Franz Kafka

Quotes from Franz Kafka

"Youth is happy because it has the ability to see beauty.  Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old."

"There is nothing besides a spiritual world; what we call the world of senses is the Evil in the spiritual world.  What we call Evil is only the necessity of a moment in our eternal evolution.  One can disintegrate the world by means of a very strong light.  For weak eyes the world becomes solid, for still weaker eyes it seems to develop fists, for eyes weaker still it becomes shamefaced and smashes everyone who dares to gaze upon it."

"It cannot be said that we are lacking in faith.  There is no need for you to leave the house.  Stay at your table and listen.  Don't even listen, just wait.  Don't even wait, be completely quiet and alone.  The world will offer itself to you to be unmasked; it can't do otherwise.  In raptures it will writhe before you."

"In science one tries to tell people, in such a way as to be understood by everyone, something that no one ever knew before.  But in poetry, it's the exact opposite."

"If the book we are reading does not wake us, as with a fist hammering on our skulls, then why do we read it, good God, we also would be happy if we had no books and such books that made us happy we could, if need be, write ourselves.  What we must have are those books that come on us like ill fortune, like the death of one we love better than ourselves, like suicide.  A book must be an ice axe to break the sea frozen inside us."

"Life's splendor forever lies in wait about each one of us in all it's fullness, but veiled from view, deep down, invisible, far off.  It is there though, not hostile, not reluctant, not deaf.  If you summon it by the right word, by it's right name, it will come."