--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I…" description: "\"“In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that everything was justified, supremely justified; I felt the wars inside me that had left behind this p..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg" --- # In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that… ![“In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that everything was justified, supremely justified; I felt the wars inside me that had left behind this pulp and wrack; I felt the crimes that were seething here to emerge tomorrow in blatant screamers; I felt the misery that was grinding itself out…” quote by Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg) > ““In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that everything was justified, supremely justified; I felt the wars inside me that had left behind this pulp and wrack; I felt the crimes that were seething here to emerge tomorrow in blatant screamers; I felt the misery that was grinding itself out with pestle and mortar, the long dull misery that dribbles away in dirty handkerchiefs. On the meridian of time there is no injustice: there is only the poetry of motion creating the illusion of truth and drama. If at any moment anywhere one comes face to face with the absolute, that great sympathy which makes men like Guatama and Jesus seem divine freezes away; the monstrous thing is not that men have created roses out of this dung heap, but that, for some reason or other, they should want roses. For some reason or other man looks for the miracle, and to accomplish it he will wade through blood. He will debauch himself with ideas, he will reduce himself to a shadow if for only one second of his life he can close his eyes to the hideousness of reality. Everything is endured -- disgrace, humiliation, poverty, war, crime, ennui -- in the belief that overnight something will occur, a miracle, which will render life tolerable. And all the while a meter is running inside and there is no hand that can reach in there and shut it off.”” [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects existential turmoil, the search for meaning amid chaos, and the human yearning for miracles despite suffering. **In simple terms:** Life is chaotic, yet we seek meaning. Key Takeaway Seek purpose beyond suffering. Themes existentialism chaos miracle seeking human suffering Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - Artistic creation - philosophical contemplation - personal crisis - social activism Key Concepts Absurdism nihilism spiritual yearning Questions to Reflect On - What does “poetry of motion” mean to you? - Can you find beauty in everyday struggle? A Different Perspective The prose can be overly dense, limiting accessibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Face to face](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/face-to-face/) [Left behind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-behind/) [Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“In that moment, I lost completely the illusion of time and space: the world unfurled its drama simultaneously along a meridian that had no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-that-moment-i-lost-completely-the-illusion-of-time-and-space-the/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [I have great sympathy for people that are infertile, but a life is not something you can give away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-whitehead/i-have-great-sympathy-for-people-that-are-infertile-but-a-life-is-not/) [Mary Beth Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beth-whitehead/) > [As an anonymous participant in financial markets, I never had to weigh the social consequences of my actions ... I felt justified in ignoring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/as-an-anonymous-participant-in-financial-markets-i-never-had-to-weigh/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [I want to join everyone in expressing my great sympathy and support for people who lost loved ones in this terrible terrorist attack \[in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-want-to-join-everyone-in-expressing-my-great-sympathy-and-support/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [“After a night filled with more activity than sleep, he felt justified in their late awakening.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-savage/after-a-night-filled-with-more-activity-than-sleep-he-felt-justified/) [Vivienne Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-savage/) > [“Jaden felt their boredom, their tired eternity. Beyond that, she felt their dying essence. They were immortal—all-powerful beings—and yet they were powerless against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-m-pillow/jaden-felt-their-boredom-their-tired-eternity-beyond-that-she-felt/) [Michelle M. Pillow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-m-pillow/) > [“Nothing need be said; nothing could be said. There it was, all round them. It partook, she felt, carefully helping Mr. Bankes to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/nothing-need-be-said-nothing-could-be-said-there-it-was-all-round/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“But you'd hope anyone would feel sympathy if they actually saw someone face to face, pleading for a chance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-sudjic/but-you-d-hope-anyone-would-feel-sympathy-if-they-actually-saw/) [Olivia Sudjic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-sudjic/) > [“On the meridian of time there is no injustice: there is only the poetry of motion creating the illusion of truth and drama. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/on-the-meridian-of-time-there-is-no-injustice-there-is-only-the/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [I need to be alone. I need to ponder my shame and my despair in seclusion; I need the sunshine and the paving stones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-need-to-be-alone-i-need-to-ponder-my-shame-and-my-despair-in/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Gerber, who studied seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Ottoman court decisions, points to examples of Ottoman muftis (official jurists) who, despite being paid by the government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-akyol/gerber-who-studied-seventeenth-and-eighteenth-century-ottoman-court/) [Mustafa Akyol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-akyol/) > [The larger an English industry was, the more likely it was to go bankrupt, because the English were not naturally corporate people; they disliked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-larger-an-english-industry-was-the-more-likely-it-was-to-go/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Science manipulates things and gives up living in them. It makes its own limited models of things; operating upon these indices or variables to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/science-manipulates-things-and-gives-up-living-in-them-it-makes-its/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [A man may quarrel with himself alone; that is, by controverting his better instincts and knowledge when brought face to face with temptation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/a-man-may-quarrel-with-himself-alone-that-is-by-controverting-his/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) ## More by Henry Miller > [“I reached out for something to attach myself to—and I found nothing. But in reaching out, in the effort to grasp, to attach myself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-reached-out-for-something-to-attach-myself-to-and-i-found-nothing/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“I saw the errors I had made and assumed full responsibility for everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-saw-the-errors-i-had-made-and-assumed-full-responsibility-for/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [The monstrous thing is not that men have created roses out of this dung heap, but that, for some reason or other, they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-monstrous-thing-is-not-that-men-have-created-roses-out-of-this/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [They never opened the door which leads to the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/they-never-opened-the-door-which-leads-to-the-soul/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“(...)I decided to let myself drift with the tide, to make not the least resistance to fate, no matter in what form it presented…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-decided-to-let-myself-drift-with-the-tide-to-make-not-the-least/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“If it be knowledge or wisdom one is seeking, then one had better go direct to the source. And the source is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/if-it-be-knowledge-or-wisdom-one-is-seeking-then-one-had-better-go/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“In the egocentric prism the helpless victim is walled in by the very light which he refracts. The ego dies in its own glass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-the-egocentric-prism-the-helpless-victim-is-walled-in-by-the-very/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“When one spends what he has on himself, when one has a thoroughly good time with his own money, people are apt to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/when-one-spends-what-he-has-on-himself-when-one-has-a-thoroughly-good/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [Paint what you like and die happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/paint-what-you-like-and-die-happy/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [She may be lying in bed reading a book, she may be making love with a prize fighter, or she may be running like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/she-may-be-lying-in-bed-reading-a-book-she-may-be-making-love-with-a/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“And no one sets about saving the world unless he has first experienced the miracle of personal salvation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/and-no-one-sets-about-saving-the-world-unless-he-has-first/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“He looks about the room at the few sticks of furniture, at the dirty bed sheets and the wash basin with the dirty water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/he-looks-about-the-room-at-the-few-sticks-of-furniture-at-the-dirty/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Since then, of course, I have discovered what every madman in Paris discovers sooner of later; that there are no ready made infernos for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/since-then-of-course-i-have-discovered-what-every-madman-in-paris/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Looking back upon my career, I see myself as a person capable of undertaking almost any task, any vocation. It was the monotony and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/looking-back-upon-my-career-i-see-myself-as-a-person-capable-of/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“The word in your mouth is anarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-word-in-your-mouth-is-anarchy/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) [Explore all 894 Henry Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## More Face to face quotes > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [A man may quarrel with himself alone; that is, by controverting his better instincts and knowledge when brought face to face with temptation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/a-man-may-quarrel-with-himself-alone-that-is-by-controverting-his/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Science manipulates things and gives up living in them. It makes its own limited models of things; operating upon these indices or variables to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/science-manipulates-things-and-gives-up-living-in-them-it-makes-its/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [The larger an English industry was, the more likely it was to go bankrupt, because the English were not naturally corporate people; they disliked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-larger-an-english-industry-was-the-more-likely-it-was-to-go/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [“Gerber, who studied seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Ottoman court decisions, points to examples of Ottoman muftis (official jurists) who, despite being paid by the government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-akyol/gerber-who-studied-seventeenth-and-eighteenth-century-ottoman-court/) [Mustafa Akyol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-akyol/) > [“True love is like a ghost; everyone talks of it, but few have met it face to face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/true-love-is-like-a-ghost-everyone-talks-of-it-but-few-have-met-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Even when you're talking to them face to face you have this feeling of not connecting, as if the words just pass through them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/even-when-you-re-talking-to-them-face-to-face-you-have-this-feeling/) [Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/) > [“Each time we come to savasana, we practice dying—we surrender the body to the earth and prepare for our destiny in this life. Facing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-main/each-time-we-come-to-savasana-we-practice-dying-we-surrender-the-body/) [Darren Main](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-main/) > [Now it is time to sit quiet, face to face with thee, and to sing dedication of life in this silent and overflowing leisure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/now-it-is-time-to-sit-quiet-face-to-face-with-thee-and-to-sing/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“Though science makes no use for poetry, poetry is enriched by science. Poetry “takes up” the scientific vision and re-expresses its truths, but always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-p-jacks-2/though-science-makes-no-use-for-poetry-poetry-is-enriched-by-science/) L.P. Jacks > [“The goal of human life," says Ramakrishna, "is to meet God face to face." But the magic is this: if we look deeply into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-cope/the-goal-of-human-life-says-ramakrishna-is-to-meet-god-face-to-face/) [Stephen Cope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-cope/) > [“Do you want to know something from the beyond? Do you want to chat with divine beings face to face? It is indispensable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samael-aun-weor/do-you-want-to-know-something-from-the-beyond-do-you-want-to-chat/) [Samael Aun Weor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samael-aun-weor/) > [Relationships start out face to face...and end back to back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/relationships-start-out-face-to-face-and-end-back-to-back/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [While I was still going to embrace social media, I knew I had to do things that nobody else was doing. I decided I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-edward/while-i-was-still-going-to-embrace-social-media-i-knew-i-had-to-do/) [Mark Edward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-edward/) > [“It is the eternal struggle between these two principles - right and wrong - throughout the world. They are the two principles that have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/it-is-the-eternal-struggle-between-these-two-principles-right-and/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) [Browse all 827 Face to face quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/face-to-face/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that everything was justified, supremely justified; I felt the wars inside me that had left behind this pulp and wrack; I felt the crimes that were seething here to emerge tomorrow in blatant screamers; I felt the misery that was grinding itself out with pestle and mortar, the long dull misery that dribbles away in dirty handkerchiefs. On the meridian of time there is no injustice: there is only the poetry of motion creating the illusion of truth and drama. If at any moment anywhere one comes face to face with the absolute, that great sympathy which makes men like Guatama and Jesus seem divine freezes away; the monstrous thing is not that men have created roses out of this dung heap, but that, for some reason or other, they should want roses. For some reason or other man looks for the miracle, and to accomplish it he will wade through blood. He will debauch himself with ideas, he will reduce himself to a shadow if for only one second of his life he can close his eyes to the hideousness of reality. Everything is endured -- disgrace, humiliation, poverty, war, crime, ennui -- in the belief that overnight something will occur, a miracle, which will render life tolerable. And all the while a meter is running inside and there is no hand that can reach in there and shut it off.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry Miller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i-felt-that-everything-was/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Face to face" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i-felt-that-everything-was/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f7/henry-miller-179_face-to-face_in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i_2268989.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In this sort of hair-trigger eternity I felt that everything was justified, supremely justified; I felt the…” — Henry Miller", "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": "Henry Miller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“In this sort of hair-trigger eternity...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i-felt-that-everything-was/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-this-sort-of-hair-trigger-eternity-i-felt-that-everything-was/#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 } } ] } ```