Enquanto os homens sentirem paixรฃo pela sociedade, reinarรก nela um canibalismo disfarรงado. O instituto polรญtico รฉ a consequรชncia direta do Pecado, a materializaรงรฃo imediata da Queda. Cada um deveria estar ocupado em sua solidรฃo, mas cada um vigia a dos outros. Os anjos e os bandidos tรชm seus chefes: como as criaturas intermediรกrias โ o grosso da humanidade โ poderiam prescindir deles? Suprima seu desejo de ser escravos ou tiranos: a sociedade ruirรก em um abrir e fechar de olhos. O pacto dos sรญmios estรก para sempre selado; e a histรณria segue seu curso, horda esbaforida entre crimes e sonhos. Nada pode detรช-la: mesmo os que a execram participam de sua carreira.
โ Emil Cioran, "Breviรกrio de Decomposiรงรฃo"
Happy those early days! when I
Shined in my angel infancy.
Before I understood this place
Appointed for my second race,
Or taught my soul to fancy aught
But a white, celestial thought;
When yet I had not walked above
A mile or two from my first love,
And looking back, at that short space,
Could see a glimpse of His bright face;
When on some gilded cloud or flower
My gazing soul would dwell an hour,
And in those weaker glories spy
Some shadows of eternity;
Before I taught my tongue to wound
My conscience with a sinful sound,
Or had the black art to dispense
A several sin to every sense,
But felt through all this fleshly dress
Bright shoots of everlastingness.
O, how I long to travel back,
And tread again that ancient track!
That I might once more reach that plain
Where first I left my glorious train,
From whence thโ enlightened spirit sees
That shady city of palm trees.
But, ah! my soul with too much stay
Is drunk, and staggers in the way.
Some men a forward motion love;
But I by backward steps would move,
And when this dust falls to the urn,
In that state I came, return.
โ Henry Vaughan, "The Retreat"
โWhatever comes to your mind regarding Allah, His essence and His attributes, know that He is that and that He is other than that! Allah is not limited by what comes to your mindโthat is to say, your creedโor enclosed in the doctrine you profess.โ
โ Amir โAbd al-Kader
O mistรฉrio รฉ vivenciado em seu elemento positivamente real e na sua qualidade intrรญnseca, a saber, como algo extremamente beatรญfico, a ponto de nรฃo se poder declarar nem expressar essa beatitude por meio de conceitos, mas apenas experimentรก-lo [...]. E sรณ por imagens e analogias รฉ que o enlevo beatรญfico dรก uma remota, precรกria e confusa noรงรฃo do que ele รฉ.
โ Rudolf Otto, "O Sagrado"
Helena: O amor nรฃo vรช com os olhos, mas com a mente; por isso รฉ alado, e cego, e tรฃo potente.
โ William Shakespeare, "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Pintura: Cupido presente em "Primavera", Sandro Botticelli.