfortHuman Experience
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about mental health, one could use this quote to illustrate how shared suffering can create connections.
More from Sean O'Casey
All quotes →If church prelates, past or present, had even an inkling of physiology they'd realize that what they term this inner ugliness creates and nourishes the hearing ear, the seeing eye, the active mind, and energetic body of man and woman, in the same way that dirt and dung at the roots give the plant its delicate leaves and the full-blown rose.
Sean O'CaseyRead
The drama's altar isn't on the stage: it is candle-sticked and flowered in the box office. There is the gold, though there be no frankincense or myrrh; and the gospel for the day always The Play will Run for a Year. The Dove of Inspiration, of the desire for inspiration, has flown away from it; and on it's roof, now, the commonplace crow caws candidly.
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Wealth often takes away chances from men as well as poverty. There is none to tell the rich to go on striving, for a rich man makes the law that hallows and hollows his own life.
Sean O'CaseyRead
There's nothing so passionate as a vested interest disguised as an intellectual conviction.
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Politics - I don't know why, but they seem to have a tendency to separate us, to keep us from one another, while nature is always and ever making efforts to bring us together.
Sean O'CaseyRead
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