Past And The Future Quote by Jorge Luis Borges
““At first cautiously, later indifferently, at last desperately, I wandered up the stairs and along the pavement of the inextricable palace. (Afterwards I learned that the width and height of the steps were not constant, a fact which made me understand the singular fatigue they produced). 'This palace is a fabrication of the gods,' I thought at the beginning. I explored the uninhabited interiors and corrected myself: ' The gods who built it have died.' I noted its peculiarities and said: 'The gods who built it were mad.' I said it, I know, with an incomprehensible reprobation which was almost remorse, with more intellectual horror than palpable fear... ...'This City' (I thought) 'is so horrible that its mere existence and perdurance, though in the midst of a secret desert, contaminates the past and the future and in some way even jeopardizes the stars.””
About This Quote
Source Short Story: “The Palace” by Jorge Luis Borges, 1945
The narrator confronts an endless, ever‑changing labyrinth that reflects existential fatigue and the absurdity of divine creation.
In simple terms: Life’s maze feels endless and absurd.
Key Takeaway
Embrace uncertainty and question imposed meanings.
Themes
existentialism
absurdity
labyrinth
divine
fatigue
Mood
contemplative
melancholic
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- creative writing
- personal crisis
- spiritual questioning
Key Concepts
philosophy
literary metaphor
Questions to Reflect On
- What “palaces” feel endless to you?
- How does recognizing absurdity affect your choices?
A Different Perspective
The metaphor may over‑intellectualize real emotional pain.
