--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But every line we write breathes victory…" description: "\"“But every line we write breathes victory and challenge, the bad temper of a conqueror, underground explosions, howls. We are a volcano. We vomit forth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg" --- # But every line we write breathes victory and challenge… ![“But every line we write breathes victory and challenge, the bad temper of a conqueror, underground explosions, howls. We are a volcano. We vomit forth black smoke. The heavens open and out comes an imposing Pile of garbage; it looks a lot like Leo Tolstoy” quote by Velimir Khlebnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg) > ““But every line we write breathes victory and challenge, the bad temper of a conqueror, underground explosions, howls. We are a volcano. We vomit forth black smoke. The heavens open and out comes an imposing Pile of garbage; it looks a lot like Leo Tolstoy”” [Velimir Khlebnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative expression is likened to a volcanic eruption, mixing triumph with turmoil, producing both powerful art and chaotic waste. **In simple terms:** Writing is a fierce, messy force that can create brilliance and mess. Key Takeaway Channel creative energy purposefully to avoid destructive outcomes. Themes creativity conflict expression Mood intense dramatic Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - writing - painting - musical composition - performance art Key Concepts volcanic metaphor artistic struggle Questions to Reflect On - How can you harness intense creativity without it becoming chaotic? - What practices keep artistic output constructive? A Different Perspective Without discipline, the “garbage” can overwhelm the “victory.” ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-temper/) [Howls Volcano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/howls-volcano-3189999/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leo-tolstoy/) [Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tolstoy/) [Volcano Vomit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/volcano-vomit-3190000/) [Write Breathes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-breathes-3190001/) ## Related quotes > [“Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold. —Count Leo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/truth-like-gold-is-to-be-obtained-not-by-its-growth-but-by-washing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Let me give you a piece of advice: Leo Tolstoy is not the only human being on this planet. Yet all I ever hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/let-me-give-you-a-piece-of-advice-leo-tolstoy-is-not-the-only-human/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [I very much enjoyed Leo Tolstoy's What is Art? I can't quote it, it's been a while, but at the end of the day,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-avett/i-very-much-enjoyed-leo-tolstoy-s-what-is-art-i-can-t-quote-it-it-s/) [Scott Avett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-avett/) > [“The saddest instance of the lack of real freedom, arising from the lack of real knowledge, is revealed to us in Leo Tolstoy's latest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-turgenev/the-saddest-instance-of-the-lack-of-real-freedom-arising-from-the/) [Ivan Turgenev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-turgenev/) > [Leo Tolstoy said the purpose of art is to teach you to love life. And that's what I want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/leo-tolstoy-said-the-purpose-of-art-is-to-teach-you-to-love-life-and/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [An artist must know the reality he is depicting in its minutest detail. In my opinion we have only one shining example of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-artist-must-know-the-reality-he-is-depicting-in-its-minutest/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Art is bad when ‘you see the intent and get put off.’ (Goethe) In Tolstoy one is unaware of the intent, and sees only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-carmichael/art-is-bad-when-you-see-the-intent-and-get-put-off-goethe-in-tolstoy/) [Joel Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-carmichael/) > [I get the same buzz cleaning up the yard as Leo Tolstoy did from scything hay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-lukyanenko/i-get-the-same-buzz-cleaning-up-the-yard-as-leo-tolstoy-did-from/) [Sergei Lukyanenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-lukyanenko/) > [“Everyone thinks about changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself. —Leo Tolstoy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-kanter/everyone-thinks-about-changing-the-world-but-no-one-thinks-of/) [Beth Kanter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-kanter/) > [“Leo Tolstoy Cruelty is the obvious cancer of modern civilization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pravin-k-shah/leo-tolstoy-cruelty-is-the-obvious-cancer-of-modern-civilization/) [Pravin K. Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pravin-k-shah/) > [“Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, commonly referred to in English as Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian novelist, writer, essayist, philosopher, Christian anarchist, pacifist, educational reformer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/count-lev-nikolayevich-tolstoy-commonly-referred-to-in-english-as-leo/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [ I started with \[Leo\] Tolstoy and I was overwhelmed. Tolstoy writes like an ocean, in huge, rolling waves, and it doesn't look like it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-started-with-leo-tolstoy-and-i-was-overwhelmed-tolstoy-writes-like/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [“Leo Tolstoy observes, “Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself.”6”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/leo-tolstoy-observes-everybody-thinks-of-changing-humanity-and-nobody/) [Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/) > [“But in Old Rimrock, NJ, in 1995, when the Ivan Ilyches come trooping back to lunch at the clubhouse after their morning round of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/but-in-old-rimrock-nj-in-1995-when-the-ivan-ilyches-come-trooping/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Leo Tolstoy's life has been devoted to replacing the method of violence for removing tyranny or securing reform by the method of nonresistance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/leo-tolstoy-s-life-has-been-devoted-to-replacing-the-method-of/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) ## More by Velimir Khlebnikov > [“You are my song, my dark blue dream Of doves, of winter's drowsy drone, And sleighs that slow and golden go Through gray blue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/you-are-my-song-my-dark-blue-dream-of-doves-of-winter-s-drowsy-drone/) [Velimir Khlebnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/) > [Scrape the surface of language, and you will behold interstellar space and the skin that encloses it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/scrape-the-surface-of-language-and-you-will-behold-interstellar-space/) [Velimir Khlebnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/) > [A child playing with dolls may shed heartfelt tears when his bundle of rags and scraps becomes deathly ill and dies ... So we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/a-child-playing-with-dolls-may-shed-heartfelt-tears-when-his-bundle/) [Velimir Khlebnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/) [Explore all 4 Velimir Khlebnikov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/) ## More Bad temper quotes > [“To use strong language, she thought, was a sign of bad temper and lack of concern for others. Such people were not clever or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/to-use-strong-language-she-thought-was-a-sign-of-bad-temper-and-lack/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [If a man is crossing the river and an empty boat collides with his skiff, even though he is a bad tempered man he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhuangzi/if-a-man-is-crossing-the-river-and-an-empty-boat-collides-with-his/) [Zhuangzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhuangzi/) > [Truths of life¦ The most beautiful day: Today The easiest thing: Equivocate The biggest obstacle: Fear The gravest error: give up, to despair The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/truths-of-life-the-most-beautiful-day-today-the-easiest-thing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“For example, if a man with a bad temper has been provoked, then he will surely start shouting or start a fight. You could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-t-rivers/for-example-if-a-man-with-a-bad-temper-has-been-provoked-then-he-will/) [Clarence T. Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-t-rivers/) > [A man of bad character punishes his own soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-ghazali/a-man-of-bad-character-punishes-his-own-soul/) [Al-Ghazali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-ghazali/) > [Nah, I don't have a bad temper. I just have a quick reaction to bullshit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nah-i-don-t-have-a-bad-temper-i-just-have-a-quick-reaction-to-bullshit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“So long as I perceive the world as hostile, I remain linked to it: \*I am not crazy\*. But sometimes, once my bad temper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/so-long-as-i-perceive-the-world-as-hostile-i-remain-linked-to-it-i-am/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“He was very interested in everything that lay to the North because no one ever went that way and he was never allowed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/he-was-very-interested-in-everything-that-lay-to-the-north-because-no/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [Bad temper is its own scourge. Few things are more bitter than to feel bitter. A man's venom poisons himself more than his victim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-buxton/bad-temper-is-its-own-scourge-few-things-are-more-bitter-than-to-feel/) [Charles Buxton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-buxton/) > [“The truth is that I will always need you more than you need me. It’s also the truth that I’m not a good bet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-morton/the-truth-is-that-i-will-always-need-you-more-than-you-need-me-it-s/) [Lily Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-morton/) > [“If a man crosses a river and an empty boat collides with his own skiff, Even though he be bad tempered man He will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuang-tzu-2/if-a-man-crosses-a-river-and-an-empty-boat-collides-with-his-own/) [Chuang-Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuang-tzu-2/) > [Clary," Jace said again. "You know: short, redheaded, bad temper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clary-jace-said-again-you-know-short-redheaded-bad-temper/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“I do think your brother grows more peculiar every day,' I complain to Edward when he comes to my rooms in Whitehall Palace to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippa-gregory/i-do-think-your-brother-grows-more-peculiar-every-day-i-complain-to/) [Philippa Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philippa-gregory/) > [For me it is really important to have a story with blood in the veins, there are bad tempers and good tempers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/for-me-it-is-really-important-to-have-a-story-with-blood-in-the-veins/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“You have a bad temper, Mr. Morrison.” “Get the hell off me,” Tate snarled through his teeth. “I’m not on you.” “Yes, you fucking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-frank/you-have-a-bad-temper-mr-morrison-get-the-hell-off-me-tate-snarled/) [Ella Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-frank/) [Browse all 93 Bad temper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-temper/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But every line we write breathes victory and challenge, the bad temper of a conqueror, underground explosions, howls. We are a volcano. We vomit forth black smoke. The heavens open and out comes an imposing Pile of garbage; it looks a lot like Leo Tolstoy”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Velimir Khlebnikov" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory-and-challenge-the-bad-temper/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bad temper" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory-and-challenge-the-bad-temper/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/velimir-khlebnikov-72225_bad-temper_but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory_2763732.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But every line we write breathes victory and challenge, the bad temper of a conqueror, underground…” — Velimir Khlebnikov", "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": "Velimir Khlebnikov", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velimir-khlebnikov/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“But every line we write breathes...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory-and-challenge-the-bad-temper/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velimir-khlebnikov/but-every-line-we-write-breathes-victory-and-challenge-the-bad-temper/#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 } } ] } ```