---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To every instant there is a…"
description: "\"To every instant there is a correspondence in something outside time. This world here and now cannot be followed by a Beyond, for the Beyond is eternal..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg"
---

#  To every instant there is a correspondence in something…

![“To every instant there is a correspondence in something outside time. This world here and now cannot be followed by a Beyond, for the Beyond is eternal, hence it cannot be in temporal contact with this world here and now.” quote by Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg)

> “To every instant there is a correspondence in something outside time. This world here and now cannot be followed by a Beyond, for the Beyond is eternal, hence it cannot be in temporal contact with this world here and now.”

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote suggests that each moment is linked to something beyond time, but the eternal "Beyond" cannot directly interact with our temporal world.

**In simple terms:** Every moment connects to something timeless, yet the eternal is separate.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the limits of temporal understanding.

Themes

philosophy metaphysics time eternity

Mood

thoughtful curious

Type

philosophical reflective

When to use this quote

- personal reflection
- creative writing
- spiritual contemplation
- philosophical discourse

Key Concepts

Existentialism dualism

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you perceive the relationship between time and eternity?
- Can we ever truly know what lies beyond our temporal experience?

A Different Perspective

The concept of "Beyond" may be metaphorical, not literal.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Correspondence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/correspondence/) [Eternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternal/) [Here and now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/here-and-now/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [“I’m just here to remind you that every human life is a bold and delicate projection of the eternal into the temporal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kijinski/i-m-just-here-to-remind-you-that-every-human-life-is-a-bold-and/)

Paul Kijinski

> [We who must die demand a miracle. How could the Eternal do a temporal act, The Infinite become a finite fact? Nothing can save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/we-who-must-die-demand-a-miracle-how-could-the-eternal-do-a-temporal/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [“You may lose paradise, but gain heaven when you rise up and repent. The success that comes after a temporal failure is an amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-may-lose-paradise-but-gain-heaven-when-you-rise-up-and-repent-the/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [“There seems no reason for describing as hypocritical the short-lived piety of those whose religion fades away once they have emerged from 'danger, necessity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/there-seems-no-reason-for-describing-as-hypocritical-the-short-lived/)

[C. S. LEWIS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [“A leader’s cross is the temporal pain they go through and his crown is the permanent gain when at last victory is achieved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/a-leader-s-cross-is-the-temporal-pain-they-go-through-and-his-crown/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [“Cultivate the habit of defining, refining, redefining and redeeming your opportunities. Failure is a temporal event, not a permanent trademark.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/cultivate-the-habit-of-defining-refining-redefining-and-redeeming/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [“Writing is a temporal form of creating forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-heatt/writing-is-a-temporal-form-of-creating-forever/)

[Jonathan Heatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-heatt/)

> [“Everything that I hold will eventually be gone. Subsequently, the quality of my life will depend on whether I choose to appreciate those things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/everything-that-i-hold-will-eventually-be-gone-subsequently-the/)

[Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [“If I wasn’t born, what am I doing here?’ ‘You’re an independent temporal nexus, chronosynclastically established as an inverse...’ He saw her expression, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/if-i-wasn-t-born-what-am-i-doing-here-you-re-an-independent-temporal/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“We may like to combat disease or even want to cure death. We may try to surf on the waves of infinity and attempt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/we-may-like-to-combat-disease-or-even-want-to-cure-death-we-may-try/)

[Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/)

> [“There is no name that will last forever, even immortality itself is temporal”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/there-is-no-name-that-will-last-forever-even-immortality-itself-is/)

[Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/)

> [My work is about my life as an event, and I find myself to be very temporal, transient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-michals/my-work-is-about-my-life-as-an-event-and-i-find-myself-to-be-very/)

[Duane Michals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-michals/)

> [“live as temporal, serve as eternal”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-paul-warren/live-as-temporal-serve-as-eternal/)

[John Paul Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-paul-warren/)

> [The first and last lesson of religion is, 'The things that are seen are temporal; the things that are not seen are eternal.' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-first-and-last-lesson-of-religion-is-the-things-that-are-seen-are/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [In the early days of the New England colonies, no more embarrassing or hampering condition, no greater temporal ill, could befall any adult Puritan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-morse-earle/in-the-early-days-of-the-new-england-colonies-no-more-embarrassing-or/)

[Alice Morse Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-morse-earle/)

## More by Franz Kafka

> [ “The tremendous world I have inside my head. But how \[to\] free myself and free it without being torn to pieces. And a thousand… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-tremendous-world-i-have-inside-my-head-but-how-to-free-myself-and/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [What I write is different from what I say, what I say is different from what I think, what I think is different from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/what-i-write-is-different-from-what-i-say-what-i-say-is-different/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“A fine setting for a fit of despair,” it occurred to him, “if I were only standing here by accident instead of design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/a-fine-setting-for-a-fit-of-despair-it-occurred-to-him-if-i-were-only/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“Ali svi se slažu u tome da se ne podižu lakomislene optužbe i da se sud, kad jedanput nekog optuži i kad je uvjeren…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/ali-svi-se-sla-u-u-tome-da-se-ne-podi-u-lakomislene-optu-be-i-da-se/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [My job is unbearable to me because it conflicts with my only desire and my only calling, which is literature. Since I am nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/my-job-is-unbearable-to-me-because-it-conflicts-with-my-only-desire/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [Faith, like a guillotine. As heavy, as light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/faith-like-a-guillotine-as-heavy-as-light/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [You need not even listen, just wait...the world will offer itself freely to you, unmasking itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/you-need-not-even-listen-just-wait-the-world-will-offer-itself-freely/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“I will cross hundreds of seas and oceans without sinking to reach you, see your eyes and sink completely into their depths.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/i-will-cross-hundreds-of-seas-and-oceans-without-sinking-to-reach-you/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [I have no memory for things I have learned, nor things I have read, nor things experienced or heard, neither for people nor events;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/i-have-no-memory-for-things-i-have-learned-nor-things-i-have-read-nor/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“This sounds crazy, but it is so. Nor is it perhaps really love when I say that for me you are the most beloved;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/this-sounds-crazy-but-it-is-so-nor-is-it-perhaps-really-love-when-i/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [The more horses you yoke the quicker everything will go - not the rending of the block from its foundation, which is impossible, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-more-horses-you-yoke-the-quicker-everything-will-go-not-the/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [Martyrs do not underrate the body, they allow it to be elevated on the cross. In this they are at one with their antagonists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/martyrs-do-not-underrate-the-body-they-allow-it-to-be-elevated-on-the/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [The true way goes over a line that, rather than spanning heights, is hardly above the ground. It appears more decidedly to make one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-true-way-goes-over-a-line-that-rather-than-spanning-heights-is/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [Every new discovery is assumed at once into the sum total of knowledge, and with that ceases in a sense to be a discovery;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/every-new-discovery-is-assumed-at-once-into-the-sum-total-of/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“Sou de pedra. Sou a minha própria pedra tumular, sem nenhum interstício para a dúvida ou para a fé, para o amor ou para…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/sou-de-pedra-sou-a-minha-pr-pria-pedra-tumular-sem-nenhum-interst-cio/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

[Explore all 741 Franz Kafka quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

## More Contact quotes

> [Politics in Philadelphia is a contact sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-nutter/politics-in-philadelphia-is-a-contact-sport/)

[Michael Nutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-nutter/)

> [She'd read once that if you ran into a bear in the woods you should avoid eye contact and you shouldn't run away, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-ursu/she-d-read-once-that-if-you-ran-into-a-bear-in-the-woods-you-should/)

[Anne Ursu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-ursu/)

> [Becoming famous is a really shocking thing, especially when you don't have aspirations to it. It got to the point where I would try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/becoming-famous-is-a-really-shocking-thing-especially-when-you-don-t/)

[Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/)

> [Some people are like ants. Give them a warm day and a piece of ground and they start digging. There the similarity ends. Ants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/some-people-are-like-ants-give-them-a-warm-day-and-a-piece-of-ground/)

[Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/)

> [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/)

[Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/)

> [The improved American highway system isolated the American-in-transit. On his speedway he had no contact with the towns which he by-passed. If he stopped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/the-improved-american-highway-system-isolated-the-american-in-transit/)

[Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/)

> [Close contact between science and the practice of collective farms and State farms creates inexhaustible opportunities for the development of theoretical knowledge, enabling us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trofim-lysenko/close-contact-between-science-and-the-practice-of-collective-farms/)

[Trofim Lysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trofim-lysenko/)

> [You should never feel lonely, neglected, fearful, or defeated when you remember that there are the shining ones. They are watching with keen interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flower-a-newhouse/you-should-never-feel-lonely-neglected-fearful-or-defeated-when-you/)

[Flower A. Newhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flower-a-newhouse/)

> [Daily contact with some teachers is itself all-sided ethical education for the child without a spoken precept. Here, too, the real advantage of male…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/daily-contact-with-some-teachers-is-itself-all-sided-ethical/)

[G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/)

> [Emma was a shocking driver, simultaneously sloppy and petrified, and for the first fifty miles had been absent-mindedly driving with her spectacles on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/emma-was-a-shocking-driver-simultaneously-sloppy-and-petrified-and/)

[David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/)

> [Is there some lesson on how to be friends? I think what it means is that central to living a life that is good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rakoff/is-there-some-lesson-on-how-to-be-friends-i-think-what-it-means-is/)

[David Rakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rakoff/)

> [The Filipino embraces civilization and lives and thrives in every clime, in contact with every people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-rizal/the-filipino-embraces-civilization-and-lives-and-thrives-in-every/)

[Jose Rizal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-rizal/)

> [I don't know whether we think in moving images or whether we think in still images. I have a suspicion that on our hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-snow/i-don-t-know-whether-we-think-in-moving-images-or-whether-we-think-in/)

[Jon Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-snow/)

> [One of the best ways into the business is to get a job with a production, which you can do by cold-calling or by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitchell-hurwitz/one-of-the-best-ways-into-the-business-is-to-get-a-job-with-a/)

[Mitchell Hurwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitchell-hurwitz/)

> [“I never met a pig I didn't like. All pigs are intelligent, emotional, and sensitive souls. They all love company. They all crave contact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sy-montgomery/i-never-met-a-pig-i-didn-t-like-all-pigs-are-intelligent-emotional/)

[Sy Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sy-montgomery/)

Browse all 1,740 Contact quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To every instant there is a correspondence in something outside time. This world here and now cannot be followed by a Beyond, for the Beyond is eternal, hence it cannot be in temporal contact with this world here and now.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Franz Kafka"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/to-every-instant-there-is-a-correspondence-in-something-outside-time/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Contact"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/to-every-instant-there-is-a-correspondence-in-something-outside-time/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/franz-kafka-214_contact_to-every-instant-there-is-a-corresponden_1098948.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To every instant there is a correspondence in something outside time. This world here and now cannot be…” — Franz Kafka",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Franz Kafka",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "To every instant there is a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/to-every-instant-there-is-a-correspondence-in-something-outside-time/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/to-every-instant-there-is-a-correspondence-in-something-outside-time/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
