If a man is not rising upwards to be an angel, depend upon it, he is sinking downwards to be a devil. He cannot stop at the beast. The most savage of men are not beasts; they are worse, a great deal worse.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Human beings are constantly evolving morally; failing to improve spiritually means regressing into something worse than animal nature.
- In plain terms
- You must grow in goodness or you will become evil; staying the same is not possible.
- What can you take from it?
- Choose to grow morally every day or risk moral decay.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Am I actively growing or just existing?
- What does moral regression look like to me?
Another view
The binary view ignores that people can remain neutral or stagnant without becoming evil.
More from Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Farce may often border on tragedy; indeed, farce is nearer tragedy in its essence than comedy is.
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Permalink to quote #152 I am never very forward in offering spiritual consolation to any one in distress or disease. I believe that such resources, to be of any service, must be self-…
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