--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There comes a time when a man finds…" description: "\"There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a dark uncrossable abyss, which he himself has spent years digging. He cannot go forward, and h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png" --- # There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a… ![“There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a dark uncrossable abyss, which he himself has spent years digging. He cannot go forward, and has no way back. Words have failed, tears won't help, and who would he call out to? He can't even remember his own name. Then the man sees that on…” quote by Ivo Andric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png) > “There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a dark uncrossable abyss, which he himself has spent years digging. He cannot go forward, and has no way back. Words have failed, tears won't help, and who would he call out to? He can't even remember his own name. Then the man sees that on this god's green earth there is but one true suffering: the torment of guilty conscience.” [Ivo Andric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man creates his own abyss, unable to move forward or back; only conscience torments him. **In simple terms:** Self‑made pits trap us; guilt is suffering. Key Takeaway Confront and to escape self‑imposed traps. Themes guilt despair self‑reflection novel Mood somber introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal crisis - mental health - null Key Concepts existential crisis psychology Questions to Reflect On - What self‑created barriers do you face? - How can you heal guilt? A Different Perspective Guilt may not be the only suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abyss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abyss/) [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Guilty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilty/) [Guilty conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilty-conscience/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) [There comes a time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/there-comes-a-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Torment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torment/) ## Related quotes > [“All the suffering and torment wrought at places of execution, in torture chambers, madhouses, operating theatres, under the arches of bridges in late autumn—all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/all-the-suffering-and-torment-wrought-at-places-of-execution-in/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [“The fault in suffering such torment is his, for his heart's boundless capacity to love was given so that he might direct it toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/said-nursi/the-fault-in-suffering-such-torment-is-his-for-his-heart-s-boundless/) [Said Nursi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/said-nursi/) > [Those who are not Christians go to a place of suffering and torment called hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/those-who-are-not-christians-go-to-a-place-of-suffering-and-torment/) [Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/) > [“In what he suffered, as in all true suffering and in true joy, there was the quality of eternity. He could not believe it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/in-what-he-suffered-as-in-all-true-suffering-and-in-true-joy-there/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [And yet I am convinced that man will never give up true suffering- that is, destruction and chaos. Why, suffering is the sole root…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/and-yet-i-am-convinced-that-man-will-never-give-up-true-suffering/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [When two cultures collide is the only time when true suffering exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/when-two-cultures-collide-is-the-only-time-when-true-suffering-exists/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [True suffering does not know itself and never calculates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/true-suffering-does-not-know-itself-and-never-calculates/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“your irrational range true suffering as flamboyance as starving carnivore as disappearance”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-alexander/your-irrational-range-true-suffering-as-flamboyance-as-starving/) [Will Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-alexander/) > [“I was slowly forgetting the power of suffering, and while suffering isn’t necessary for redemption, it is true that suffering makes us grow. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unathi-magubeni/i-was-slowly-forgetting-the-power-of-suffering-and-while-suffering/) [Unathi Magubeni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unathi-magubeni/) > [“I wake up in the morning asking myself what can I do today, how can I help the world today.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wake-up-in-the-morning-asking-myself-what-can-i-do-today-how-can-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Men," she said rueful, "are the most absurd creatures on this green earth." "But there are camels," Gabriel pointed out. "Believe me," she answered.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-archer/men-she-said-rueful-are-the-most-absurd-creatures-on-this-green-earth/) [Zoe Archer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-archer/) > [Forests are the lungs of our land…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/forests-are-the-lungs-of-our-land/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [If you’re famous, I don’t—for the life of me—I don’t understand why any famous person would ever be on Twitter. Why on God’s green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/if-you-re-famous-i-don-t-for-the-life-of-me-i-don-t-understand-why/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [Until man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so called scientific knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/until-man-duplicates-a-blade-of-grass-nature-can-laugh-at-his-so/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [“Steam Engine" So, I do believe None of this is physical At least not to me So, I do believe That anywhere it goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/my-morning-jacket/steam-engine-so-i-do-believe-none-of-this-is-physical-at-least-not-to/) My Morning Jacket ## More by Ivo Andric > [“Teško je zamisliti varoš sa manje novca i slabijim izvorima zarade a sa većom žeđi za novcem, sa manje volje za radom i veštine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/te-ko-je-zamisliti-varo-sa-manje-novca-i-slabijim-izvorima-zarade-a/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“U mraku vidim kako ti oči sjaju, a kad nam se lica dotaknu i tvoj dah ukrsti sa mojim, ja osetim sve godine naše…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/u-mraku-vidim-kako-ti-o-i-sjaju-a-kad-nam-se-lica-dotaknu-i-tvoj-dah/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Neka ti nije žao rad samoće i šutnje što je oko tebe. Možda udes dobro misli s tobom, možda je to stara nečija molitva…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/neka-ti-nije-ao-rad-samo-e-i-utnje-to-je-oko-tebe-mo-da-udes-dobro/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [Between the fear that something would happen and the hope that still it wouldn't, there is much more space than one thinks. On that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/between-the-fear-that-something-would-happen-and-the-hope-that-still/) [Ivo Andric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Vreme muči i zamara samo one koji žive zauzeti jedino ništavnim brigama o svojoj ličnosti i svojim uživanjima, ali ono je kratko i neosetno…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/vreme-mu-i-i-zamara-samo-one-koji-ive-zauzeti-jedino-ni-tavnim/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Sve je u meni mrtvo; tako mi je dobro. Ne dopire do mene zvuk, umro mi je ocinji vid. Sve je ostalo za velikom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/sve-je-u-meni-mrtvo-tako-mi-je-dobro-ne-dopire-do-mene-zvuk-umro-mi/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“He never even felt how countless petty circumstances were fusing together to create an imperceptible but powerful stream that would carry him back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/he-never-even-felt-how-countless-petty-circumstances-were-fusing/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Men who do not work themselves and who undertake nothing in their lives easily loose patience and fall into error when judging the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/men-who-do-not-work-themselves-and-who-undertake-nothing-in-their/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“U nas se mnogo ljudi zale na ,,sredinu",i ne bez razloga,ali se zale toliki i tako mnogo i cesto,da je rec ,,sredina" pocela da…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/u-nas-se-mnogo-ljudi-zale-na-sredinu-i-ne-bez-razloga-ali-se-zale/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [What doesn't hurt - is not life; what doesn't pass - is not happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/what-doesn-t-hurt-is-not-life-what-doesn-t-pass-is-not-happiness/) [Ivo Andric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Ja, covjek nestalna srca koji živim bez mira i radosti; gorak život o tudjem hljebu, nemirne prošlosti, pune lutanja, nesnalaženja i stradanja, nestalne, teške…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/ja-covjek-nestalna-srca-koji-ivim-bez-mira-i-radosti-gorak-ivot-o/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“... u krvi im je saznanje da se pravi život sastoji od samih zatišja i da bi ludo i uzaludno bilo mutiti ta retka…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/u-krvi-im-je-saznanje-da-se-pravi-ivot-sastoji-od-samih-zati-ja-i-da/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Kad bi se sakupila i ujedno sabrala lična osećanja gneva, protesta, gađenja i ogorčenja sa kojima su ljudi pojedinci umrli, uzalud dozivajući pravdu i…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/kad-bi-se-sakupila-i-ujedno-sabrala-li-na-ose-anja-gneva-protesta-ga/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Postoje ljudi, koji ti za pet minuta pokvare cijeli dan, a postoje i oni s kojima provedeš minut, a poželiš da traje vječno.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/postoje-ljudi-koji-ti-za-pet-minuta-pokvare-cijeli-dan-a-postoje-i/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) > [“Kud sam ja sve lutao? Kud su padale moje teznje, koliko posrtao, koliko bludio u mislima i grijesio u zivotu! - Kako da vam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/kud-sam-ja-sve-lutao-kud-su-padale-moje-teznje-koliko-posrtao-koliko/) [Ivo Andrić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) [Explore all 145 Ivo Andric quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/) ## More Abyss quotes > [We never think that our mothers will die. It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Early on a difficult climb, especially a solo climb, you’re hyper-aware of the abyss pulling at your back, constantly feeling its call, its immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/early-on-a-difficult-climb-especially-a-solo-climb-you-re-hyper-aware/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [“The whole organization seemed to be in free fall, indulging in a collective fantasy in which experienced colleagues refused to admit that their every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-whole-organization-seemed-to-be-in-free-fall-indulging-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Adam became so proud that he wished to become God and died for his pride; the Son of God humbled Himself unto death, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-kronstadt/adam-became-so-proud-that-he-wished-to-become-god-and-died-for-his/) [John of Kronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-kronstadt/) > [The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/the-cradle-rocks-above-an-abyss-and-common-sense-tells-us-that-our/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [In the end things must be as they are and have always been--the great things remain for the great, the abysses for the profound,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/in-the-end-things-must-be-as-they-are-and-have-always-been-the-great/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I admire the Elsie Tanners and Barbara Windsors of the world: people who have crawled back from the abyss. I'm quite camp in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-eclair/i-admire-the-elsie-tanners-and-barbara-windsors-of-the-world-people/) [Jenny Eclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-eclair/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) > [I look into my heart and see the abyss looking back at me.' 'I won't let you fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nalini-singh/i-look-into-my-heart-and-see-the-abyss-looking-back-at-me-i-won-t-let/) [Nalini Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nalini-singh/) > [There is no drop of water in the ocean, not even in the deepest parts of the abyss, that does not know and respond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-carson/there-is-no-drop-of-water-in-the-ocean-not-even-in-the-deepest-parts/) [Rachel Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-carson/) > [“But first whom shall we send In search of this new world, whom shall we find Sufficient? Who shall tempt, with wand'ring feet The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/but-first-whom-shall-we-send-in-search-of-this-new-world-whom-shall/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [Many women don’t know what orgasm is. Many men don’t know was total orgasm is. Many only achieve a local orgasm, a genital orgasm;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/many-women-don-t-know-what-orgasm-is-many-men-don-t-know-was-total/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Fear not. For fear itself is fed by fear, and all fears pass. Did no one tell you so? Come take my hand, my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-dennis/fear-not-for-fear-itself-is-fed-by-fear-and-all-fears-pass-did-no-one/) [Felix Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-dennis/) > [God gave the sea the danger and the abyss, but it was in it that He mirrored the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/god-gave-the-sea-the-danger-and-the-abyss-but-it-was-in-it-that-he/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [We belong to an age where apocalypse is our daily bread, coffee's black, and we know we're part of the abyss. Red Spider White…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-aldiss/we-belong-to-an-age-where-apocalypse-is-our-daily-bread-coffee-s/) [Brian Aldiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-aldiss/) [Browse all 625 Abyss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abyss/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a dark uncrossable abyss, which he himself has spent years digging. He cannot go forward, and has no way back. Words have failed, tears won't help, and who would he call out to? He can't even remember his own name. Then the man sees that on this god's green earth there is but one true suffering: the torment of guilty conscience.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ivo Andric" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-himself-in-front-of-a-dark/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abyss" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-himself-in-front-of-a-dark/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b1/ivo-andri-2481_abyss_there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-hims_2761670.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There comes a time when a man finds himself in front of a dark uncrossable abyss, which he himself has spent…” — Ivo Andric", "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": "Ivo Andric", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivo-andri/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There comes a time when a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-himself-in-front-of-a-dark/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivo-andri/there-comes-a-time-when-a-man-finds-himself-in-front-of-a-dark/#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 } } ] } ```