I, while the gods laugh, the world's vortex am; Maelström of passions in that hidden sea Whose waves of all-time lap the coasts of me; And in small compass the dark waters

Mervyn Peake
About This Quote

The “gods laugh” is an allusion to the Greek gods. They are thought to be laughing at humans. The god of chaos, Maelstrom, was the god of storms and destruction. It is said that whenever he laughs, the world ends.

The “world vortex” is a reference to the circular motion of the sun and its effects on human life. A maelstrom is a whirlpool created by the turbulence of water that is created when winds push water into one area. The small compass that “the dark waters” are referring to is the compass that tells sailors where they are on the open sea.

Using it can be dangerous because it can lead them into danger.

Source: Collected Poems

Some Similar Quotes
  1. The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference. - Elie Wiesel
  2. Is it possible, in the final analysis, for one human being to achieve perfect understanding of another? We can invest enormous time and energy in serious efforts to know another person, but in the end, how close can we come to that person's essence? We... - Haruki Murakami
  3. The day the power of love overrules the love of power, the world will know peace. - Mahatma Gandhi
  4. He suddenly recalled from Plato's Symposium: People were hermaphrodites until God split then in two, and now all the halves wander the world over seeking one another. Love is the longing for the half of ourselves we have lost. - Milan Kundera
  5. It does not matter how long you are spending on the earth, how much money you have gathered or how much attention you have received. It is the amount of positive vibration you have radiated in life that matters, - Amit Ray
More Quotes By Mervyn Peake
  1. I, while the gods laugh, the world's vortex am; Maelström of passions in that hidden sea Whose waves of all-time lap the coasts of me; And in small compass the dark waters cram.
  2. He saw in happiness the seeds of independence, and in independence the seeds of revolt.
  3. It was not often that Flay approved of happiness in others. He saw in happiness the seeds of independence, and in independence the seeds of revolt. But on an occasion such as this it was different, for the spirit of convention was being rigorously adhered...
  4. It was not often that Flay approved of happiness in others.
  5. For death is life. It is only living that is lifeless.
Related Topics