--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What has always made a Hell on earth has…" description: "\"What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has tried to make it his Heaven.\" — Friedrich Holderlin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg" --- # What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has… ![“What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has tried to make it his Heaven.” quote by Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg) > “What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has tried to make it his Heaven.” [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human attempts to create a personal heaven on earth often result in suffering, turning the world into a hell. **In simple terms:** Trying to make Earth a heaven creates hell. Key Takeaway Beware of imposing idealistic visions on reality. Themes philosophy human nature idealism suffering society Mood cautionary reflective Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - politics - religion - social movements - environmental policy Key Concepts utopianism ethical limits collective responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What drives the desire for a personal heaven? - How can we balance idealism with realism? A Different Perspective Idealism can also inspire positive change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Hell on earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell-on-earth/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Prosperity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prosperity/) ## Related quotes > [“What has always made the state a hell on earth has been precisely that man has tried to make it heaven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-lderlin/what-has-always-made-the-state-a-hell-on-earth-has-been-precisely/) Holderlin > [Life is whatever you make it, a heaven or hell on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-whatever-you-make-it-a-heaven-or-hell-on-earth/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People can either create paradise or Hell on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-can-either-create-paradise-or-hell-on-earth/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The idea of heaven is Christianity's way of creating a hell on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/the-idea-of-heaven-is-christianity-s-way-of-creating-a-hell-on-earth/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [“Those who have aimed at utopia have often been the most effective at unleashing hell on earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-wigg-stevenson/those-who-have-aimed-at-utopia-have-often-been-the-most-effective-at/) Tyler Wigg-Stevenson > [“My sixteenth was anything but sweet; it was more like the passage into hell on earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-moseley/my-sixteenth-was-anything-but-sweet-it-was-more-like-the-passage-into/) [Kirsty Moseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-moseley/) > [I feel bad for these preachers man, they're on their jets doing all of that stuff because there's a lot of people living hell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-montgomery/i-feel-bad-for-these-preachers-man-they-re-on-their-jets-doing-all-of/) [Ryan Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-montgomery/) > [I think earth, if chosen instead of Heaven, will turn out to have been, all along, only a region in Hell; and earth, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/i-think-earth-if-chosen-instead-of-heaven-will-turn-out-to-have-been/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [I could believe only in the hell I was living in, a hell on earth, and it was man-made, not God-made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-morpurgo/i-could-believe-only-in-the-hell-i-was-living-in-a-hell-on-earth-and/) [Michael Morpurgo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-morpurgo/) > [“Forks was literally my personal hell on Earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/forks-was-literally-my-personal-hell-on-earth/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) > [We're in a place where no words can tell the truth about what happened... But they have to. This was hell on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksander-kwasniewski/we-re-in-a-place-where-no-words-can-tell-the-truth-about-what/) [Aleksander Kwasniewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksander-kwasniewski/) > [“Outfitted with a 25 mm GAU-12 Equalizer, one Bofors 40 mm autocannon, and one 105 mm M102 cannon, it can and does unleash hell on earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dirk-patton/outfitted-with-a-25-mm-gau-12-equalizer-one-bofors-40-mm-autocannon/) [Dirk Patton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dirk-patton/) > [“If there's a Hell on Earth, it's high school.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-desrochers/if-there-s-a-hell-on-earth-it-s-high-school/) [Lisa Desrochers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-desrochers/) > [“He will take this hell on earth and someday show us how hell was building heaven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennie-allen/he-will-take-this-hell-on-earth-and-someday-show-us-how-hell-was/) [Jennie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennie-allen/) > [When people use the word hell, what do they mean? They mean a place, an event, a situation absent of how God desires things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-bell/when-people-use-the-word-hell-what-do-they-mean-they-mean-a-place-an/) [Rob Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-bell/) ## More by Friedrich Holderlin > [“What is all that men have done and thought over thousands of years, compared with one moment of love. But in all Nature, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-is-all-that-men-have-done-and-thought-over-thousands-of-years/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“For the mindful god does detest untimely growth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/for-the-mindful-god-does-detest-untimely-growth/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Man kann auch in die Höhe fallen, so wie in die Tiefe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/man-kann-auch-in-die-h-he-fallen-so-wie-in-die-tiefe/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“You have a head and a heart? Reveal only one of them, I say; If you reveal both at once, doubly they'll damn you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/you-have-a-head-and-a-heart-reveal-only-one-of-them-i-say-if-you/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Holy spirits, you walk up there in the light, on soft earth. Shining god-like breezes touch upon you gently, as a woman's fingers play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/holy-spirits-you-walk-up-there-in-the-light-on-soft-earth-shining-god/) [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [I was raised by the song Of the murmuring grove And loving I learned Among Flowers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/i-was-raised-by-the-song-of-the-murmuring-grove-and-loving-i-learned/) [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“I grew up in the arms of the gods.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/i-grew-up-in-the-arms-of-the-gods/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“What love and spirit give cannot be extorted. The state has always been made a hell by man's wanting to make it his heaven.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-love-and-spirit-give-cannot-be-extorted-the-state-has-always/) [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“The God, when he draws near, will the heart stand fast. But, oh my, shame! when of My shame! And let me say at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/the-god-when-he-draws-near-will-the-heart-stand-fast-but-oh-my-shame/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Too long now things divine have been cheaply used And all the power of heaven, the kindly, spent In trifling waste by cold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/too-long-now-things-divine-have-been-cheaply-used-and-all-the-power/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“These fruits are ripe, dipped in fire, Cooked and tested here on earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/these-fruits-are-ripe-dipped-in-fire-cooked-and-tested-here-on-earth/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Thus the sons of earth now drink in The fire of heaven without danger. And it is our duty, poets, to stand Bare-headed under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/thus-the-sons-of-earth-now-drink-in-the-fire-of-heaven-without-danger/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Jetzt komme, Feuer!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/jetzt-komme-feuer/) [Friedrich Hölderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [I am mortal, born to love and to suffer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/i-am-mortal-born-to-love-and-to-suffer/) [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) > [“Near and hard to grasp Is the God. But where danger is Deliverance also grows”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/near-and-hard-to-grasp-is-the-god-but-where-danger-is-deliverance/) [Friedrich Holderlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) [Explore all 33 Friedrich Holderlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/) ## More Christianity quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) > [“God hates Hell. 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The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“every church can treat each discipleship class and each worship service as an opportunity for continual rehearsal of what the words, stories, symbols, rituals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/every-church-can-treat-each-discipleship-class-and-each-worship/) [Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [The notion of a non-religious Christmas is ridiculous. But so is the insistence on the part of Christians that politicians and retailers carry out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/the-notion-of-a-non-religious-christmas-is-ridiculous-but-so-is-the/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [A real Christian in an odd number anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-real-christian-in-an-odd-number-anyway-he-feels-supreme-love-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. 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Then I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-patinkin/i-grew-up-in-synagogue-in-the-boys-choir-we-didn-t-listen-to-music-in/) [Mandy Patinkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-patinkin/) [Browse all 14,385 Christianity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has tried to make it his Heaven.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Friedrich Holderlin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has-been-that-man-has-tried-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Christianity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has-been-that-man-has-tried-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/friedrich-h-lderlin-14928_christianity_what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has_131895.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What has always made a Hell on earth has been that man has tried to make it his Heaven.” — Friedrich Holderlin", "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": "Friedrich Holderlin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-h-lderlin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What has always made a Hell...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has-been-that-man-has-tried-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-h-lderlin/what-has-always-made-a-hell-on-earth-has-been-that-man-has-tried-to/#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 } } ] } ```