We cannot be normal and alive at the same time. Emile M. Cioran More Quotes by Emile M. Cioran More Quotes From Emile M. Cioran If each of us were to confess his most secret desire, the one that inspires all his plans, all his actions, he would say: "I want to be praised." Emile M. Cioran secretdesireinspire Life creates itself in delirium and is undone in ennui. Emile M. Cioran deliriumdelirium-tremensundone A great step forward was made the day men understood that in order to torment one another more efficiently they would have to gather together, to organize themselves into a society Emile M. Cioran togethermenorder Ambition is a drug that makes its addicts potential madmen. Emile M. Cioran addictiondrugambition Anyone can escape into sleep, we are all geniuses when we dream, the butcher's the poet's equal there. Emile M. Cioran geniusdreamsleep To read is to let someone else work for you - the most delicate form of exploitation. Emile M. Cioran exploitationdelicateform For you who no longer possess it, freedom is everything, for us who do, it is merely an illusion. Emile M. Cioran illusion Transmitting one's flaws [through procreation] to someone else is a crime. I could never consent to give life to someone who would inherent my ailments. Emile M. Cioran crimeflawsgiving We dread the future only when we are not sure we can kill ourselves when we want to. Emile M. Cioran dreadnot-surewant What music appeals to in us it is difficult to know; what we do know is that music reaches a zone so deep that madness itself cannot penetrate there. Emile M. Cioran appealsdifficultmadness True moral elegance consists in the art of disguising one's victories as defeats. Emile M. Cioran moralvictoryart If we had the courage to confront the doubts we timidly conceive about ourselves, none of us would utter an 'I' without shame. Emile M. Cioran shameifsdoubt There was a time when time did not yet exist. Emile M. Cioran time We die in proportion to the words we fling around us. Emile M. Cioran flingproportionwriting We derive our vitality from our store of madness. Emile M. Cioran storesvitalitymadness The amount of chiaroscuro an idea harbors is the only index of its profundity. Emile M. Cioran chiaroscuroharborsideas The universal view melts things into a blur. Emile M. Cioran bluruniversalviews Write books only if you are going to say in them the things you would never dare confide to anyone. Emile M. Cioran darewritingbook A civilization begins to decline the moment Life becomes its sole obsession. Emile M. Cioran obsessionmomentscivilization I saw that philosophy had no power to make my life more bearable. Thus I lost my belief in philosophy. Emile M. Cioran sawsbeliefphilosophy
