Education, the great mumbo jumbo and fraud of the age purports to equip us to live and is prescribed as a universal remedy for everything from juvenile delinquency to premature senility.
Sex is the mysticism of materialism and the only possible religion in a materialistic society.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that in a society focused on materialism, sex becomes a spiritual experience that transcends physical reality.
Malcolm Muggeridge's quote reflects on the idea that within a materialistic society, where tangible possessions often take precedence, sex can serve as a profound and almost mystical experience. It highlights the contrast between the physical world and deeper human connection, implying that, amidst a focus on materialism, sex stands out as a unique avenue through which individuals can explore meaning, joy, and perhaps even a sense of spirituality.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about modern relationships, one might quote this to illustrate how intimacy can fulfill deeper needs beyond material possessions.
More from Malcolm Muggeridge
All quotes βThis life in us; however low it flickers or fiercely burns, is still a divine flame which no man dare presume to put out, be his motives never so humane and enlightened; To suppose otherwise is to countenance a death-wish; Either life is always and in all circumstances sacred, or intrinsically of no account; it is inconceivable that it should be in some cases the one, and in some the other.
I never met a rich man who was happy, but I have only very occasionally met a poor man who did not want to become a rich man.
It was a somber place, haunted by old jokes and lost laughter. Life, as I discovered, holds no more wretched occupation than trying to make the English laugh.
Bad humor is an evasion of reality; good humor is an acceptance of it.
The only ultimate disaster that can befall us is to feel ourselves at home on this earth.
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This root [the potato], no matter how much you prepare it, is tasteless and floury. It cannot pass for an agreeable food, but it supplies a food sufficiently abundant and sufficiently healthy for men who ask only to sustain themselves. The potato is criticized with reason for being windy, but what matters windiness for the vigorous organisms of peasants and laborers?
Mystery is the essence of divinity
People on a spiritual path - personal growth, spiritual practice, recovery, yoga and so forth - are the last people who should be sitting out the social and political issues of our day.
The ideal Government of all reflective men, from Aristotle onward, is one which lets the individual alone - one which barely escapes being no government at all.
You climb to reach the summit, but once there, discover that all roads lead down.